Do you know of any prophets today?

The readings from the 13^th Sunday of Ordinary time focused on the call of Elisha to succeed the great prophet Elijah.   Father Vince used some visuals to help set the stage: an umbrella, sunscreen, and insect repellant.   These are all items that provide protection.   In the readings Elijah placed his cloak on Elisha to signify he was being called to succeed him.   Father Vince told us that a person's cloak was very important to people of the time.  A cloak was used primarily as a form of protection from the elements to keep warm or to protect from the rain.  It had several other uses such as bedding, or to wrap belongings to take on a journey.  A cloak was very important to people of Elijah’s time. Elisha must have been someone special in order for Elijah to give his cloak to him.  

Elisha was special, being called by God to succeed Elijah as prophet.  He initially hesitated, asking to kiss his mother and father goodbye.  But after some stern words from Elijah, Elisha made the choice to give up his former way of life, by slaughtering his oxen and cooking them over the fire made from his plow.   The plow and oxen was Elisha’s, livelihood, but in answering the call he realized he had more important things to as a prophet for God.

What does a prophet do? A prophet is a messenger for God.  A prophet listens to God’s word, proclaims it, and calls people to religious devotion.  Father Vince asked if we knew any prophets today.  This was a trick question.  His answer was that we could all be prophets.  How can we do this?  

1)    By listening to God’s word.  We can do this by carefully paying attention to the homily and prayers at Mass.  We can also dig a little deeper and studying the Bible and teachings of the Church.  We can also listen to God in the silence of our prayer.  

2)    By proclaiming God’s teachings.  We can do this by sharing with others, in a loving way, what we have learned by listening to God.   We can do this with people close to us with our families, in the workplace, at play, and in service to others.  We can do this both by our words and actions.   In a world that seems to be turning away from God this is very important.

3)    Calling people to religious devotion.  The core of our religious devotion is celebration of the Eucharist where Christ is present.   We can first make it a top priority in our own lives to attend Mass every Sunday.  We can also invite others to attend Mass with us and let them know the joy it brings us.  A personal invitation to family and friends who may have been away from the Church are a good place to start.    If they’ve been away they may need some joy in their lives.  Let them know you want them to share the same joy you experience.

Pray to God for the strength to put these ideas that Father Vince shared with us into practice and be a prophet for God.  May God bless you.