One of the most important events in an Athletics competition is the relay race. And one of the most crucial moments of this race is the baton change. The baton when passed from one runner to another is absolutely important. Sometimes races are won or lost because of this.
In the Gospel for today, we see a baton change. When John the Baptist was arrested because of his preaching particularly against King Herod, Jesus knew that the baton was now passed to him. And more crucially, Jesus started his ministry with a big sense of urgency because he knew that when John got arrested it wouldn’t be long before he was next.
Our Church has existed for thousands of years because of people who are willing to take on the responsibility to move the Church forward. One good example is the papacy. If we have time enough to research on the history of popes from St Peter all the way to the present Pope Francis, one can see this unbroken chain of this leadership of the Church. True, there were scandals and claims and counter claims to the Papacy and yet we can see a Church that has not only survived throughout its tumultuous history but it actually thrived and is still increasing as we speak.
And the same is true for all of us, we are called to continue what Jesus has started. We are called to carry this baton and continue running until the coming of the kingdom of God.
The second part of the Gospel is all about the calling of the first disciples of Jesus. In last week’s Gospel, we saw that two disciples of John the Baptist got interested in Jesus and after spending time with Jesus, they followed him. In Mark’s Gospel, we see that Jesus called his first four disciples and they left everything and followed him. Was their decision that quick? How could they have just left everything and followed a complete stranger? Is that the case?
I remember when I was in the seminary, after my Novitiate which was my third year in the seminary, I was recommended to take my First Vows. In the constitutions of the Society of the Divine Word, all are required to take Temporary Vows first for at least four times and in some cases nine times before making the Perpetual Vows. The idea was that a candidate who wants to be a perpetual member of the Society of the Divine Word will be given ample time to live the life of a religious person in vows (poverty, chastity and obedience) before taking the perpetual vows where a member would now be part of the Society of the Divine Word for life.
Most bible scholars agree that before the calling of the disciples, Jesus already knew them quite well already. These disciples must have listened to Jesus’ preaching for a long time now and somehow got attracted to the ministry of Jesus and finally they have received the invitation of Jesus and they have dropped everything and followed Jesus.
What Jesus did to his first disciples thousands of years ago continues until today. When we talk about the “calling” we always talk about priests, religious brothers and sisters. However, we should realise that the calling of Jesus to follow him applies to everyone. The call to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and be a part of propagating his kingdom is the duty of every Christian.
Hopefully, as we are always being called by Christ, we also respond to his call, with the same enthusiasm as the first disciples. We may never be needed to drop everything, yet to respond to his call to follow him will always be a must.