“In our Gospel today we see Jesus beginning his public ministry and calling some of his apostles to follow him and work with him in his mission and in another Gospel we see Jesus proclaiming what his mission is about. You could call it his inaugural address. He approaches the stand in the synagogue in Capernaum and he unfolds the scroll to the prophet Isaiah and he reads, ‘The spirit of the Lord is upon me. You sent me to bring Good News to the poor, liberty to captives, sight to the blind and to proclaim a year of favor for the Lord. That is the mission that Jesus embraced and which his apostles embraced with him and the church embraced with him now in our day. It is to bring the Good News to the world in need of this news in need of this hope in need of this liberation. You know, we are made in the image and likeness of God. What a dignity we have. What does it mean to be in the image and likeness of God? God is all knowing and we have intelligence. God is free and we are free in our decisions that we make. Above all, God is love and our greatest ability is to love to love God and to love one another in this life, but as great as our dignity is as being made in the image and likeness of God when God became a human being when the Word became flesh when Jesus came to us he raised our dignity beyond all comparison because in Jesus we are the children of God himself, heirs to the kingdom of heaven. Before Jesus there was no possibility for us to be in Heaven, but with Jesus we are given that great blessing…made in his image our dignity is not respected in many places for many people the freedoms we enjoy are denied throughout the world in many places. The freedom to life, how many unborn babies are denied that right which comes from their dignity as human beings. We are given the right to shelter to food to adequate medical attention that comes from our dignity as human beings as an inalienable right and yet it is denied to so many people. We are given the right to be involved in our futures to make decisions the right to assembly the right to decide what our future will be. We are given the right to work for a just wage, the right for assembly. Many of these rights are denied to so many people, but the mission of the Church is always to embrace the mission of Christ because we are the body of Christ and Christ is the great liberator and we are called to continue his mission of liberation of bringing sight to the blind and freedom to the oppressed and each one of us as baptized Christians is called to participate in this work according to our own circumstances, our own abilities and even our own interests, but Jesus lives in this world today through you and me and his mission continues as we embrace it and continue to work at his behalf. Remember the words of the great prophet Micah. He said, ‘One thing is required of you to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly before your God.’
I have a little prayer I’d like to share with you. I entitled this prayer, “Jesus Liberator”.
I have a little prayer I’d like to share with you. I entitled this prayer, “Jesus Liberator”.
Where is justice? Where compassion?
Where the love of all?
Jesus Lord be with us today
Help us to hear your call
You tell us Lord, ‘Love your neighbor
Help the dispossessed
There are so many in our world
Who are so very oppressed
Now liberate them all my Lord
Free them from their pain
And free me from my selfishness
Carelessness, disdain
My Lord, help me build your Kingdom
Of justice, truth and love
Your Kingdom Lord where all are one
Where you reign above
Free us Lord and forgive us Lord
Please don’t hesitate
Come free and heal and unify
Come and liberate”