Luke 1: 39-45
How are we to know when we or anyone else has received an authentic call from God? This is an important question since the claim is raised often by many people, and sometimes the "call from God" seems rather strange or outlandish to us. Today's Gospel provides us with an important tool of discernment in the actions of Mary and Elizabeth.
Both Mary and Elizabeth receive important callings from God. Mary is to be the mother of Jesus, while Elizabeth is to be the mother of John the Baptist. Yet both women have as their first impulse the desire to serve one another. Mary undertakes the dangerous journey through the hill country of Judea to serve her cousin at the and of her pregnancy. At the same time Elizabeth serves Mary by believing her story about the background to her own pregnancy, thereby providing Mary with a support structure in the midst of extreme vulnerability.
When we see that the first impulse in a person is to care and serve for others, we can be sure that a call from God is an authentic one. When the impulse is a self-interested one, when it is concerned with power, control, or wealth, then it is not a call from God but from the evil one. An authentic call from God always leads to greater love and care for others.
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