The Readings for today's feast emphasize the prophetic mission of the followers of Jesus. Following St Paul's teaching, our mission is to preach the Gospel no matter what it costs. He explains that though he is not a slave of any man he has freely made himself a slave of all people in order to convince them to follow the Gospel. This is the example that St Francis Xavier set in his own life as he went to foreign lands and preached the gospel. This great Saint was doing what Jesus asked of all of us, and that is to go out and teach all nations about the Gospel.

In our modern times this is quite difficult to do. If we try to teach about Jesus, other than when we are at school, the "ordinary man in the street" may think that we are a bit odd. However, if by the way we live our lives, we indicate that it is possible to follow the teachings of Jesus and not be seduced by the secular society, we are doing what Jesus asked us to do. Perhaps this is a key role for the lay person of today. It often takes great courage to do what is right when the culture in which we live is dominated by other values.