Following Christ from the twofold path of call and response.
«Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening».
The experience of walking with Jesus is materialized in a call and a response proper to the one who receives the call. Therefore, it is a bidirectional path that implies listening and responding, even with the fears inherent in existence.
First Reading: From the first book of Samuel 3:3b-10. 19
Second Reading: From the first letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians 6:13c-15a. 17-20.
Gospel According to St. John 1:35-42
Samuel’s experience represents the constant response of humanity to embrace the diverse calls of life. We find ourselves faced with diverse voices urging us to live in a certain way, and we run in search of an answer. However, Samuel, despite his attempts, fails to identify the voice of the Lord until the third call and with the guidance of Eli. Samuel’s response is docile, attentive and with an open heart. Discovering the authenticity of the divine call requires recognizing the voice of the speaker and listening. Divine listening is a challenging virtue to cultivate in a noisy world full of flashy voices. In spite of this, Samuel, from the docility of his heart, responds: «Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. Docility and inner silence thus become essential tasks in order to respond with certainty and fidelity to the vocation and dream that God has prepared for those whom he loves.
First Letter of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians 6, 13c-15a. 17-20
«Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him.» The Christian understanding of the body is based on contemplating it as the tabernacle of the spirit. This perspective confers on the body a sacred value by allowing it to manifest the divine presence through its actions. In a culture obsessed with physical appearance and standards of beauty, the Christian view of the body implies a balanced care for one’s basic needs and pleasures. St. Paul’s teaching stresses that the body can become an expression of glorification of the Lord, which implies caring for it, loving it, respecting it and valuing it. It is crucial to delve deeper into the theology of the body and the reflections of St. John Paul II in order to gain a new understanding of sexuality and love.
Gospel according to John 1:35-42
«He said to them, «Come and see».
The experience of the call translates into a response to the human search for happiness and the meaning of life. The call of Andrew and John reflects the characteristics of the call of Jesus, who teaches, accompanies and captivates with just a few profound words from the heart. Each person has different searches in life, some respond to personal stories, complex situations, desires and dreams. Jesus’ encounter with these disciples manifests the divine desire to meet with those seeking answers. Christ’s call presents new ways of thinking, acting and relating. St. Ambrose of Milan urges us to seek Christ not with bodily steps, but with the disposition of the soul and contemplation from the heart, which implies a deep faith and a soul capable of longing for the eternal from the earth.
Fruit: Ask the Lord to make you a contemplative of life, capable of listening to the calls he makes to you to live fully from the following proposed by Jesus Christ.
S. Johanna Andrea Cifuentes Gómez, tc