"Follow Me"

Gospel
Mt 9:9-13
As Jesus passed on from there,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
He heard this and said,
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

This gospel today is so meaningful on so many levels. Every. Single. One. of us is called to follow Jesus, and He knows us all intimately, personally, even more deeply than we know ourselves. And still He calls us.

Some of you may remember the post I wrote just over one year ago, in which one of the priests at my parish asked me if I'd considered becoming a religious sister. At that time I told him that I had, I didn't think I was called, and admitted to him that I really felt very lost. (He's the one who brought that up...I just agreed!). I was actually very touched by his encouragement and the fact that he'd even asked me that question, and admittedly, being that it was coming from him, I did think about it some more.

Today, that same priest gave a wonderful homily on today's readings and the gospel, and in so doing, also told his Vocation story. He's had an amazing and tragic life, and yet one so joyful and filled with God's presence and guidance throughout. I hadn't heard his story prior to today and was myself thrilled to finally hear it. But somewhere in the middle, I realized that this priest is the only one at my parish who doesn't know about the door I've cracked open again. And he's the one maybe with the most right to know about it!

I usually pray for awhile after Mass, so it was that by the time I left, Father was greeting the last few stragglers, so I had an opportunity to talk to him for a bit. I asked him if he remembered our conversation, and immediately he did, and his eyes just lit right up. He remembered his invitation to me, and he remembered my response. So today he got the update, and when I told him, he looked so joyful I thought he was going to burst! I also told him about the Lay Dominican chapter we are working on, and that I don't know where either of these things is going. At all. He just said that God would guide me, and he's right.

Truth be told, I'm back to thinking I do NOT have a religious vocation as the pull seems a lot stronger to work on the Lay Dominican route, yet I do still intend to visit the Sisters this summer, for an overnight or a weekend, as my schedule allows.

I don't know where any of this is going, or why. But I do know that today, during Mass, (and even BEFORE Mass), I knew that Our Lord is calling me to follow Him, to sainthood, even by way of martyrdom should it come to that. I realized that I have all the tools necessary to become a Saint! We are given SO MUCH, so many paths to holiness! I considered all the wonderful and holy people in my life and throughout the Church, I sensed the unity with friends and strangers all over the globe, attending different Masses in different places, and I considered the Communion of Saints, there as we knelt beneath the Cross, together.

Today, I realized that it is within my grasp to truly become a Saint, and all I have to do is cooperate with God. Our Vocations are really just pathways to holiness, and they are the paths specifically and personally chosen by God Himself, for us, individually. We may not know the next waystation on the path, but if we keep placing one foot in front of the other, and are willing to abandon ourselves into Jesus' hands, we will never be lost.

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