15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Fr. Leo
The role of prophets in sacred history has been to call us back, or to make clear again, the voice and will of God. Prophets speak God’s truth. Truth about love which shapes our values, ethics, and sense of justice.
Jesus was the ultimate prophet because he was God himself speaking and acting in our earthly milieu. To hear Christ is to hear God. To know Christ’s love is to know God’s love for us; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The calling of a prophetic life rises out of a passion for God’s truth stirred up in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. When we hear of something unjust and feel an inner frustration and anger, that is the Spirit calling us to work for justice.
In this sense, all of us are called to be prophets. We were baptized into Christ to share his role as priest, prophet and king. The challenge in this calling is to allow God’s love to translate itself into our way of thinking and living in the world. For the Kingdom to come "on earth as it is in heaven" is dependent on us.
Detachment from “worldly” things can also make God’s voice clearer in our lives. This is why Jesus sends his disciples out in twos without food, money or a second tunic. Such simplicity strengthens the community of believers in their mutual dependence and makes us more available to God and for his incarnation in the world through us.
To share in the divinity of Christ we also share in his role as prophet. Let us then listen with our hearts that we may hear God’s voice and, through his Spirit, live the truth that burns with love in our hearts.