A Heart to Serve

Homily: Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B)

Mark 6:30-34

21 July 2024

Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez

Lately, I have been consulting a gastroenterologist for my discomfort. My last conversation with him revealed a lot of traits I find admirable. He was sharing with me how his colleagues often call him “crazy” for having clinic hours from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm from Monday to Saturday. This on top of the numerous procedures and hospital rounds he has to do every day. He is so good at what he does that a lot of patients go to him for treatment of their digestive disorders and diseases. He is also a very religious person and draws inspiration from his faith in fulfilling his duties. He said that he teases his fellow doctors that he would only stop treating and helping people when he drops dead.

In the gospel passage this Sunday, Jesus also has a packed schedule!  There is not a single dull moment in His day. Jesus was very much occupied in giving Himself at the service of people — bringing healing and wholeness into their lives, that He hardly had time for Himself. Despite this, Jesus never seems to complain and groan about the task at hand; at times He is even choosing to forego His own temporal needs for the sake of others.  The gospel recounts “they did not even have time to eat” (Mark 6:31) so Jesus instructed His disciples to “[go] away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” (Mark 6:31) They had gone off on a boat so they could be by themselves yet the people found out where they had gone and followed. Though Jesus also needed to rest, His heart was moved with pity when He saw the vast crowd desperately seeking Him. He chose instead to attend to others who are in need. This is how Jesus lived every day of His life — an emptying of Himself for others.

There are two things we need to learn from Jesus from His actions in today’s gospel.  First, let us be sensitive to the needs of the people who are close to us. Sometimes, we take for granted the needs and feelings of our family, our friends and those who work closest to us. We think they will always understand us and our passion to achieve our goals. Stay at home moms are often the casualties of this. They make sure all the needs of their husband and children are met to the point that they do not have time to rest, have a haircut, or spend time with their own friends. Sometimes we assume our mom is okay doing all these things for us without knowing her mental health is affected or she has been ignoring the symptoms of a developing illness. To some of us who are the heads or team leaders at work, we also have to be compassionate with our subordinates. We have to make sure that they have time to eat and rest and maintain a good work-life balance. We have to remember that we as workers are not machines and what we are tasked to do is only part of the many things that make up our life as human beings.

Second, we must always make ourselves available to our brothers and sisters who need us. Sometimes, we are too focused on achieving our goals or looking after ourselves and our loved ones that we choose to ignore those needing our help.  I guess many of us here share my pain of seeing families having a grand time eating out together oblivious of the street children looking longingly at their leftovers through the restaurant window. Yes, these kids should be taken care of by their parents but in these moments, can we not have a heart? We do not become less of a person if we share the blessings we have received from the Lord.  I remember the daily prayer of a good friend, a nun who died two years ago. She used to pray: “Lord, you may take me back to you once you think I have already used up all my energy and have given enough of myself for others.” That was precisely how she died. She only got sick a week or two before she passed on.

We draw inspiration from Jesus as we look beyond ourselves, our own needs and our own goals and how unreservedly we have attended to the needs of others. In the end, our service of love for others is what makes our life meaningful and worth living for. Let our prayers, provisions and presence be healing and consoling to those in need; may they be strangers or very close to us.

By Stella Levi