October 28, 2017

Gospel: Lk 6:12-16
At this time, Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him, and chose Twelve of them, whom he called ‘apostles‘: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.

REFLECTION:
When we want to see a good and clear view of a particular area, we go to a higher place. In a similar way, if we want to perform a particular action in an exemplary or commendable manner, we have to go up and see it in a wider view by pausing for a while and reflecting about it.
Our Lord, before choosing the Twelve whom he also named apostles, went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. This is what he customarily does during the significant moments of his ministry. Likewise, Christians, before making an important decision/judgment or doing a particular task, must also be prepared not only physically and mentally but also spiritually. Our Lord is our model par excellence of this spiritual preparation. As followers of him, we must ”go into the hills” (v.12) or to a place where we could find solitude and peace; spend an ample time for reflection and communication with God; and then, put into action the fruits of our reflection and prayer. All followers of Christ are called not only to think before doing something but most importantly to pray sincerely and reflect deeply.