Sepember 26th - 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Num 11:25-29; Jas 5:1-6; Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48)
In Mark’s Gospel, the person expelling the demons in Jesus’s name may not have been a visible member of the disciples, but his faith in Christ and his actions testifying to his faith are effective because of the power of the name of Jesus. This same theme is present in the first reading from Numbers, in which God’s power is shown to be effective in accordance with his will, apart from human expectations. God’s Divine Providence should be a source of joy for us. The story of the “other exorcist” should remind us that God’s grace is always a gift, and it is never something that is earned. In the New Covenant, we receive the grace of God through the reception of the sacraments, which are the normative way to obtain eternal life.
Christianity proposes Jesus Christ as the Truth, and this Person desires to be in a living relationship with us so that we can truly know him. The Truth is knowable, because Jesus has revealed himself to us! This is a hopeful message in a world full of hopelessness. Christianity is the counter to relativism. Our society professes an entirely different philosophy than the one of the truth of the Gospel – many believe that there is no truth and it is impossible to know the truth. This relativistic mindset tragically leads many people to stop seeking truth, and thus to lose a real sense of meaning and purpose in their lives. If we really believe in Jesus, then we must believe that those who do not know him yet are longing for him in the secret places in their heart, in which they do not even know of yet. Many of us Catholics struggle to see ourselves as missionaries, but we are called to spread the message of the Gospel.