Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C

Homily of the 10th of February 2019, 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C Called, Cleansed and Commissioned The Bible presents us with wonderful “iconic vocation-stories”. God called Abraham and made him the father of all nations. The fearful and ‘slow tongued’ Moses was called by God to ask Pharaoh to liberate the Israelites. Young David was called and made King. He called the persecutor Saul to become the apostle to the gentiles with the name Paul etc. Last week we heard about the call of Jeremiah, and in the readings of this Sunday, we hear the vocation stories of Isaiah and the apostle Peter. Three things run through these vocation stories which can be resumed into the words: Called, Cleansed and Commissioned God calls us every day to participate in his mission. It is a privilege for us that despite our unworthiness, God coopts us to share in his salvific word. In most cases we consider ourselves unworthy and try to disqualify ourselves. But when we are down to nothing, God is up to something. He calls us despite our weakness, he purifies and commissions us.  God calls us in various ways. In the case of Isaiah, it was a vision. Isaiah remembers exactly when it was–the year that King Uzziah died. He remembers what he saw: God on a throne seated in the Temple. The Apostles in the Gospel were called, this time not within a prayer environment, church or temple, but at their jobsites! They were doing their normal and daily works when God called.  God knows we are unclean; he knows we are unworthy so he himself cleanses us. This is almost typical of all calls! Moses did everything to reject the call because of his unworthiness to speak, same thing with Jeremiah because of his youthfulness. Isaiah says it in clear terms: “What a wretched state I am in! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips” …. Peter simply says, “I am a sinful man” …. When we get in contact with God, despite our uncleanliness, we are cleansed.  After cleansing us, God commissions us, this means he gives us a specific mission. To some it seems an IMPOSSIBLE one. Isaiah was given the difficult mission of telling people who believed they were God's people that they had forsaken God and would suffer the consequences for their disobedience. The Apostles were given the mission of being fishers of men!  Today God continues to call us. We need to personally hear the powerful call of God and voluntarily respond to it. But God had to prepare Isaiah so that he would hear his call and respond to his mission. In the same vein, Christ prepared the twelve to be able to respond to his call. We also need to experience a portion of God's preparation of Isaiah that we too might have ears to hear and a heart to respond to God. Let's use the following outline to look at how God prepared His servant to hear and positively respond to His call for ministry. Like Isaiah we must say HERE I AM SEND ME. Jude Thaddeus Langeh, cmf Please Pray for me