Luke 10:1-12, 17-20

Earlier, in Luke’s Gospel Jesus sent out the twelve disciples to heal disease and teach about God’s kingdom. Here he sends out a much larger group, ahead of Himself in pairs to every town and place He himself intended to grow. Being sent in pairs reminds us of the value of team work . In order for communities to grow and flourish the gifts of many are needed. Synergy is needed. This happens when individual talents and harvested and aligned as in the beauty of a choir singing in perfect harmony, or a sports team at the peak of their performance.

Synergy is like a power of the Spirit that rewards collaborative efforts. It is when we can dream and strive for the possibility of things before they happen. Synergy promotes collaboration, not competition or exclusion.

Jesus gathered his followers around him, men and women, who were enthused by his vision. He sends his followers out in pairs so that they can support each other. In all our different roles we too are sent out ahead of him as parents, ministers of various kinds, politicians, educators, social workers, nurses.....

In any team, a parish council, a ministry group, a choir we need a kind of synergy. We are all responsible for our Church, not just a select few. We all have different roles to play, we all have responsibilities. When we promote collaborative teams and strive for synergy, we embrace each others' stories and work for the common good. Then exciting things are possible.

Jane Mellett