Today’s readings are very apt for our current times, where many of us are experiencing vulnerability, tension, and unpredictability.
Yet as followers of Christ, we are being called to trust in God our Father, who knows us intimately and understands our needs.
In the First Reading, we hear Jeremiah’s challenging voice giving an unpopular message to the people, who must change their self-centred way of living. In his isolation, Jeremiah turns to the Lord to ask for help, for he needs friendship in very real ways in his difficulties.
The Psalm is a cry of anguish from one in great danger. Yet despite his distress, the psalmist has confidence in the great love of God.
Paul teaches that the consequence of sin is ‘death’: a death that includes the death of our friendship with God. But Paul also emphasises the abundant reality of divine grace; a free gift introduced into the world through Christ Jesus (Second Reading).
In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds the Twelve that they are not promised success; they will suffer. Yet he bids them repeatedly, ‘Do not be afraid’. The Father’s tender care will never desert them. God is on their side: not as a remote figure, but as a Father who has intimate knowledge of and care for each of them.
In these our own times of trial and vulnerability, we pray for God’s guidance and teaching. ‘Lord, you invite us to cry out with complete confidence in the Father’s boundless love. This day we offer you praise and thanks for your abundant gifts to us in our poverty and weakness.’