January 25: The Day of the Lord / El Día del Señor

In St. Matthew’s Gospel, when Jesus begins His public life, He says, “Repent.” (Matthew 4, 12-23) The original word which the Gospel uses, metanoia, does not mean “being sorry or merely correcting one’s ways.” Jesus is not asking for that. In fact, that almost trivializes His life and His message to think that He became flesh and died just to get us to be sorry for our sins and to try to do better. He wants way more than that. He wants metanoia – a complete and radical change! Without it there can be no Kingdom of Heaven.

Notice how His first followers stopped what they were doing, put down everything, and walked away from what had come before – they showed a complete alteration of what they used to do and who they were. They might have stayed where they were and hung out with Jesus part time. They might have even become friends with Him, but He became their Lord and Master, and with that choice they experienced metanoia.

Each of us must decide whether our faith is more than just a nice idea or just a comfort when times are hard. The “following of Christ” to which we have been called is not a sideline or a part-time activity – it is the only thing that makes sense of life. The metanoia which the Gospel demands can transform us into everything we could possibly be that is good and is holy. All of this begins when we choose to be what God made us to be and live the way God made us to live, holy and righteous in His sight, generous and blameless, peacemakers, forgivers, healers, reconcilers, and people of love – without hate, anger, jealousy, or selfishness. That is a whole new way of looking at ourselves and of standing before God and before one another. It is the way into and the very definition of the Kingdom of Heaven.

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Jesús llama al seguimiento a Pedro, a Andrés, a Santiago y a Juan. (Mateo 4, 12-23) Principio quieren las cosas. De aquel germen ha surgido la Iglesia; sobre aquellos primeros cimientos se ha construido el edificio. Para realizar su misión liberadora Jesús cuenta con colaboradores: son los primeros discípulos que reciben su llamada. A ellos dice “Síganme y los haré pescadores de hombres.” 

La vocación es la respuesta a una llamada que el hombre recibe de parte de Dios. Quien toma la iniciativa es el que llama, el Señor. Muchos seguían a Jesús de forma interesada: porque hacía milagros, porque pensaban que les iba a ofrecer poder u otros beneficios. Jesús, en cambio, busca personas que se dejen seducir por su palabra y su fuego, que se apasionen con sus proyectos y su estilo de vida. Por eso los llama, para que estén con Él y vean cómo hay que hacer las cosas.

Donde se hace presente el Evangelio se promueve el amor a la vida y el servicio a la vida. Evangelización y promoción humana no son realidades extrañas; van del brazo. El Evangelio se dice con palabras que anuncian a Jesús y se dice con gestos “hechos en el nombre del Señor Jesús.” Y en la Palabra de Dios tenemos recogidas esas palabras. No desaprovechemos la oportunidad de escucharlas. Esa Palabra está disponible siempre.