Proper 9 (14) – Year C
Fourth Sunday after Pentecost: July 6, 2025
Gospel Lectionary Text
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
10:1 After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.
10:2 He said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
10:3 Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.
10:4 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road.
10:5 Whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house!'
10:6 And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you.
10:7 Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house.
10:8 Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you;
10:9 cure the sick who are there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'
10:10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say,
10:11 'Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.'
10:16 "Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me."
10:17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!"
10:18 He said to them, "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning.
10:19 See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you.
10:20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Context
Welcome to the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost. Last week, Jesus was rejected by a Samaritan village. James and John were quick to seek vengeance: “Shall we call down fire from heaven?”
This week, Jesus goes back to the drawing board. He sends out more messengers, but this time with clear instructions. No weapons. No money. No backup plan. He sends them out in small groups, two by two — exposed, dependent, and vulnerable — “like lambs among wolves.” On the surface, these instructions are absurd. He’s giving the competitive advantage to the wolves, who are already wired to dine on stray lambs.
He further instructs the disciples to enter potentially hostile homes with a blessing: “Peace to this house.” If received, peace rests. If not, they are to move on in search of hospitality elsewhere. No argument, no retaliation. Just dust shaken off and the quiet insistence: “The Kingdom of God has come near.”
And here’s the really weird part. It works! The mission trip is a wild success, a rarity for the disciples. The messengers had become the message. They returned amazed that even the demons submitted to them. It was cause for celebration. In fact, Jesus rejoiced, exclaiming, “I saw Satan fall like lightning.”
In a world where might makes right, the Gospel reveals another way — a power made perfect in weakness and vulnerability. A power that is capable of breaking the cycle of violence and opening the door to new creation.
Question
Jesus sends the 70 out two by two, “like sheep among wolves” — a striking image of vulnerability. If we are representatives of the One who sends us, what does this say about the Sender? And what does it reveal about the nature of our mission?
Reflections
Praying Eucharistically - Weekly Homily by James Alison:
Girardian Lectionary Weekly Reflection:
Understanding the Bible anew through the Mimetic Theory of René Girard.
Poetry
This week, we invite you to read and reflect on the poem, “The World Has Need of You,” by Ellen Bass. “It’s a hard time to be human,” she writes, echoing what all of us feel. And yet, she still takes the time to ask, “What if you felt the invisible tug between you and everything?” In this week’s Gospel Lectionary text, Jesus sends his disciples out to spread the Gospel. He tells them to “carry no purse, no bag, no sandals.” He sends them out with nothing except “the invisible tug” between them and everything—nothing but the divine lovingkindness in which we “live, move, and have our being.”
Was it by immersing themselves in this “invisible tug” that the disciples became able to speak “Peace!” to every house they entered?
The World Has Need Of You
by Ellen Bass
I can hardly imagine it
as I walk to the lighthouse, feeling the ancient
prayer of my arms swinging
in counterpoint to my feet.
Here I am, suspended
between the sidewalk and twilight,
the sky dimming so fast it seems alive.
What if you felt the invisible
tug between you and everything?
A boy on a bicycle rides by,
his white shirt open, flaring
behind him like wings.
It’s a hard time to be human. We know too much
and too little. Does the breeze need us?
The cliffs? The gulls?
If you’ve managed to do one good thing,
the ocean doesn’t care.
But when Newton’s apple fell toward the earth,
the earth, ever so slightly, fell
toward the apple as well.
Prayer
Come, Holy Spirit, wild and free. Do as you please. Shine your light on me that I might see things as they are, not as I am. Free me to act in your name with courage, creativity, and compassion.
