25th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A

Hi, this is Father Nick Smith, pastor of St. Patrick's in Perry.

The parable of this Sunday's gospel reminds us of the urgency and the necessity of missionary work in the church.

We are convinced, of course, as baptized and confirmed Catholics, that those who receive these sacraments receive the same grace of the Holy Spirit and the same eternal life that is promised to all of us through baptism and through a life in the church.

No matter when we receive these graces, they are effective for us when we receive them with great faith.

This is what prompted the church's missionary life for so many centuries, especially in the 15-16 hundreds, when so many missionaries were traveling across the ocean to all countries of the world to preach the gospel.

They were convinced that there were souls in need of Christ, souls who had never heard of Christ, souls who had been, as it were, standing idle all day, waiting for someone to hire them.

They wanted to go and bring Christ to them so that they could have that usual daily wage, the gift of eternal life.

In our day and age, there are many of those who have been baptized but perhaps have never really heard a good proclamation of the gospel or seen an authentic witness to Christian charity.

In this way, they too stand idle in the marketplace, waiting for someone to show them the way.

We, as baptized and confirmed Catholics, must be those missionaries in the middle of the world to show these people who stand idle what it means to be a disciple of Christ.

In this way, we invite them to work alongside us.

No matter what hour of the day they have entered back into the fold, they come and receive the wages of Christ, which are always enough for our satisfaction.

Let us then be compelled on to our missionary vocation as baptized Catholics.

This is something that no one is exempt from.

We are all called to partake in it.

Let us ask for the grace of the Holy Spirit to do this well.

And may God bless you all.

Let us continue praying for each other.