Daily Gospel Reflection
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February 27, 2020
Jesus said to his disciples, “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Then he said to them all, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves?”
Before Jesus issues this command to take up the weight of one’s own cross, he performs the miracle of feeding the 5,000, and grants his disciples authority to cast out demons and cure diseases. We see both sides of the Christian life here: the miraculous blessings and gifts bestowed by God’s grace on one side, and the burden of the cross on the other.
Christ’s paradoxical message indicates that these two sides—the self-denial as well as the blessings—cohere into a single calling. He speaks of how those who lose their life for his sake will indeed save their life, while those who dedicate themselves to their own whims and wants will lose their life, however much they seek to build it up with worldly riches.
Jesus is calling us to a life of commitment to his message as exemplified in his very person. It is a powerful call, for being a Christian consists not only in sitting in air-conditioned churches. Jesus invites us to follow the route of his life, from his ministry to his passion and the carrying of the cross. With the weight of the cross, however, the Christian also carries the promise of new life.
Once, during Lent, I felt the weight of the cross in a literal way while taking turns shouldering a 9-foot-long cross on a pilgrimage to a Marian shrine in Walsingham, England. It was no picnic to haul that cross, but for me, the fellowship of exertion and prayer enlivened the whole journey. The goodness of the Christian life is not only found in the end-goal of heaven—it also can be discovered even within and beneath the very crosses we bear.
As we enter into the season of Lent, we can remember that salvation comes to us in both the sacrifices and the gifts of the Christian life.
Prayer
Jesus, my Lord, all too often we define ourselves by what we have or what we do, instead of who we are. All I will have left is me – and you. Oh Jesus, I wish I valued you as much as I value other things or people in my life. During these 40 days let your words change me: “What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves?”
Saint of the Day
St. Thalelaeus lived in present-day Turkey in the fifth century. He lived in a small hut that was near a pagan shrine where people came to sacrifice regularly. The pagan priests tried to scare him away, but he stood his ground and converted many who came to the shrine to worship.
He was said to have lived in a barrel for a number of years as a sign of repentance, and to encourage others to turn from their sin.
He lived as a hermit for 60 years, and was known to weep constantly. In fact, he was given the name, “Epiklautos,” which means “weeping much.” He told those who visited him that time was a gift from God for us to use to repent, “and woe be to us if we neglect it.”
St. Thalelaeus, who wept in repentance and converted many with his life of faithfulness, pray for us!