"She heard about Jesus"

Homily at the closing Mass
with the SACBC Youth chaplains and coordinators
- "Little Flower" chapel (Manzini) -

 

Not sure you noticed it but when Mark tells us the story about this pagan woman who runs to Jesus, he says: “She heard about Jesus…”

It is not the only time we find this expression in the Gospel. We heard it last week (Mark 5:27) when we read the passage of the woman suffering from a flow of blood; she too “had heard about Jesus”. 

These two women heard about Jesus and it must have been exciting because they both went to him convinced he could make a difference in their lives.
 

We are here because we too have heard about Jesus; and more than that: we have met him and chosen to follow him. This “hearing about him” was just the first step.

 

The hearing about was so good, so attracting, that we wanted to meet him and, having met him, we chose to follow him.

In 2014, Pope Francis wrote in "Evangelii Gaudium" (The joy of the Gospel): 

I invite all Christians everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ (EG 3)

As Christians we are constantly called to a regular and renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ: in his Word, in the Eucharist, in the people we meet, in the different events of our ordinary lives…

This Jesus Christ we have heard about and have chosen to follow, is not a private property. We are not in an “exclusive relationship” with Jesus ("me and my Jesus"). He is to be shared. We want other people to hear about Jesus, to meet him and to follow him.

The hearing about him must bring in them the desire to meet him, like today’s unnamed mother of a sick child.

I know you are leaving today but I wish you could leave with these questions for you to reflect about and to lead you:

• how is your service in the SACBC youth office making sure that our young people hear about Jesus and make them excited about meeting him?
• how is your service in the SACBC youth office helping young people to know him better, to renew their encounter with Jesus Christ daily?
• how is your service in the SACBC youth office making our young people missionaries, passionate about talking to others about him?

This is what your bishops want you and all of us to do at every level of our conference. That is why a “Mission Council” was born! The bishops want to make sure we are a missionary Church helping others to hear about Jesus, to meet him and to follow him.

But then – and I finally conclude! – if you are going to talk about Jesus… what would you say about him? What do you have to say about Jesus?

Not every Christian church presents Jesus in the same way! For some he is just a miracle worker... For some, he never preached the beatitudes we will be reading on Sunday...! For others there seems to be no cross to carry... For others it seems that he does not identify with the hungry, thirsty, sick, migrants and refugees… 

 

She has heard about Jesus... May you help others do the same.