SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Ordinary Actions, Extraordinary Results 

I always found it a little confusing that the Church would have “Ordinary times.” In my childhood mind it meant boring times, or at the very least, times that were not special. There were no holidays to look forward to, and the anticipation of Christmas was finally over. Even as an adult, I think many of us feel the same way; the joys and stresses of preparation during Advent and the subsequent culmination into Christmas is a very energetic and focused time for everyone, but once the new year strikes and the Christmas season ends, we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief.  While this is all well and good, Ordinary time takes on a much more profound meaning when we look a little closer. Ordinary time can actually be an extraordinary time for us to develop ourselves. The readings from this week seem to really drive that idea.

In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor 12:4-11), he states that, “To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit … (the Spirit) distributing them individually to each person.” We are each given gifts that are unique to us, but it is our responsibility to develop and use them. Each of us has a calling, but we need to take the time to pray and to figure out what those gifts are and how best we can use them. Then in the gospel we see this exact thing happen to Jesus himself. He already knew who he was and what he had to do, but maybe he, like us, had to figure out where to start. His public ministry (which is said to have begun at the wedding feast at Cana) began when he was confronted with a relatively ordinary and embarrassing situation that only he could fix. And let’s not overlook Mary’s role in pushing him forward: “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5).  In the same way, in our lives we are presented with situations that only we can fix: saying words that only we can say or doing work that only we can do — situations that call for us to bring Christ into the world. Sometimes we, too, can use a push. Our words and work can even become extraordinary ways of proclaiming, as we hear in today’s responsorial psalm, “his marvelous deeds to all the nations.” We are called to take this ordinary time and make the most out of it, using the gifts we have been given.

–Jon Taylor

Send Us Forth are reflections written by St. Matthew parishioners and friends.