Reality of the Cross

12^th Sunday in the Ordinary Time

June 23, 2013

Luke 9:18-24

“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me (Luk 9:24).”

Today, Jesus teaches us how to deal with sufferings: Embrace them! This may sound terribly wrong. Naturally, we shun pain and aim for happiness. This is why we love classic tales (like Cinderella, Snow White, etc) end with a marriage and both leading characters live together happily ever after. Thus, telling his disciples to “deny themselves and take up their cross”, Jesus is a bit out of his mind. Isn’t He?

Let us see the reality of cross in the time of Jesus. Crucifixion is the most brutal and humiliating way to punish a criminal. Any threat to the Roman Empire would not only be nailed on a log but also become a public entertainment. The victims would die slowly as they gradually lost blood and water. Not only extremely excruciating for the one hanged on the tree, but also it was emotionally hurting for his loved ones watching and hopeless. Crucifixion is sure death, but the longer the agony is the better it is. 

Now, the reality of the cross turns uglier when Jesus, our Lord, freely chose to embrace it and die with it. Is he insane when he decided to take the worst part of death? Is he mad enough to promote this to his followers?

We miss the point if we zero in on suffering itself. Let us see a bigger picture now. Christian theology explains that sufferings and death are the consequences of our sin. Since everybody commits sin, suffering is our lot. In His mercy, God can always erase sufferings, but He does not. Why? St. Paul got the answer: “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1Cor 1:18).” 

By embracing the cross, Jesus makes suffering a source of growth, wisdom and holiness. The focus of cross is not suffering itself but God who is hung there. It is not the nail that holds Jesus on the cross, but love. We are invited to see God even in the bleakest moments of life. When a single mother discovers that her only daughter is pregnant outside of marriage, she might curse God right there and then. Yet, she could find God in her daughter who refuses to abort the baby and from the Christian community that rallies behind her. 

Cross is not about suffering, but finding God and making it fruitful.  

Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP