GOSPEL REFLECTION, WEDNESDAY, 25TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026, ST PIUS OF PIETRELCINA

Luke 9:1-6.  In today’s gospel Jesus gives his first mission to the twelve disciples.  He gave them the ‘power’ (the ability) to preach the Kingdom and to heal, so that they shared in his public ministry.  He gave them the ‘authority’ to do so, in other words he called and delegated them to do so.  They did not do so on their own initiative.  The ability to preach as he preached and to heal as he did comes from Jesus himself and he chose them to do so.

The only general way of communication in Jesus’ time was by word of mouth.  Few people could  read, and printed material scarce as it was, was accessible to the elite.  People HEARD scripture rather than READ it – no circulating books, no radio, no television, no phones.  Theirs was an ‘oral culture’ that relied on the spoken word, and healing relied on the physical presence of a healer.  This meant that hearing the Word of God was an intimate and personal thing that required real people to be present to share it.

Two things must be emphasised: the preaching and hearing of the Word of God was an immediate and personal experience, yes by individuals, but also by crowds of people all at once.  It was shared by the preacher and shared as an experience by a gathered assembly.  Like wise, healing was mostly a public matter, occurring to the same crowds or assemblies that heard the Word of God.  Both the hearing of the Word and healing went together – they were both signs and experiences of the Kingdom already among us although not yet in fulness.

Secondly, preaching and hearing the Word and healing are both simultaneously spiritual and physical experiences of the Kingdom.  Both deal with our physical beings (hearing/listening) and the healing of our physical and mental ills.  Both deal with our spiritual beings (‘our hearts,’ ‘our souls,’ as scripture says).  The Kingdom of God is realised and experienced by our whole beings, body, heart, and soul; the spiritually and the physically real are intricately connected and cannot be separated.