Homily for Wednesday of the 19th Week in Ordinary Time

There is a devout tradition that when two Jewish people sit together to discuss the words of the Torah, God’s presence is with them. Jesus makes a related but different claim. He declares that where two or three are gathered in His name, He is there among them. Matthew has already presented Jesus as Emmanuel, “God-is-with-us.”[1] He is God’s presence among us. Whenever His followers gather in His name, worshipfully aware of Him, He is there as Emmanuel, “God-is-with-us.”

 

Only two followers are needed to ensure the presence of Emmanuel. When we gather in the LORD’S name to pray, whether it is the prayer of the Eucharist or some other form of prayer, the LORD is always present with us. We don’t just enter into the LORD’S presence on such occasions, we are already in it. We only have to become aware of the One who is present among us. That is why attention, consciousness, is always at the heart of all our prayer, whether we are praying privately or communally.+

 

[1] Matthew 1:23