CYCLE B 25TH ORDINARY 2012
Wisdom 2: 12, 17-20, James 3:16 – 4:3, Mark 9: 30-37
1. The words of the Gospel “…they did not UNDERSTAND the saying, and they were AFRAID to ask Him any more questions” is what hit me as key to the HEART of today’s message.
In many cases, the biggest problem to living the Teachings of the Church in our lives, and many are HARD, may just be our ‘FEAR’ to ask questions, to keep searching, or to keep praying for UNDERSTANDING.
2. Let’s tackle the Gospel first to help bring the point home. In Mark’s Gospel last weeks, Jesus had been preparing His disciples for His Passion and Death. What He was teaching them, went against the prevailing thought for centuries concerning the Messiah. It was promised, so they thought, that the Messiah would come and build an EARTHLY Kingdom in Israel, which would ultimately dominate the world. Life in Israel would be GOOOD!
Today we see the apostles literally afraid and yet ready to discuss anything but the prospect of pain, suffering and death. Ignoring Jesus revelation about the Messiah’s POWERLESSNESS and His need to suffer death; the Apostles began to maneuver to a more fanciful, top spot in their misguided Kingdom of personal gain and power.
Jesus in an attempt to help speed the uptake, to a true understanding that His kingdom was ALWAYS about a kingdom of servitude, suffering and dependence upon God, offered a new and more gentile approach.
He said to them, “If any one would be FIRST, he must be LAST of all and SERVANT of all.” And he took a child, and put him in the midst of them; and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; and whoever receives, me, receives not me but Him who sent me.”
This CHILD, was symbolic of INSIGNIFCANCE and NEED. The one who wants to be first then, must be FIRST IN LINE, to take that child and care for them because of who they are. A child can do nothing for the disciple. To receive a child is to perform a good act for an insignificant person, without hope of earthly reward.
3. Today’s Old Testament extract from Wisdom, describes for us ‘someone’ who won’t or can’t understand the teachings of the Old Testament either. It describes them as the “ungodly”. And they are planning to torture some righteous, just man, because he has condemned their mode of living. These “ungodly,” as it appears in the context of the scripture, were APOSTATE JEWS. Apostate means they gave up their faith. It didn’t make sense, they didn’t understand it. There were many such in Egypt when the book of Wisdom was written, and they probably represented to the author the WICKED of society in general.
These APOSTATE JEWS, developed a philosophy of life and death where they did not believe in God any more and believed the origins of man came from CHANCE. Their philosophy of life was completely this-worldly and they denied survival after death. Consequently, they resolved to live life hedonistically and to make might the norm of right.
The “righteous,” or just man, on the other hand, as described here has much in common with the Suffering Servant of God. This Servant was foretold by the prophets and the basis for Jesus teaching to the apostles on His passion and death in today’s Gospel. These righteous people believed that in suffering and physical death, God would CARE for them, RESTORE them after death and GIVE the gift of immortality.
Today, the Apostate Jew wanted a show down with the Truth. ‘Does God stand by those who trust in Him?’ They would find out by killing the Righteous. This is exactly what happened to Jesus.
4. St. James, was full of practical advice to his FELLOW-JEWISH converts on how to live their newly-found Christian faith. They were finding it hard, at times, to live it. St. James teaches that this new faith of Christianity is to be synonymous with UNSELFISHNESS. We are not to be individuals in opposition to one another. Between such members there can be no JEALOUSY, no HATRED, no FIGHTING, no COVETING. Each member will live in PEACE, in SINCERITY, in JUSTICE, in TRUTHFULNESS, and in active HELPFULNESS with all other members.
5. The church is reminding us to ‘Follow in the Footsteps of Christ’. To NOT be afraid to ask questions or to pray for the Grace, so that we can REFINE our lives, and live according to the Catholic Christian way of life. To live it in the LIGHT of what SERVITUDE and DEATH to SELF mean.
That CHILD placed by Jesus in the midst of his disciples, could easily be a Immigrant, a Pregnant unwed Mother, a Elderly-Sick Person, a Homeless man, a poor Family, a floundering Student etc. Each, make the case for our SERVITUDE as we place their needs above our needs.
That TEACHING about Dying to self, could be that we accept the hard teaching about: living together before Marriage, that Marriage is between one man and one woman, not using contraceptives, or that abortion is always wrong. And maybe the hardest, going to Mass on Sundays.
The church reminds us also, the best place to ASK, SEEK, or KNOCK for that ‘Understanding’ of His ways, is when we receive Jesus in communion. As you commune with Him today, tell Him what you are afraid of?
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