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16 | February 7, 2019 | The Homer Horizon faith
homerhorizon.com
Pastor Column
Being the disciples of Jesus — then and now
Pastor Dana O’Brien
Cross of Glory Lutheran Church
In Matthew 28:19-20,
Jesus’ last words to his
disciples are to go and
make more disciples, more
followers of Jesus. Now,
this passage is so important
that it’s often called the
“Great Commission” — and
Jesus is calling all of us
in the church today to do
the same thing. We are all
called to both be disciples
and to go and make more
disciples (note that Jesus
didn’t say, “go out and make
more church members;”
he didn’t even say, “go out
and make more Christians.”
Instead, Jesus told all his
followers, then and now, to
go out and make disciples).
The kicker, of course, is
to figure out what it means
to be a disciple. And finding
out more about what being
a disciple meant when Jesus
originally said it in the
first century is helpful in
figuring out what it means
today. Back then, there
were a number of Jewish
rabbis (i.e. teachers) who
interpreted and taught the
Hebrew Scriptures, and
each of them had their own
group of young men who
followed them closely —
their disciples. Becoming
a disciple was very competitive
because rabbis were
important people, and many
young men wanted to be a
rabbi’s disciples.
In first century Palestine,
disciples pretty much lived
with their rabbi for years,
watching and listening to
everything the rabbi did
and said, so they could
learn to do and say the
same. Because back then, a
disciple didn’t want to just
learn what the rabbi knew;
rather, a disciple wanted to
be in such a close relationship
with the rabbi that the
disciple would actually
begin to think and act like
the rabbi. Disciples committed
their entire lives to
becoming so like their rabbi
that people would see their
rabbi in them.
So, if we apply that first
century understanding to
discipleship today, we find
that it involves a lot more
than intellectually agreeing
with certain theological
principles, or even trusting
your life to God and trying
to be a “good” person. Being
a disciple of Jesus means
being in such a close and intimate
relationship with him
that we live like Jesus would
live if he were us. And we
live like Jesus all the time, in
all aspects of our lives — not
just for the few hours we
spend in worship on Sunday
mornings, but also in our
jobs, our free time, our social
activities, our politics, our
finances, everything. All we
say, all we do, all our decisions
are modeled on what
we discern Jesus would do if
he were us.
You’ve got to wonder —
what would our communities
look like if we all lived
as disciples of Jesus all the
time, if we all exercised
the same kind of love and
welcome and compassion
and forgiveness that Jesus
exercised? How different
could this world be if people
could see our rabbi Jesus
in us?
The opinions of this column are
that of the writer. They do not
necessarily reflect those of The
Homer Horizon.
In Memoriam
Pamela Giusti
Pamela A. Giusti, 69, of
Homer Glen, died Jan. 23.
She is survived by her husband,
John; her children,
Bob (Alonso) and Tony
(Rosie); her grandchildren,
Gabby and Tony; her siblings,
Susan (Ralph) Pratt,
Patricia (Bill) Florence,
Bill Yedinak and Kevin
(Linda) Yedinak. Services
were held Jan. 25 and 26 at
Richard J. Modell Funeral
Home and Cremation Services.
Entombment Good
Shepherd Mausoleum. In
lieu of flowers, donations to
American Cancer Society
appreciated.
FAITH BRIEFS
Have someone’s life you’d
like to honor? Email
a.ivanisevic@22ndcentury
media.com with information
about a loved one who was a
part of the Homer Glen community.
Visit us online at
homerhorizon.com
Cross of Glory Lutheran Church
(14719 W. 163rd St., Homer Glen)
Annual Meeting
10:45 a.m. Sunday, Feb.
10. The annual meting will
take place after worship. The
purpose of the meeting is to
celebrate what has been going
on at Cross of Glory during
2018, to elect two new
council representatives and
to approve the 2019 budget.
There will be a themed
brunch and meeting. For
any questions regarding the
meeting, contact any current
council members of the Rev.
O’Brien.
Nursery for Children
9:30 a.m. Sundays, 6:30
p.m. Wednesdays
Parishioners may use the
nursery for their children
up to age 3 during services.
There is a Kids Klub for
children in grades 4-5 during
the service.
Christian Life Church
(15609 W. 159th St., Homer Glen)
Sunday Service
10 a.m.
Thursday Service
7:30 p.m.
EDGE Youth Service
7:30-9:30 p.m. Thursdays.
Our Mother of Good Counsel Parish
(16043 S. Bell Road, Homer Glen)
Understanding World
Religions
1-2:30 p.m. Thursdays,
Jan. 10 through Feb. 14 or
7-8:30 p.m. Mondays, Jan.
14 through Feb. 18. For
those with questions about
other religions, curious if
there are connections between
the different faiths.
The Rev. Joseph Broudou
will lead in learning about
Jewish, Muslim, Hindu,
Buddhist and Christian
brothers and sisters. Refreshments
will be served.
For more information and
to RSVP, call Janet in the
Faith Formation Office at
(708) 301-0214. Guests are
welcome to bring friends.
The Liturgical Year
2-3:30 p.m. Saturday,
Feb. 9. The series will run
through five Saturdays,
ending on March 9. There
will be an examination of
the evolution and the dynamics
of time and story
in the liturgical shaping of
time. Moreover, those gathered
will explore the theology
of Sunday, festivals
and seasons as reflected
in today’s liturgical books
and calendar. To register
and for more information,
call Janet in the Faith Formation
Office at (708) 301-
0214.
Daily Mass
8 a.m. Monday-Saturday
Weekend Mass
5 p.m. Saturday
8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m.
Sunday
Confessions
4-4:45 p.m. Saturdays;
9:30-10:15 a.m. Sundays;
8:30 a.m. every first Friday
Council of Catholic Women
7 p.m. Second Tuesday of
the month.
Women of the parish meet
to discuss its needs. The
group also hosts a monthly
charity bake sale.
St. Bernard Parish
(13030 W. 143rd St., Homer Glen)
St. Bernards Kids’ Choir
4:30-6 p.m. Thursdays.
All children in grades first
through eighth are welcome
to join choir. A permission
slip to join can be
obtained through Julie Kane
at the table by the church
exit or through one’s RE
teacher.
Annunciation Byzantine Catholic Church
(14610 S. Will Cook Road, Homer Glen)
Knowledge & Prayer Series
2019: Humanae Vitae —
Sound Teaching or Missed
Opportunity?
7 p.m. Thursday, Feb.
28, Our Lady of the Woods
10731 W. 131st St., Orland
Park. The Rev. Andrew
Wawrzyn will answer questions
about the encyclical
Humanae Vitae, issued 50
years ago by Pope Paul VI.
Wawrzyn, who was a member
of the Jesuit Order before
becoming a priest of
the Chicago Archdiocese,
will talk about what the encyclical
proclaimed, its relevance
to today and about
whether its publication
and position were the right
move to make at this point
in history.
Sunday Services
8:15 a.m. Orthros; 9:30
a.m. Divine Liturgy; 10 a.m.
Sunday School. For more
information, call (708) 645-
0652.
Adult Bible Study
9-9:45 a.m., first and third
Sundays of the month
Have something for Faith
Briefs? Contact Assistant
Editor Alex Ivanisevic at
a.ivanisevic@22ndcentury
media.com or call (708) 326-
9170 ext. 15. Information is
due by noon Thursday one
week prior to publication.