Gospel Reflection

October 21, 2012

Year of Faith

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

by Rev. Fr. Nicandro Lim Jr.

A homily delivered in St. Mary’s Church, Bunbury, Australia

Reading 1 Is 53:10-11

The LORD was pleased to crush him in infirmity. If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him. Because of his affliction he shall see the light in fullness of days; through his suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt he shall bear.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22

R. (22) Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

Reading 2 Heb 4:14-16

Brothers and sisters: Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.

Gospel Mk 10:35-45

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." He replied, "What do you wish me to do for you?" They answered him, "Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left." Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?" They said to him, "We can." Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared." When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. Jesus summoned them and said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."

or Mk 10:42-45

Jesus summoned the Twelve and said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."

HOMILY

There is this young missionary priest sent to a particular country to evangelize.  He is a brilliant student of theology, an idealist, and full of zeal for missionary work.  That's why when he arrived in his parish assignment, he said to himself that he will lead people into knowing and loving God in Jesus Christ.  A fair goal I would say; but when his work begun and when he saw the extravagant lifestyle of those around him, he step back a bit and realized that he is not well equip for such a set up---he was surprised.  His parishioners have everything---they are all rich and Church for them is nothing compared to the social gatherings they would organize every now and then.  How can he teach his people?  How can he evangelize them?

Truly, it is one thing to maintain your ideals when they are shared by others, when the Gospel works for you, when principle works out in practice; it is quite another when it seems you are alone in some ideal and when the Gospel appears to be delivering more death than life.  He said to himself, "how lucky are my siblings who don't have material riches, nor mansions, nor corporations; how lucky are they who lived a simple lifestyle shared in a family loving each other sincerely and honestly compared to such a materialistic community."

This young priest realized that it is one thing to give your life over to family, church, community, and God when you feel loved and supported by them, when they seem worth the sacrifice, when you get a good feeling by doing it; it is quite another thing when you do not feel supported, when it doesn't seem worthwhile, and when you feel no other reason for doing it except for truth and principle.

I would say what this young missionary priest experienced capture, in essence, what Jesus taught his disciples and his very own experience on the cross. His passion was a true drama of the heart, not an endurance test for his body.  It was a test of love and commitment, and not just of conviction. I think, in the long run, we have focused too much on the physical aspects of the crucifixion to the detriment of what was happening more deeply, underneath. Why? Because none of the Gospels emphasize the physical sufferings, nor the fears he expressed in conversations before his death. Clearly, what the Gospels and Jesus emphasize is his moral loneliness, the fact that he was alone, betrayed, humiliated, misunderstood, the object of jealousy and crowd hysteria, that he was a stone's throw away from everyone, that those who loved him were asleep to what was really happening.

And what made his sacrifice so special was not that he died a victim of violence, nor that he refused to use divine power to stop his death. What made his death so special is that, inside of all the aloneness, darkness, jealousy, misunderstanding, sick crowd hysteria, coldness, and murder, he held out, he gave himself over, without bitterness, without self-pity, holding his ideals intact, gracious, respectful, forgiving, without losing his balance, his meaning, or his message.  This is the ultimate test and we face it daily in the many areas of our lives.

The young missionary priest after some time of ministering to his people realized that it is not what he sees with people that matters.  It's what he is doing for them that counts because it is he who is witnessing to the very power of God in their midst and not the other way around.  His witnessing is his evangelizing ministry and not his good looks, intellect nor knowledge.  His presence becomes the presence of the one who sent him there to do a particular missionary work.  Embracing his ministry, it helped him find God's peace in his heart.

With this, we come to understand why Jesus' sacrifice was so special---it is special because, long after the clock had run out on everything and there seemed no reason left to wait for anything, he still held on, to his ideals, his balance, his gracious, his forgiveness, and his love.  The struggle to do this, to remain faithful, is the real drama inside the death of Jesus and in the life of every missionary priest; that's why in the end it is really a struggle of the heart and not just of the body. 

In this mass, we remember all our brothers and sisters doing missionary work within and outside our country.  May they remain faithful to the one who sent them there.  With our prayers, may they feel our love supporting them.  And may our financial contribution help them in anyway they need support. Amen.