Prophet Amos was going about his business when he realized that things around him were just not going as they should. Israelites were not listening to the wisdom handed down to them, and a religious leader named Amariah was chief among those who were not living as God had called them to live. Nonetheless, Amariah went after Amos and tried to shut him up. But Amos simply said that he had no intention of being a prophet—just a man making a living like everyone else.
But he had seen enough. Leaders like Amariah had sold their souls to the wealthy and were ignoring those in need. These “autocrats” were running everything and in the process were ignoring those who struggled to make a living. N.B., To be an “autocrat” means to be a ruler who has absolute power (like Putin of Russia and a trend among some in the U.S. who have been pushing to give power to the office of president—without the “checks and balances” of the legislative and judicial branches of government. Today’s political landscape has produced the political vision known as the “2025 Project” (a document promoted by an extremely wealthy class of autocrats clothed in the patriotic name “The Heritage Foundation”).
Amariah and Amos represent opposing ethical perspectives that have existed throughout history—siding with the comfortable and wealthy OR siding with the middle and poor classes of citizens. Christians are called to imitate Amos—not Amariah.
When elections take place, we often hear people say that Americans vote their pocketbooks—basing their vote on what party they THINK will serve their bank accounts. Social scientists have observed that people often vote AGAINST their self-interest when THINKING a certain person or party represents their pocketbook better than another candidate or party. Americans are also said to NOT consider “foreign policy” their big attention-getter. People of goodwill espouse positions on both sides of the divide.
Our Old Testament reading this week reminds us that the competing positions of Amariah and Amos are still alive and well in America. The call of Jesus to see all people as our brothers and sisters means that “foreign policy” is a secular way of referring to how we are relating to our relatives. Economic policy is a matter of concern for all Christians. We are called to take care of less successful people. We are not called to preserve our wealth, or anything, at the expense of other people. That’s why greed is a capital sin—a powerful movement within the human mind that stirs an interior spirit that is not the Holy Spirit.
Today’s gospel addresses our financial well-being from a totally different angle. Namely, we learn that Jesus told his disciples not to take food with them, not bring a change of clothing, and carry no money. Jesus told them to rely on the kindness of people they’d meet along the way. Down through the years, his counsel has been taken by many to mean that we Christians should not only live as men and women of modest means, but that it is some sort of spiritual ideal to be destitute and not have any of “the nicer things of life.
This understanding led to the founding of monasteries and people trying to live on alms in exchange for their prayers. Living the simple life and not flaunting one’s wealth is certainly a part of Christian identity, but this passage is not calling Christians to impose on the generosity of others. Positively, our Christian witness to living as people of modest means is a challenge to an American culture that fosters what is known as “conspicuous consumption.” Notice how people fill up their attics and garages, and then have to rent storage space for what goods they’ve accumulated over the years.
Do you or I REALLY need another (fill in the blank)? Can our funds for low and high-price knick-knacks be better directed at something that helps other people?
In the time of Jesus, and in that part of the world, a premier virtue that is well known in scripture is “hospitality.” In today’s gospel, Jesus is simply giving his disciples some pragmatic advice. If this passage had him speaking in today’s language, we’d hear him say: “Hey guys, be sure not to take money or food or a suitcase of belongings with you. There’s too good a chance that you be mugged, beat up, and robbed. So just travel light.”
THAT is his simple message in today’s gospel. He’s not offering a spiritual strategy of living that is to be taught for all ages. He knew that hospitality is expected in that region of the world, and his guys needed to rely on that cultural behavior. Whereas we automatically assist relatives who pass our way, hospitality is different. It is still a Christian virtue that calls us to welcome the stranger. In the time of Jesus, it was an expected behavior that would serve his disciples when they were traveling.
On this Sunday, the 14th of July, France is celebrating what it calls “Bastille Day.” The Bastille was an infamous prison that saw many French people suffer within it—under the leadership of the monarchy and wealthy “autocrats.” The people rebelled, sent many to the guillotine, and eventually set up that country’s form of democracy. Today in France, people are happy that they are not ruled by a tyrant who is “owned” by big business and industry. Happy Bastille Day, France. It was a French nun and priest who revealed the devotion our parish honors when being called “Sacred Heart.”
This date is also the feast of Kateri Tekakwitha, once well-known as “the lily of the Mohawks.” Her people were part of a confederacy known to history books as the “Iroquois” but who were a people who called themselves the “Hoe-dee-nuh-show-nee.” Other tribes within this group were the Cayuga, Oneida, Tuscarora, Seneca, and Onondaga (the same name as the Michigan town outside of Lansing). They occupied northern New York and southern Quebec.
Kateri’s family was wiped out by smallpox and she was disabled in walking. Her facial scars from the pox made her self-conscious. Over time, she got close to the Jesuit priests and became a devout Catholic along with other women of her people. Upon her death at 23, witnesses claimed that her face lost its marks and became clear—something those present considered miraculous as her final words were “Jesus, I love you.” Since her death, people visited her burial site, and she was remembered over time as someone who merited sainthood.
That honor came to Kateri on October 12, 2012 when she was canonized by Pope Benedict. Globally, people are quick to see things or believe things that don’t exist—like the face of Jesus or Mary appearing on a pancake, and then seeing the pancake as a sacred object. Because we humans are quick to ascribe sainthood to our mothers, grandmothers, and other family members, the Church has been more demanding when acknowledging a claim to saintliness. Hence a miracle or two are needed as “evidence” of God’s hand at work in the person’s life.
Kateri’s miracle came when a little boy named Jake Finkbonner cut his lip when playing. An infection set in, and within a short time the family was told his condition was touch and go. Blest with a relic of Kateri, Jake was healed, an investigation ensued, and the Church recognized a miracle as having taken place. Now 24 years old, Jake is a college graduate and practicing Catholic. He claims to have visited heaven while recovering and said that Jesus told him that he couldn’t stay there—but instead had to go home and live out his vocation.
When all of this unfolded, I saw it as another example of “Coincidence is God’s way of remaining anonymous.” The miraculous healing had not occurred in Europe or Africa but instead took place within a family of American Indian descent. Moreover, the young boy’s “issue” disfigured his face (as had occurred with Kateri). Other elements further reinforced this motif of aligning with something out of the ordinary.
Should you care to Google his story, here’s an article from a diocesan newspaper published in 2023.: