Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority

Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. And He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money, and do not have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them." So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. Herod said, "John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?" So he sought to see Him. And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.

But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here." But He said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said, "We have no more than five loaves, and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people." For there were about five thousand men. Then He said to His disciples, "Make them sit down in groups of fifty." And they did so, and made them all sit down. Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude. So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them.

- Luke 9:1-17

Yesterday, we read Luke's account of the double-miracle that is found in all three Synoptic Gospels. Jairus, the leader of the synagogue, approaches Jesus needing urgent help because his only child, a daughter of twelve, is desperately ill. On their way, Jesus passes through crowds and stops suddenly. He asks, "Who touched Me?" He has felt His power go out of Himself -- and He draws out the woman with the years-long blood flow. Later He continues to Jairus' house -- but by now they have been told the girl is dead. However, Jesus tells Jairus to have faith, she is only sleeping. After He awakens the girl (despite the ridicule of the mourners), He tells everyone not to speak of this tremendous miracle. See Who touched Me?

Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. Jesus' disciples are at last set off -- "sent out" (the root meaning of the word Apostle) -- into mission. We see an interesting note here as an accompaniment to yesterday's reading: He gave them power. We recall the "power that went out Him" when the woman with the blood flow touched the hem of his clothing. Jesus is the source, the center, but grace shares and expands its power through faith. And there is a second factor mentioned: authority. So, Christ shares two elements of His divinity through grace with His disciples: power and authority. They hold the keys to the kingdom; He shares elements of His own capacity through grace, for preaching and healing. But first it is clear, once again, this is a spiritual mission, for they have authority over demons.

And He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money, and do not have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them." And how does this great power and authority appear to us? It is in the acts and appearance of radical humility: they go out without great preparation and pomp. In some sense, there is nothing to distract from the pure witness of the spiritual mission. Wherever they are first received, no matter how humble the dwelling nor the people, they are to remain there -- and not to move to better quarters as they are accepted and may be offered later. And those who do not accept this power and authority, who reject it? They are to be dispatched with a simple act of rebuke: the apostles are to shake the dust off their feet as a testimony against them. This is the way God's power and authority work through those "sent out" on this first special mission His disciples are now prepared enough to make, and are thus entrusted to do through faith.

So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. Herod said, "John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?" So he sought to see Him. And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. Herod the curious once again comes into play in the Gospels. He has had John the Baptist beheaded by this time. But rumors are coming to him, of things happening in this region, and his curiosity is once again sparked, as it was by John the Baptist. As Jesus' power and authority are successfully "sent out," so the powerful mechanism of state rule takes notice. We can hear the echoes of rumors sparked by Jesus' preaching: that Elijah has returned (as John the Baptist was identified by Jesus), some think John has returned in Jesus, and rumors of old prophets risen (perhaps from the "spirit of Elijah" that had returned in John). But the "sending out" of the Apostles -- on a successful mission -- has created a stir and been noticed by this king. It is interesting to consider the contrast between the pomp and excess (and even paranoia) of this ruler, and the humility in the direction of the first mission by the apostles. Herod (Antipas) can't know that Jesus is the now-grown child his father had sought to kill in Bethlehem. After their successful mission, Jesus withdraws privately with His Apostles to a deserted place -- as we have seen Him withdraw in prayer after and before tremendous acts of His own power.

But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. By now, the multitudes are following Him everywhere: preaching and healing are inseparable as part of ministry, just as it they were in the instruction of the Twelve.

When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here." But He said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said, "We have no more than five loaves, and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people." For there were about five thousand men. Then He said to His disciples, "Make them sit down in groups of fifty." And they did so, and made them all sit down. Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude. So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them. The first mission of the apostles was to go out to heal and preach, having power and authority over demons. But here, there is another opportunity. Besides the miracle of feeding (a fulfillment of type, being a feeding in the wilderness such as occurred with ancient Israel), there is something of which we must take note: the disciples are now initiated into a sort of mirroring or prefiguring of the Eucharist. What Jesus blesses and multiplies by His power and authority is distributed by His apostles. We can see the grace at work that blesses, multiplies and feeds through power and authority that comes from Christ (and ultimately, from the Father). The leftover fragments, of course, fill twelve baskets: one for each apostle - thus, symbolically, to continue their work of feeding His sheep.

So let us consider today the aspects of the divine will behind the elements in the reading: power and authority. This is the action of grace in our world, sanctifying, blessing, multiplying and distributing. The apostles are "sent out" on this great first mission, with authority and power vested in them by Christ. And so we have to consider this authority and power as it is in our world at work today; these are the actions of grace we must look to and understand for ourselves. There is first of all a clear spiritual basis to this authority, and our world is the place of its action -- they have authority over demons. The actions of this power and authority are to heal, and to preach. The power will multiply anything it touches: its effects will grow and continue to grow. And ultimately, it is for the purpose of feeding us all, the faithful who need this food and its sanctifying grace. How do you feel that power and authority and grace working to bless what feeds you in this world today? How do you feel it at work? How does faith work to receive it for you?