Sunday is the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. The term Ordinary Time means that we are not preparing for an important feast like Christmas or Easter, nor are we celebrating an important feast. There are two Ordinary Time liturgical seasons. The first Ordinary Time follows Christmas and ends with Ash Wednesday. The second Ordinary Time follows Pentecost and ends with the First Sunday of Advent. The first Ordinary Time begins by focusing on the Incarnation and will lead us to the season of Lent. The second Ordinary Time has its focus on Easter and will lead us to the season of Advent. Keep in mind: when Jesus is involved in our lives, nothing is ordinary.
Called to Discipleship in Belief and Behavior
In today’s readings, we are called to be followers of Christ. We are called to live our discipleship in our belief and in our behavior. In baptism, we are called to a life of holiness and wholeness. The Gospel invites us to “come and see.” We are invited to meet the Lord Jesus again for the first time. We are invited to deepen our personal relationship with the Lord. The lives of Peter, Andrew, James, and John were radically changed. They grew beyond what they may ever have imagined. Our relationship with the Lord is deepened through prayer and our relationship with others.
The Universal Call, Personal Paths
When the call to holiness is universal, the discernment of one’s way to live out that call is personal as well as Church-related. All vocations have similar earmarks. The call always involves the giving of oneself completely to the Lord through the vocation. Each vocation is called to the service of others in the name of the Lord. Each vocation has death and resurrection experiences. Each true vocation feels natural to the one called. Thus, some are called to the vocation of marriage and parenthood, others to religious life or single life. Some are called to Holy Orders as deacons or priests. All are called to give of themselves. All have their lives completely changed for the better.
Hear the Invitation Anew
I invite all to hear today’s Gospel for the first time. I invite all young people to consider Christ as your hero and to seek a life that will proclaim his greatness. Hear the invitation of Christ to follow him. See and hear this call as a call to deepen one’s personal relationship with the Lord in the context of the Eucharist, Scripture, and Church. See the Lord as a dynamic and alive person for you in your heart, in your mind, and your whole being. Grow in the Lord, and you will have a life to the fullest.
Msgr. Guy A. Massie
January 18, 2026