The Call of the Apostles

  "Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. He appointed twelve, whom he also named Apostles, that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach." Mk 3: 14-14 

Years ago, a wise priest friend and mentor told me that if anyone has more than three non negotiables in a relationship, they shouldn't be in that relationship. At the time, he was helping me learn the art of pastoral counseling, and it was advice he often gave to married couples. 

Imagine, he said, what it would be like for you to come to my rectory and find little notes up everywhere about which cup to use for coffee, how to say mass, which vestments to use and exactly where to park your car. I don't imagine you would want to return to help in this parish. When married couples find themselves in this kind of relationship, especially with regard to how to raise children, the marriage really struggles.

In today's gospel, Jesus chooses twelve apostles to whom he gives the power to preach and cast out demons, nothing more. As long as the apostles remember who they are who and they must follow, they will avoid making the same mistake as the Jewish leaders who tried to control God's people by dozens of laws and in the process lost sight of the God who is the ground of our spiritual lives.
Today, living simply and follow the way of the Lord.

Whose faith do you most admire for its simplicity and power?