Homily for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

As we begin our foray into Ordinary Time, our Gospel passages will relate stories of the beginnings of Our Lord’s public life.

It is evident that from the beginning, the Lord did not intend to “go it alone,” but to draw people to Himself whom He would form in faith through their relationship with him, so that they might continue His ministry following His return to the Father in heaven upon His Ascension. It is this relationship with Christ that would form the basis of His Church.

And so, we hear today the Calling of Saint Andrew, the first Apostle, and of Saint Peter who would become the Head of the Apostles. Our story differs dramatically from the depiction of the same event in the Gospel of Mark, which we will hear next Sunday. Today’s Passage is unique in two ways:
+ the treatment of the Calling
+ the narrative of the response

The Calling

There really is no calling from Christ here in the usual sense. Instead, St. John the Baptist points out Christ to St. Andrew, and Andrew approaches Christ of his own initiative.

The set-up for their encounter is both interesting and important. The Evangelist tells us that Jesus was “walking by…” not, at the moment:
+ teaching
+ preaching
+ working miracles… just walking by.

This brings to mind another famous stroll wherein God the Father walked in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the evening, following Adam’s Original Sin. When Adam and Eve heard the sound of God walking, they hid themselves. Then God called out to them: “Where are you?”

The confrontation which follows in the conversation between God and Adam ends with Adam and Eve’s expulsion from Paradise. Then… Man, who once
+ walked with
+ talked with
+ looked upon the face of God… 

… would be separated from God as a consequence of Original Sin.  


But now… notice both the reversal in events and the reversal in fortune in the story of the Calling of Saint Andrew: Once again, God, now in the person of Jesus, was “walking by.” Whereas the first man Adam, hid from God the Father, now the first Apostle, Andrew, approaches God the Son. And… where God the Father asked Adam, “Where are you?” now it’s Andrew asking Jesus, “Where are you staying?”

Then comes a rather peculiar exchange:
Jesus: “What are you looking for?”
Andrew: “Where are you staying?”
Jesus: “Come and see.”

They seem to be testing each other out before committing to one another, quite different from Saint Mark’s depiction, where Andrew drops his fishing nets and follows Christ immediately and un-reservedly.

This former disciple of St. John the Baptist becomes now the first Apostle of Jesus Christ. Then he takes over the role that John the Baptist had: pointing out Christ to the people, beginning with his own brother Simon Peter with the happy cry: “We have found the Messiah!”

With the recognition of, and proclamation of, Christ as Messiah, the privilege of walking with, talking with, and looking upon the face of God, lost by Adam, is now restored by and in Christ.

The Response

Here, we once again look at St. Andrew’s somewhat coy answering-a-question-with-a-question motif. In asking Jesus, “Where are you staying?” he’s not dodging the Lord’s question, nor asking for the Lord’s GPS address… his question reveals his heart’s desire in veiled language, which is actually saying, if timidly:
+ I want to walk with you
+ I want to be with you
+ I want to stay with you.

And Jesus says, “Come…”

The Lord’s simple response, “Come and see…” radiates His love for Andrew. Jesus wants Andrew — and each and every one of us — to walk with Him, be with Him, and stay with Him. This divine intimacy is the radiant center of every vocation in Christ. Our Christian faith, then, is not based in mere ideology, competing with other ideologies, nor simply a Collection of Teachings… it is first, foremost, and last, an intimate relationship with Christ.

Our Lord wants us to bring others to Him, as well, just as Andrew brought Simon Peter to Jesus. And so, in our own Calling, it is important to consider that the Lord is always “walking by” — which is to say — He is always near to us, and is absolutely approachable. We know that He is perpetually present to us in the Blessed Sacrament in the Tabernacle, but now it is we who are “walking by.”

He is calling us quietly:
+ to come to Him
+ to abide with Him
+ to belong to Him

Will we approach Him, then as St. Andrew did, or will we just keep walking, maintaining a casual, or even superficial relationship with Him? He cannot be present to the world if He is absent from our hearts.

Not sure how to develop a relationship with Christ? Let Him do the heavy lifting. Just place yourself quietly, prayerfully, and patiently in His presence. He will not pass you by. His call may be subtle, but He is waiting for your response.

So, trust Him… follow Him… stay with Him… belong to Him.