He Ain't Heavy

                                     He Ain't Heavy          Photo by JEOMYEOL

They were unable to join him because of the crowd.

Our Gospel description of Jesus’ mother and brothers trying to meet with him.

That description also fits the situation here in our city for the next few days.

Pope Francis will be landing in a few hours.

And everywhere he goes he’s going to be surrounded by crowds.

We won’t be able to join him.

But we will be able to see him and listen to him, from within that crowd or on our TVs.

And he does have a number of messages for us.

One message is likely to be the same one Jesus gave in today’s Gospel.

My mother and my brothers and sisters are those who hear the word of God and act on it.

Jesus called us to action two thousand years ago.

And that call has echoed through all those centuries.

As we’re urged by popes and bishops and pastors and teachers—and God’s voice within us.

Pope Francis has chosen Mercy, as the main theme of his papacy.

That abundant, extravagantly generous mercy that God extends to each of us.

And that mercy that we’re called to extend to others as we follow the two Great Commandments.

Love God, and love our neighbor as ourselves.

Since we’re all children of God,

Those neighbors are more than just neighbors, they’re our brothers and sisters.

Brothers and sisters to Jesus are also brothers and sisters to each other.

Pope Francis is likely to remind us that we have an obligation to immigrants and refugees.

They too are our brothers and sisters.

Surely they do present some burdens for us, at least in the short-term.

They can weigh on our economy.

They can weigh on our job market, and housing market, our schools and other resources.

They can weigh on the administrative and legal processes needed to deal with them.

Of course, we need those rules and processes to avoid chaos.

But we’re called to find a way to make it work.

As Americans, most all of us are just a few generations removed from our immigrant ancestors.

That history should boost our empathy, and our optimism for the longer term.

We may be already-financially-strapped citizens, called to carry a bit of added financial burden.

Or activists called to carry the message and convince others of our obligation.

Or Turkish soldiers, called to carry drowned refugee children from a beach.

Whatever our own particular call to action might be,

We’re all called to carry out some role in this worldwide struggle of refugees and migrants.

We might be tempted to consider our role a burden.

But it’s really an opportunity to hear the word of God and act on it.

To share some of the mercy and love God has poured out on us.

When we look at the struggling migrant and consider our own potential burden,

Let’s respond as a young fellow once did as he carried another into Fr Flannigan’s Boys Town.

He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.

Tuesday 25th Week Ordinary Time
Lk 8:19-21     Read this Scripture @usccb.org