August 31, 2009
Monday of the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord." Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, "Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:18-21
Piety
Take from me, Father, all that keeps me from accepting my responsibility to work and pray for all that is acceptable to the Lord.
Give to me, Jesus, all that leads me to carry out your work in this world.
Set me free, Holy Spirit, from my addictions and distractions, so that I might live my life for you. Amen.
Study
Luke Chapter 4 (sometimes known as the Nazareth Manifesto) is among the most important messages proclaimed anywhere in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. Jesus accepted and announced his mission and vision. Today, Luke calls on us to accept and fulfill our role as Christians so that we will always live in the presence of the Lord.
The notes to the New American Bible tell us that more than any of the other gospel writers, “Luke is concerned with Jesus' attitude toward the economically and socially poor. At times, the poor in Luke's gospel are associated with the downtrodden, the oppressed and afflicted, the forgotten and the neglected, and it is they who accept Jesus' message of salvation.” Later in this chapter, we will read, see and hear the first example of that when Jesus cures the man with leprosy and then how he cures Simon’s mother-in-law.
Jesus went much further than just a social gospel and a healing ministry. In today’s scripture, Jesus took the combined weight of the entire salvation history and placed it squarely upon his own shoulders, the shoulders which were so strong that they would also carry the weight of the cross and all of our sin along with the inequities of the world. He was able to stand up to this challenge because he was not alone. He did it with the strength of the Spirit of the Lord.
Now, that responsibility passes to our shoulders. Jesus no longer has a shoulder in this world except ours. He sent the Holy Spirit after him to continue to inspire and to strengthen us. Now, we have to bear those burdens and right those wrongs.
However, sometimes, we are the oppressed. Sometimes we are the poor, the captives and the blind. What has captured you and your heart? Maybe we are not physically enslaved but sometimes our addictions and pre-occupations keep us from helping the Lord continue to bring such hope into the world.
Pray for the strength and will to free yourself from these burdens so you can work to free others from what oppresses them.
Action
Proclaim liberty to the captives. Let the oppressed go free. In a nation that enjoys the freedoms guaranteed under out laws, it is hard to believe that slavery and human trafficking still exist. The responsibility to be aware of these issues and to work for solutions is upon all of us.
Human trafficking is the second largest and fastest growing criminal industry in the world. Victims experience a loss of freedom and exploitation at the hands of their traffickers who buy and sell them in pursuit of profit. As a result, human trafficking is commonly known as modern-day slavery.
In human trafficking situations, traffickers gain complete control over victims and force them into the labor, services, or commercial sex industry in order to generate profit from their labor and commercial sex acts. Some of the forms of violence traffickers use to control their victims include brutal beatings, rape, lies and deception, threats of serious harm or familial harm, and psychological abuse.
September is Human Trafficking Awareness Month in DC! There will be several events happening throughout the month. Here are two dates you can mark on your calendars now:
What: A Night of Freedom with the Nationals
Where: Nationals Park (1500 South Capitol St SE, Washington, DC)
When: Thursday, September 10 @ 7:05 p.m.
The DC Task Force is proud to announce that it will be hosting "A Night of Freedom with the Nationals" when the “Nats” host the Philadelphia Phillies. The event will bring awareness on human trafficking at a widely publicized sports game. The DC Task Force and Nationals will be selling discounted tickets and t-shirts to wear at the game.
What: DC Stop Child Trafficking Now Walk
Where: Meridian Hill Park (15th St NW and Euclid St NW, Washington, DC)
When: Saturday, September 26 @ 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
The Stop Child Trafficking Now Walk will be the first anti-trafficking walk and the largest anti-trafficking event in DC history! The walk will unify the voices of non-governmental organizations, the government, and community members and will be part of a larger national effort that includes walks in other cities such as New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Dallas. The DC walk is organized by DC Stop Modern Slavery, a volunteer community group.
To get more involved in the anti-trafficking movement, please visit the website www.ActionCenter.PolarisProject.org. Feel free to contact Polaris Project at info@polarisproject.org if you have any questions or concerns. You can sign up for automatic updates on this web page: http://www.actioncenter.polarisproject.org/take-action/sign-up-for-updates.
