Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 14th week of Ordinary Time - Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 9, 32-38 - I am the Good Shepherd, says the Lord; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.

Christian brothers and sisters! Jesus continues to prove his work, his teachings. This teaches us, first of all, that we must not limit our faith to passive commiseration. Prayer," says one author, "is a struggle, not a sigh. Second, it is not enough to speak, nor to animate, but we must act, to put ourselves to work by example. This is one of the ways of applying the Gospel: it is our life which is a living Gospel, open to others and which leads them to believe and to act.

It is another miracle that Jesus shows us today, always centred on salvation or the safeguarding of life. Faced with the miracles of Jesus, people are divided. On the one hand, honest people receive them as an expression of God's power and strength, while on the other hand, those who believe they are superior always look for a pretext to resist and deny. The prayer of Jesus goes well in this sense: "You have revealed to the little and humble the secret of your kingdom, but you have hidden it from the wise. This is the reality of our life. Missionary work depends on this reaction of people. It is greatly facilitated when people are ready to believe and act. This is in contrast to what happens when people do not want to accept the truth that is announced to them.

Despite the resistance, Jesus does not give up but continues to call us, encouraging us to commit ourselves, in the mission of the Church, to the world where there is so much work to be done. He says: "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few". Jesus asks us here, at least to pray that many will respond to his call when we ourselves are not ready to commit ourselves. That is why we are encouraged to pray regularly for the vocation.