“As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Matthew 10:7.)
In commenting on these verses from today’s Gospel, Saint John Chrysostom writes:
“Do you perceive the unparalleled magnificence of their ministry? Do you comprehend the dignity of the apostles? They are not authorized to speak of things perceivable by the senses. They do not repeat what Moses said or the prophets before them. Rather, they spoke of new and strange things. Moses and the prophets spoke of temporal promises of an earthly land. The apostles proclaimed the kingdom of heaven and all that this implies.
Not only does the loftiness of their message characterize them as greater, but so does the lowly nature of their obedience. They were not reluctant nor irresolute, like those who came before. Instead, warned as they were of perils, wars and intolerable evils, they receive his commands with simple obedience. They immediately became heralds of the coming kingdom.” (The Gospel of Matthew: Homily, 32.)
Collect
O God,
Who made the Abbot Saint Benedict
an outstanding master
in the school of divine service,
grant, we pray,
that, putting nothing before love of You,
we may hasten with a loving heart
in the way of Your commands.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Who made the Abbot Saint Benedict
an outstanding master
in the school of divine service,
grant, we pray,
that, putting nothing before love of You,
we may hasten with a loving heart
in the way of Your commands.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen
