Word to the Wise
Friday, February 18, 2022 - Friday in the 6th Week in Ordinary Time
[Jas 2:14-24, 26 and Mark 8:34-9:1]"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the Gospel will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? What could one give in exchange for his life?" [Mark]
These words of Jesus follow his rebuke of Peter: "Get behind me Satan! You are thinking not as God does but as human beings do!" Jesus now bluntly challenges the values of "the world" and makes it clear that a life of discipleship is a "life for others" - namely following Jesus and proclaiming the gospel in word and deed. The "gain" from such a life does not match what the "career ladder" and success mean in secular society.
In my years of campus ministry, one thing I hear often from students is that they want their lives to "make a difference" and "to help others." I am impressed by the students who are willing to give a few years to "missionary" work after graduation in domestic or foreign venues. But one hopes the same generous spirit will continue once the term of service ends with the particular sponsor. I heard a speaker from one sponsoring organization say to potential youthful missionaries that life after the missionary experience has been "harder than I thought!" Yes, it will be, but the rewards exceed anything a "career" can offer. Christianity is a vocation, not a career. The most "successful" person by secular values of individualism and wealth can be brought to understand what a "life" really is when they are diagnosed with a terminal illness! Jesus urges us not to wait until that happens to us! The "illness" may lie in our definition of success. Jesus offers us his definition. Does it sound like ours? AMEN