22nd
Sunday in Ordinary Time
August
31, 2014
Matthew
16:21-27
“Whoever
wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me
(Mat 16:24).”
There is a paradox in the center
of our faith. We believe that God is the all-powerful creator of the universe
as well as of the minutest microbes, but practically nobody can pinpoint where
He is. We profess that Jesus is our mighty Savior that conquered sins and
death, but He Himself was tortured and nailed on the cross just like other
notorious criminals. We, Christians, called ourselves redeemed and happy
people, but almost everywhere in the world, from the most developed nations to
war-torn countries, we suffer constant persecutions. The essence of our
religion is love, and yet again true love entails great sacrifice, commitment
and pains.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus revealed
the turning point of His life. His stout followers expected him to be the Messiah
who would lead Israel in war against the Roman Empire and to bring them into
political liberation and independence. His disciples would not accept anything
less than Jesus as the victorious king that would restore the kingdom and
territory of David. Thus, Peter, the leader and bravest among the apostles,
dared to quarrel with his own Master when their fundamental reason of following
Jesus was shaken. Yet, Jesus did not come as a triumphant war-monger. He told
us frankly that he had to face persecutions, passion and eventually death. And,
worse, He expected His followers to endure the same fate as He did. Who would
follow this kind of insane teacher!
However, the history narrated us
how the apostles faithfully carried their crosses to the end. Peter was
crucified upside-down, James and Paul were beheaded and the rest of the
apostles had no better fortune. The apostles were the finest examples of Jesus’
followers and the same cross was handed down to all Christians after them. We
also pray for the Christians who are suffering a lot in war-inflicted Syria,
Iraq and even in Palestine. Thousands have fled their homeland without any
change of coming back and unsure of their future. Some died as innocent victims
of wars, but other lost their lives simple because they are Christ’s followers.
Their deaths are precious in the
Lord’s eyes said the Psalmist. Yet, the cross is not only happening in
conflict-ridded areas, but also in our simple daily lives. The cross is in the
woman who struggle to be faithful to his TB-infected husband, while working so
hard to rear three little children. The cross is in a student who is bullied
because she refuses to cheat during exam. The cross is in a religious sister
who fights for her vocation despite the fierce opposition from the family and
better opportunity outside.
Cross is a great paradox of our
faith. It is stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles, as
St. Paul mentioned in his letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor 1:23). Yet, this is
the way of salvation. Cross of Christ
offers us even greater paradox. Only through the cross, God empowers us to
become selfless and opens us a possibility to love even greater. If we buy our
beloved son an iPad because we have a lot of money, that is shallow kind of
love. But, when we give up our share so that our children may have a plate of race
to eat, nobody would dare to call this love as cheap. When Jesus said that He
had to take up His cross and go to Jerusalem, He simply told us that He is
going to love us even more radically. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters,
do not be afraid to take our daily cross because we are entering the beautiful
paradox of our faith. Through cross, we are enabled to love even greater.
Br.
Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
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