Fr. Jorge Miró shares with Exaudi readers his commentary on the Gospel of this Sunday, July 6, 2025, entitled “Your peace will rest upon them.”

The Word that the Lord gives us this Sunday speaks to us of mission.  The Church exists for the proclamation of the Gospel. She is a missionary not on her initiative, but by a mandate from the Lord:  the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them ahead of him, two by two.

The number seventy-two may be a sign of the universality of evangelization.

For this mission we are called, sent, and empowered by the Holy Spirit who takes us out of our fears and comforts and gives us the strength and the charisms necessary to be witnesses of the Risen One to the ends of the earth.

We are called to be evangelizers with the Spirit  (cf. EG 259 ff. ), that is:  evangelizers who open themselves without fear to the action of the Holy Spirit…  who infuses the strength to announce the newness of the Gospel with boldness (parrhesia), loudly and at all times and places, even against the current.

We are called to be witnesses, not gossips or lecturers. It’s not about explaining a theory, but about proclaiming a mystery, announcing an event. In other words, we are called to bear witness to the life of Jesus Christ and to proclaim the good news of salvation, of God’s free love.

We are called to live and proclaim that the kingdom of God is near, not in our own strength, but in the power of the Spirit.

Pope Leo tells us that evangelization is not a human conquest of the world, but the infinite grace that is spread through lives transformed by the Kingdom of God. It is the path of the Beatitudes, a journey we walk together, in constant tension between the “already” and the “not yet,” hungry and thirsty for justice, poor in spirit, merciful, meek, pure of heart, working for peace. To follow Jesus on this path He has chosen, powerful protectors, worldly commitments, or emotional strategies are of no use. Evangelization is God’s work, and if it sometimes passes through us, it is because of the bonds He makes possible (cf. Vigil of Pentecost, June 7, 2025).

He sends us to heal the sick, to cast out demons. And Jesus sends us with power, in his name. Therefore, we must not carry purses, bags, or sandals… My strength and my power are the Lord.

Jesus commands us in pure gratuitousness. We must not rely on human means, but on the name of Jesus. We must not worry about success, but rather bear witness to absolute trust in God, who cares for the disciple. Our lives will thus be a sign that the Kingdom of God has arrived in Jesus.

The Lord sends us to do his work. It’s not a matter of taste or desire, but of mission.  We are called and sent. And the mission comes with a promise.

He sends us to proclaim an event:  that the kingdom of heaven has arrived ; to be witnesses of the Love of God, which is manifested in Jesus Christ.

Preaching becomes an event, and this bears witness to preaching. The Word of God has power and is an event, a miracle; it is the Word that brings about the new creation and therefore produces signs that announce Satan’s defeat.

He sends us to announce the nearness of the Kingdom of God. His missionary style is simple: going from house to house, spreading peace.  This peace is more than a greeting: it is the gift of salvation, the Good News of Jesus Christ, already announced in the first reading: “I will cause peace to flow down to her like a river… thus I will comfort you.”

The Lord invites us to pray because the harvest is plentiful, and the workers are few.

The Lord is calling you. You are called to be a witness, to be a missionary.  The Lord invites you to bear witness to the Good News of the Gospel in the world, in your world.  Do not be afraid! Trust in the Lord! He carries your life. He calls you to be a witness, to be a light for your family, your friends, your colleagues, your neighbors…

Come, Holy Spirit!