Jesus Instructs the Apostle

The Gospel of Matthew (9:36—10:8) opens with an image of Jesus looking at the crowds and feeling deep compassion, because they were “troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.” He tells His disciples that the harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few, before sending the Twelve Apostles out to heal the sick, raise the dead, and proclaim the King-dom of God. His ultimate instruction to them is a guiding light for all of us: “Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.”

This passage speaks directly to the modern Cath-olic living in a fractured world. Today, many people still wander “troubled and abandoned,” searching for meaning amidst isolation, division, and digital noise. Jesus’s call to action has not changed; we are the modern laborers called into His harvest.

Being a laborer today does not require traveling to distant lands. It begins in our homes, work-places, and here in our parish. We respond to the harvest when we offer a listening ear to a lonely neighbor, volunteering at a Saint Mildred Church function or program (catechists need-ed!), or practice forgiveness within our families.

 

We are called to be the face of Christ’s compassion to those around us. Having received the free gift of God's love and mercy through the Sacra-ments, we must share that grace generously with others, asking for nothing in return.