May 20 2024 4 mins
Tuesday 7th week in ordinary time "Mk 9:30-37"
Jesus was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise." But they did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to ask him. The reaction of the Apostles is quite surprising: "they were afraid to ask him." They knew Jesus well. They had heard Him preaching and teaching - and all of them had spent memorable times in conversation with Him. But now He was talking about suffering and death. They didn't like that. They preferred not to know. Later, on Good Friday, all of them (with the exception of John) ran away from the Cross. In a primary school, the new RE teacher was asked by the headmistress what book she planned to use. She said that she only wanted to use the Bible. The headmistress pointed out, "That's fine by me. But make sure that you leave aside those nasty bits at the end." By 'nasty bits' she was referring to the Passion and Death of Our Lord. For many Christians the Cross is just a nasty bit they prefer not to know about. Like an ostrich, some think that if they bury their head in the sand and don't see the Cross... It may disappear. The Cross is necessary. It was necessary for Jesus to redeem us and it is necessary for us to follow Him: "Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple." Those who prefer not to hear about sacrifice don't know anything about love, because love suffers. A mother suffers for her children. Husbands suffer for their wives. Friends suffer for their friends. God suffers for us. And we... we should be ready to suffer for Him. St Josemaría wrote, "Don't drag the Cross... Carry it squarely on your shoulder... Don't bear your Cross with resignation: resignation is not a generous word. Love the Cross. When you really love it, your Cross will be... a Cross, without a Cross", a noble burden of love. Mary, My Mother, with your help may I learn to take up my cross for Jesus with generosity, following Jesus' steps closely - because then (with Him) it won't be just 'my' cross, it will be 'ours', Jesus' and mine.
Jesus was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise." But they did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to ask him. The reaction of the Apostles is quite surprising: "they were afraid to ask him." They knew Jesus well. They had heard Him preaching and teaching - and all of them had spent memorable times in conversation with Him. But now He was talking about suffering and death. They didn't like that. They preferred not to know. Later, on Good Friday, all of them (with the exception of John) ran away from the Cross. In a primary school, the new RE teacher was asked by the headmistress what book she planned to use. She said that she only wanted to use the Bible. The headmistress pointed out, "That's fine by me. But make sure that you leave aside those nasty bits at the end." By 'nasty bits' she was referring to the Passion and Death of Our Lord. For many Christians the Cross is just a nasty bit they prefer not to know about. Like an ostrich, some think that if they bury their head in the sand and don't see the Cross... It may disappear. The Cross is necessary. It was necessary for Jesus to redeem us and it is necessary for us to follow Him: "Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple." Those who prefer not to hear about sacrifice don't know anything about love, because love suffers. A mother suffers for her children. Husbands suffer for their wives. Friends suffer for their friends. God suffers for us. And we... we should be ready to suffer for Him. St Josemaría wrote, "Don't drag the Cross... Carry it squarely on your shoulder... Don't bear your Cross with resignation: resignation is not a generous word. Love the Cross. When you really love it, your Cross will be... a Cross, without a Cross", a noble burden of love. Mary, My Mother, with your help may I learn to take up my cross for Jesus with generosity, following Jesus' steps closely - because then (with Him) it won't be just 'my' cross, it will be 'ours', Jesus' and mine.