This week's readings Week of Jan. 27 - Feb. 2 Sunday, Jan. 27, 2002 Reading I: Isaiah 8:23-9:3 Reading II: 1Corinthians 1:10-13, 17 Gospel: Matthew 4:12-23 Monday, Jan. 28, 2002 Reading I: 2 Sm 5, 1-7. 10 Gospel: Mk 3, 22-30 Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2002 Reading I: 2 Sm 6, 12-15. 17-19 Gospel: Mark 3:31-35 Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2002 Reading I: 2 Sm 7, 4-17 Gospel: Mk 4, 1-20 Thursday, Jan. 31, 2002 Reading I: 2 Sm 7, 18-19. 24-29 Gospel: Mk 4, 21-25 Friday, February 1, 2002 Reading I: 2 Sm 11, 1-4. 5-10. 13-17 Gospel: Mk 4, 26-34 Saturday, February 2, 2002 Reading I: Malachi 3:1-4 Gospel: Hebrews 2:14-18 Pope's Prayer Intentions January General Intention A strengthening of united Christian efforts to announce Jesus Christ: That Christians may work better and harder together to announce Jesus Christ, the world's only Savior. January Mission Intention Renewed commitment to evangelize in every aspect of work and life: That the local churches may learn to use every aspect of work and life to bring the gospel to others. Prayer for vocations This is Pope John Paul II's prayer for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations to be observed April 21, 2002 Holy Father, look upon this humanity of ours, that is taking its first steps along the path of the Third Millennium. Its life is still deeply marked by hatred, violence and oppression, but the thirst for justice, truth and grace still finds a space in the hearts of many people, who are waiting for someone to bring salvation, enacted by You through Your Son Jesus. There is the need for courageous heralds of the Gospel, for generous servants of suffering humanity. Send holy priests to Your Church, we pray, who may sanctify Your people with the tools of Your grace. Send numerous consecrated men and women, that they may show Your holiness in the midst of the world. Send holy labourers into Your vineyard, that they may labour with the fervour of charity and, moved by Your Holy Spirit, may bring the salvation of Christ to the farthest ends of the Earth. Amen.

Followers of Jesus:

A people on the move

		Word of God  Word of Life  Fr. John G. Stillmank

Often in our modern culture we hear that people move around a lot, changing jobs and even states of residence many times in their lives. The people of our culture are characterized by their mobility, which to some might look like restlessness.

Such mobility spreads members of families far and wide. Someone born in Virginia might attend college in Connecticut and end up working in California, only to move around from state to state during a career of many years. Brothers and sisters might live all over the country, raising families which themselves will some day similarly spread.

This is nothing new. Consider the case of Jesus himself.

He was born in Bethlehem and moved to Egypt as an infant. His family returned to settle in Nazareth, frequently visiting Jerusalem. He grew up and left Nazareth, moving to Capernaum in Galilee. He traveled all over Judea, even to the outskirts where Samaritans and others lived. He died outside the walls of Jerusalem. After the resurrection he sent his followers to the ends of the earth.

Readings for Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Jan. 27) Isaiah 8:23-9:3 Psalm 27 1Corinthians 1:10-13, 17 Matthew 4:12-23

The Gospel teaches that Jesus left Nazareth to move to Galilee and settle in Capernaum when he "heard that John had been arrested." Why did he do that? To lay low? To avoid being arrested too? To steer clear of the authorities?

No, he didn't. Jesus wasn't so closely associated with John that he would have been suspect too. He hadn't yet really begun his own ministry of preaching. But when John was arrested, the Gospel says, Jesus moved to Galilee and began to preach a similar message: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

Then he began to call his apostles, those whom he would teach for three years and eventually send forth to all the peoples of the world.

Clearly, Jesus was not one to hide. He wasn't restless, but he was a man on the move. He had a message to preach, and he recruited helpers to carry on his work when his earthly life was complete.

For Jesus, spreading the Gospel and his followers far and wide is part of the way the Church works. We are not people who hide. We are not satisfied to sit around and watch the world go by. We who are people of faith are also people of action. We are people on the move.

Isaiah the Prophet would describe us as a people who have seen a great light! And what should be our response to that light -- to sit in the darkness as before? To stay living in a land of doom and gloom?

No! We who have seen the light want to tell others the Good News. We who have been called out of the darkness of sin and death into the light and life of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are a people on the move, spreading the life of Christ as much as we can.

We are not a restless people, but people of action -- because Jesus was and is a man of action, a God of action. We are on a mission because Jesus entrusted us with the great mission of teaching others about him, about his commandment of love.

And so we should move among our family and friends, and beyond to our co-workers and others in our society, spreading the Gospel by our words and deeds. Christians should be characterized by our desire to be those people on the move, always moving towards others in need, always moving toward the kingdom of Jesus.

Fr. John G. Stillmank is Moderator of the Curia for the Diocese of Madison and pastor of St. Andrew Parish, Verona, and St. William Parish, Paoli.