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Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

January 27, 2019

Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21

What we hear spoken in the synagogue next weekend must be what we say in this church. The habit of Jesus must be the habit of those who follow him. If he was in the habit of going to synagogue, and there perceived through the Word of God what his life was to be about, it is the same for us. His habits must become our habits. The places where he found his identity and the vision of his live must become ours: in Baptism and in the Spirit. Try out the words of the prophet on yourself, try out the role of one who is beloved by God, chosen as his own, and sent to proclaim liberty and release, salvation, forgiveness, and love. For that is what we are and it is what we become in this place. The agenda of Jesus is the same for every one of us. If it were so for Jesus, then it must be so for us as well. Sharing in the same Spirit by the will of Father, we share the same agenda. We, the liberated become the liberators. We who are saved share the message of salvation for all. We the forgiven share forgiveness. In other words, if Jesus did it, so does the church. If the church does it, it is because Jesus did it. So next Sunday when hear Jesus put forth his agenda, it is the agenda of the church, the agenda in which we all have a share.

Fr. Tom Boyer