14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, B

To be a prophet

Mark 6:1-6

"Whether they listen or not, there is a prophet among them." So goes the first reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel.  Can we detect the prophet among us?

 It also goes the same way with Jesus who said, "No prophet is welcome in his own place."

How can we detect the modern-day prophet?  Can we be prophets?

First, a prophet is fully human in touch with the world and not just a soothsayer.  He hears the cry of the poor.

Second, a prophet is faithful to God and speaks His word and not his own.  Whose message are we transmitting?

Third, a prophet's capacity to see the future springs from his knowledge of God's will.  From there he can see the consequence of his words and actions, whether for salvation or for doom.

It doesn't matter whether others will accept or reject us, as long as we are prophets of the Lord we are safe and sound in God's arms.