On of the things I remember as a catch-phrase in theology is the saying "God calls, man responds". The Call, and the Response are both vitally important.
There is a hymn by Bernadette Farrell entitled "God Has Chosen Me" that states that "God has chosen me ... to bring good news to the poor ... to bring new sight to those searching for light ... to set alight a new fire ... to bring to birth a new kingdom on earth ... to tell the world that the kingdom is near ... to remove oppression and breakdown fear ... for God's time is near." The call of God, the invitation to enter into the mystery of life as it is found in Christ Jesus, is unique and yet universal. But it requires a response, it demands our YES!
In this Sunday's Scriptures we are reminded that the Call goes out to a specific people, the Children of the Promise, the People of Israel, Saul of Taursus' people. Yet when their response was less than enthusiastic, the invitation was extended to the Canaanite woman who longed for the scrapes that fell from the master's table, to the foreigners who joined themselves to the Lord, ministering to him and loving his name, to the Gentiles, to whom Paul became the Apostle. They too were recipients of the graces of God, but they too were called to respond - and they did. Their YES included them among the "beloved".
Tomorrow I will share a little of the story of two of those whose YES brought them to the Cross.
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