“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go” In response, Jesus tempers his enthusiasm with the reality of what lies ahead for him if he becomes a disciple, “The foxes have dens and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Jesus is saying that this journey will not be easy. He will be following someone who is always on the move, without a real home to call his own.
The call to disciples requires total commitment and no distraction of any kind. A disciple of Jesus is a 24/7 ministry. A total commitment and totally detached from everything but one thing, and that is Jesus himself. He must become the center. There is nothing more important in a person’s life than God. Nothing is to supersede one’s commitment to the gospel, Jesus says.
We see the reason Jesus says, “Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit to the kingdom of God.” In other words, once you have taken the plough, keep looking ahead. We have promises to keep following him, but weariness and past failures must not weigh us down. Our fidelity lies in our determination to be faithful despite all our infidelities, to press ahead, despite the weariness and the weight of the past.
In the first reading from prophet Amos (2:6-10, 13-16) is a reminder of the infidelity, unfaithfulness, and lack of commitment of the people of God. With no show of emotion, Amos cites the evidence, a long list of social abuses in which the poor were wronged and put down. The rich have trampled the heads of the weak into the dust of the earth and forced the lowly out of the way. People who go on committing such crimes are morally dead. Amos declares that God will avenge the poor and the oppressed, just as he once saved them from Egyptian slavery.
Such unfaithful include: “They sell the just man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of sandals. They trample the heads of the weak into the dust of the earth and force the lowly out of the way. Son and father go to the same prostitute, profaning my holy name.”
Following Jesus requires commitment. There is no room to respond merely from emotions because emotions can change, and that would not assure commitment.
What is your call? Whatever is our call, our vocation, our commitment becomes our life. How is your commitment to your marital state, or single, priestly or religious life? No matter what your vocation is, there is no room for wishy-washy, greed, jealousy, envy, and selfishness. Today, more than ever, people make commitments too easily and then break them. This is the age of the lack of true commitment. We all have heard those familiar excuses our young folks prepare to leave together outside the commitment of marriage: “I want to be free to come and go as I please!” “Let’s live together first. We’ll see if we’re compatible!”
Does this lack of commitment affect vocation to the priesthood and religious life? Sure, it does. Lack of commitment leads to a crisis in men and women called to commit themselves to life-long celibacy. As a result, they become adept at evading Christ’s call to discipleship. Hence, the message of Jesus is clear: “The foxes have dens and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Are you in, or are you out?
