Today’s Gospel is the familiar story of Jesus sending his apostles out on one of their early preaching missions. http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/matthew/matthew10.htm#v7
He tells them not to take a sack for the journey or any gold or silver. I’ve been thinking about this Gospel in light of the start of our new fiscal year. One the one hand, the budgets look full and are full of promise, on the other hand, I’ve not forgotten the projects that could not be funded given budget constraints. But, if I asked the popular question of a few years back-”What would Jesus do”, it opens us endless possibilities. He might suggest, that as the Executive Director of the Office of Evangelization, I leave my desk, walk out the door and just start talking about Jesus. This would require neither money nor a sack! On such a gorgeous day, it is also very tempting.
As Catholics…
However, as a good Catholic, I know that we don’t always interpret the Gospel literally–love your neighbor–that’s to be understood literally— take no sack or money for the journey–down right silly in this day and age!
The timeless message and truth of today’s reading is to be faithful to our responsibility to share the good news and be careful about the “stuff” that can weigh us down and keep us from getting the job done.
I began to think about about how I could evangelize more widely and at little cost. Quite to my surprise , it was suggested by a friend that I Twitter. I am not a likely candidate for Twittering; I don’t have a facebook page, I send maybe two or three texts a week and someone has to send me a link to YouTube or another video for me to notice it. But, I am serious about evangelizing and I am serious about reaching people who may spend more time twittering than reading the parish bulletin or checking out the ADW blog.
Follow me on Twitter
To be honest, I was a bit thrown by the question “what are you doing ?” Really, how much of what we do(in 140 characters) is really worth sharing? But, to answer the question in the context of spreading the Gospel is so much more intriguing. So, I am casting the net into the deep, needing no money or sack for the journey and going to Twitter about the Good News. Follow me at 30viadellanima.
30viadellanima
It was my address when I was living and studying in Rome. I lived in a beautiful palazzo on Piazza Navona and I use to sit in a window that overlooked the piazza and watch people from all over the world gather in the square. I often wondered how much of Catholic Rome was seeping into their minds and hearts. It is in this spirit that I move into the world of Twitter.
Let’s Tweet.