“What puzzles the world and its wise philosophers and fanciful pagan poets about the priests and people of the Catholic Church is that they still behave as if they were messengers. A messenger does not dream about what his message might be, or argue about what it probably would be; he delivers it as it is.” G.K. Chesterton, The Everlasting Man.
On Thursday, the daily readings again hinted at a call to prophesy. Jesus grabs a young woman by the hand and tells her to rise and walk. The word "walk" can mean to "go out" to be a prophet, to spread the Good News. But again, the question - what is a prophet today?
The prophet Amos, in the first reading, has an AWESOME statement. He essentially tells the king - "I am no [formal] prophet [this was no career path I chose for myself] but rather I am delivering a message not my own. I was a vine dresser and cared for trees, but God called me from that life to this." A true prophet does not deliver a message that he or she has thought up - a true prophet delivers the message God has entrusted to them. So what makes sure that message is sound - it is sound if it comes from the heart of the Church and also leads people back to Christ's bride the Church. If people claim to be prophets but are not pointing people to the same thing that Christ points people towards - namely Himself and His Church - then you can be sure they are wolves in sheep's clothing.
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