Also Called

Luke 6: 12-16

The Twelve Apostles

¹² One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. ¹³ When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: ¹⁴ Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, ¹⁵ Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, ¹⁶ Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

On this special day for Marists, when St. Marcellin encountered the dying Jean-Baptiste Montagne,this gospel is especially appropriate... (I'm being interrupted, but here goes anyway...)  The death of this young boy, illiterate in the faith, triggered St. Marcellin to act on his dream of starting a group of  Brothers (eventually the Marist Brothers) to teach the faith to the most neglected and immediately following the death of Jean-Baptiste, he enlisted two young men to join this project.  From their modest beginnings on January 2, 1817 till today, the Marist Brothers have been teaching the faith and are now in 83 countries around the world and have enlisted the aid of countless lay people, "Lay Marists" and "Marists of Champagnat" to help them.  This is a good day to reflect on what I can do to join the Marist Mission even in some small way.

Bro. Rene