Each year, on a particular Sunday in the fall, we observe what is called "Mission Sunday"—a day set aside to learn about the work of missionaries throughout the world, to pray for them and to contribute to their support. With a Gospel reading like the one we just heard from St. Luke, however, today might well be called Mission Sunday: certainly it contains a strong missionary theme.

Here, our Lord, after giving a good example in his own life and ministry, sends out a large group of his followers to spread the message of God’s kingdom in the towns and villages of Palestine. He outlines a complete plan of action for them and gives them the message they are to preach. It’s interesting to note that the message itself is very brief and very simple: "The kingdom of God is at hand." In comparison to this, our Lord spends much more time detailing their code of conduct. In other words, Jesus knows that what they do will have a greater impact on the people they meet than what they say. The missionaries of Christ must preach primarily by example because, as the old saying goes, actions speak louder than words.

So, how is a missionary to behave? Well, the first thing our Lord tells them to do is to pray—that’s right, to pray specifically for more missionaries: "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest." So the one who preaches and lives the Gospel of the kingdom is to be a person of prayer. In 1891, St. Katherine Drexel founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in Philadelphia. [tell story: the sisters at the motherhouse would pray in perpetual adoration before the Blessed Sacrament while the sisters on the mission field would be engaged in ministry]

Secondly, Jesus tells his followers to travel light—to take nothing extra on their journey: "Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals." Here is the great principle of detachment from material things. The missionary is not to accumulate wealth and possessions: these things will weigh him down as he carries the message of Christ to others; ultimately, they may even cause him to turn away from Christ himself. Even if the missionary is blessed with possessions, he is to be emotionally and spiritually detached from them, recognizing that they are not his to keep, but that they are gifts from God, intended to be used in the service of God.

So, how is the missionary to provide for his needs? Simply by trusting in divine providence: "The laborer deserves his payment," our Lord says, "Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you." These two great principles, then, go together: Detachment from things and trust in God’s providence.

Now, at this point you might be saying, "This is alright for the missionary; but what about me? I’m no missionary." On the contrary, yes, you are! All of us who are baptized into Christ have the responsibility and privilege of bringing Christ to others and bringing others to Christ. Both by word and by example, everyone should be able to see in us the life and teachings of Jesus. So the principles outlined here for the missionary of Christ, are for each one of us as well.

What else does Jesus say about how his followers should conduct themselves? After telling them not to take anything with them, he makes a somewhat strange command: "Greet no one along the way." Does this mean we should ignore the people we meet? Aren’t we supposed to be kind to everyone? Well, of course we are. But here our Lord is emphasizing the single-mindedness of the missionary: that nothing is to distract us from the task at hand. Saint Paul puts it this way in today’s second reading: "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." The Cross of Jesus is all that matters: everything else must take second place. And in all our relationships—from the most casual to the most intimate—the Cross of Jesus must be at the center.

Our Lord also tells the seventy-two that they are to heal the sick. Not many of us are given the gift of healing today, but all of us can use the gifts we have been given to serve others. And in this way, too, we live and preach the Gospel: by living more for others and less for ourselves. Has the Lord given you a special talent or gift? Are you using that to build up the Body of Christ or are you keeping it to yourself? Search your heart today and resolve to use that gift for others.

Finally, Jesus warns us not to take pride in what he accomplishes through us, as if they were our own accomplishments. Instead, "rejoice because your names are written in heaven." In other words, everything we have, everything we do, is a gift. And the greatest gift is the salvation we have in Christ Jesus. Our first responsibility is to treasure this gift and to see to it that it is not squandered or lost.

As we end our meditation on today’s Gospel, let’s go back to the beginning: the prayer for more laborers and recognize that, while all of us are called to preach Christ through word and example, a few are called to dedicate themselves in a special way to the service of the Church in the ordained ministry or in some form of consecrated life. We have seen the need for this kind of prayer in our own time and in your own communities here on the Cheyenne River Reservation: the Sacred Heart Fathers who served so well and were loved so well have had to leave because of dwindling numbers in their order. This is a problem throughout the Church in this country. Perhaps the Lord is calling you or someone you know. As we continue with Holy Mass, pray that the Lord make plain his will. Pray especially that more young men in our Diocese will hear the call to the Priesthood—perhaps some of the young men who went to our Totus Tuus vocation camp this past week. Pray "the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest."