22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Jeremiah 20:7-9/Psalm 63/Romans 12:1-2/Matthew 16:21-27
There is a story about a man who was following the Lord and carrying his cross. While the person was carrying his own cross, he felt that it was too heavy for him to carry. So, he asks the Lord if he can cut parts of the cross down. Once he got permission from the Lord to cut parts of the cross, he cuts parts of the cross until the cross was light enough for him to carry. When he and the Lord reached a cliff, the man thought that their journey was over. But the Lord said, "No, our journey is not yet over. We are going to the other cliff." The Lord used His cross in order to cross to the other cliff while His companion tried to reach the other cliff using his cross, but it was too short for him.
This Sunday's Gospel talks about accepting our crosses in life. Last Sunday's Gospel talks about Peter's confession about Jesus' identity. Through the grace of God, Peter confessed that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God. Because of this, Jesus rewarded Peter by making Peter the rock on which Jesus will build His church and giving him the keys to the kingdom of Heaven, showing Peter's authority once Jesus leaves this world. Now, in today's Gospel reading, Jesus talks to His disciples about His mission as the Messiah sent by God.
In the first part of the Gospel reading for this Sunday, Jesus now talks about His mission in the world - to suffer and die on the cross for the sake of mankind. But on the third day, Jesus is to rise again. The apostles, especially Saint Peter, did not understand what Jesus meant. When the Lord said that He is going to die for the sake of humankind, Peter and the rest of the apostles objected. Peter himself expressed his objection to what Jesus was saying. The apostles, especially St. Peter, could not understand or accept what Jesus said.
"Get behind Me, Satan!" This is what Jesus said in response to Peter's objection to what Jesus said about Him being killed. For sure, we can bet that Peter felt hurt because of what Jesus called him. At first, Jesus made Peter the rock on which He will build His church and gave him the keys to the kingdom of Heaven. Now, Jesus calls him "Satan." Isn't that insulting of Jesus? Yes, the Lord sure sounds insulting. But, the Lord uses strong language to express His point. Jesus uses "Satan" to say that Peter is interfering. "Satan" means "adversary." The Lord does not refer to Peter as "Satan" or "Lucifer."
Jesus teaches the disciples the conditions of discipleship in the second part of today's Gospel reading. Jesus tells His disciples that it is not easy being His disciple. Being a disciple of Jesus is going to be very hard. Why? If anyone wants to become a disciple of Christ, they would have to forget anything about themselves, take up their cross and follow Christ. There will be hardships and crosses when we follow Jesus.
The truth hurts. We may have a very hard time or not accept it, but it is the truth. There will be times when we will be tested in being a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Just like the Lord said, it won't be easy. One example of hardships in life are the loss of a loved one because of illness or very strong calamities. In those times, we will see ourselves questioning God. Questions like, "What did I do that God did this to me?" or, "Why have done this to me, O Lord?" It is not easy being a follower of Jesus Christ.
Jesus Himself had His share in following the will of God the Father. On the night before He suffered, the Lord prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane to save Him from the hour of His death. Although Jesus knew that He has to die for the sake of mankind, His obedience to the Father was tested. Jesus knows the pain of the whip, the crown of thorns and the nails that will nail Him to the heavy cross He will carry. This made Jesus pray to the Father and ask for the Father's help.
At the end of His prayer, Jesus says, "Not My will, but Your will be done." Jesus surrenders to the Father's will. He submitted Himself to the will of the Father. The Lord chose to be brave and faced His death on the cross. After His prayer, the Lord did not back down. The Lord faced His death, in obedience to the will of the Father. The Father was the source of Jesus' bravery in facing His death. If Jesus wanted, He would've escaped His death easily. But, Jesus faced the cross and His death with full bravery.
God the Father is the source of bravery. Let us pray to the Father for bravery, just like Jesus. The bravery God gives us will help us in facing and accepting our crosses in life. God will always be with us in every step of life. Taking up the crosses of our lives is not easy. But, God will always be with us in every step in our journey and will always help us at problematic times. Let us be one with Jesus in taking up His cross. Let us be brave in taking up our cross and follow the Lord.
Dear Lord, grant us bravery and strength to face the challenges in life and take up our crosses so that we may become followers of Jesus. Amen.
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Isaiah 22:19-23/Psalm 138/Romans 11:33-36/Matthew 16:13-20
Our Gospel for this Sunday is about the declaration of St. Peter the Apostle about the identity of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Gospel reading, Jesus appoints Peter as the first Pope because of Peter's answer to Jesus' question regarding His identity. Peter's was given authority by Jesus because of the grace the Father has bestowed on Peter. Peter did not answer Jesus' question on his own, God the Father has revealed it the answer to Peter by His grace.
The Lord used the opportunity in Caesarea Philippi in order to teach His disciples once again. This time, the Lord Jesus used the opportunity in private to test His disciples on how other people and the disciples know Him. In the quiet place of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus gets to ask His disciples two questions. Caesarea Philippi was a quiet place for Jesus and His disciples away from the crowds, away from Jesus' countrymen. For Jesus and His disciples, Caesarea Philippi is a place away for them in order to reflect and for Jesus to teach His disciples in private. While they were in Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asks the disciples two questions.
First, Jesus asks the disciples what other people think about Him. Who is Jesus according to other people? He is not asking this question because He is concerned about what people think about Him. Instead, Jesus asks this question in order to know how well other people know Him. How well do other people think about Him? Let us look at what the disciples answered Him. Some say that Jesus was either John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or other prophets.
Other people see John the Baptist in Jesus. We all know John the Baptist as the forerunner of Jesus. John the Baptist prepared the way of the Lord. He prepared people to greet the Messiah by baptizing them. As John the Baptist prepared the way for the Messiah, he spoke the truth. Jesus also spoke at testified to the truth. In the Gospel of Saint Mark, He also called the people to repent and believe in the Gospel, just like John the Baptist (Mark 1:15). Herod Antipas also believed that Jesus was John the Baptist.
Jesus is also being compared by others to the prophet Elijah. Like John the Baptist, people think that Jesus is Elijah. Other people think that they have seen the prophet Elijah again. The prophet Elijah was the boldest among all the prophets. He challenged the prophets of the false god Baal in Mount Carmel. Jesus is also being compared to Jeremiah. Like Jeremiah the prophet, Jesus spoke boldly against greed and hypocrisy. To summarize it up, people think that Jesus is a prophet.
The second question of the Lord is who He is according to His disciples. It is not about what other people think about Him now. It is about what His disciples think who He is. Other people did not get the answer correct. By asking these two questions, Jesus is teaching the disciples who He is. The other people who listened to Him did not get the correct answer about the identity of the Lord Jesus. Christ is revealing Himself once again, this time to His disciples personally.
St. Peter, with the grace of God, confesses that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is the Christ. Christ and Messiah mean the same thing. The two terminologies mean, "Anointed One." Jesus is the Chosen One, the Anointed One of God. God anointed Jesus to be the Savior, the promised Messiah. The prophecies of the prophets of the Old Testament have been fulfilled in the person of Jesus. Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise to mankind.
Jesus knew that God the Father revealed it to Peter. It was the grace of God that allowed Peter to say that Jesus is the Messiah. As a result, Jesus anointed Peter as the rock on which Jesus will build His Church. Jesus gave Peter the keys to heaven, as a sign of his authority here on earth. St. Peter will be Christ's Vicar or Representative on earth once Christ returns to Heaven. The line does not stop with Peter. It keeps continuing. Our Holy Father Pope Francis is the 266th successor of Peter.
Who is Jesus? Jesus continues to ask us, "Who do you say that I am?" There are a lot of answers to the Lord's question. St. Peter, the very first Pope, gives us the most simple answer, "The Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God." Like St. Peter the Apostle, may our faith in the Lord grow deeper. May we continue to have faith in Jesus, the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God.
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Isaiah 56:1, 6-7/Psalm 67/Romans 11:13-15, 29-32/Matthew 15:21-28
Today's Sunday Gospel talks about the encounter of Jesus with a Canaanite woman. A Canaanite woman goes to Jesus to persuade Him to cure her daughter. What happened to the woman's daughter? Her daughter is possessed by a demon. The Canaanite woman does not hesitate to go to Jesus, because she knows and believes that Jesus would help her and her daughter.
Jesus tests the woman's faith in two ways. The first test was when Jesus said that He came for the Israelites, not the Gentiles. Jesus tells the woman that He can not help her and her daughter because they do not belong to the house of Israel. The woman and her daughter are outsiders, in other words. Because the woman and her daughter are not Israelites, Jesus tells them that He can't help them. He does not help outsiders. Quite racist of Jesus though.
The second test was when Jesus calls the woman a dog. Who would not feel offended if a person is being called a dog by someone else? None. Isn't it surprising to see that Jesus calls a person an offending name? Yes, it sure is surprising to see Jesus calling someone an insulting name. Calling the woman a dog is very insulting. Jesus just used an insulting term towards a human being. Didn't Jesus teach about the love and mercy of God? Didn't Jesus teach about being loving and merciful towards our neighbors? His teachings are the complete opposite of the actions He is displaying in the Gospel.
But, the Canaanite woman does not relent. Instead, she perseveres at remains patient. Her faith in Jesus helps her keep her ground. She does not complain about Jesus calling her offensive things. The Canaanite woman is already used to insults similar to what Jesus called her. The woman probably encountered other Jews at that time that called her a dog. For the Canaanite woman, nothing is new for her when Jesus calls her a dog because she is already used to it.
Nothing was able to stop the Canaanite woman to stop asking Jesus for help. Her deep faith helped her remain patient, despite the efforts of Jesus and the disciples to make her leave. She could have left when Jesus refused to help her, but she did not. Instead, the woman persevered in asking Jesus for help. The Canaanite woman was determined to ask Jesus to cure her daughter. She would not back down. She would not surrender. She has passed the test of Jesus. The woman has showed her strong faith.
Jesus was pleased at how the Canaanite woman displayed her deep faith. The Lord was moved at the Canaanite woman's faith. The Canaanite woman has passed the test of the Lord Jesus. Because of how the woman showed her faith in Jesus, Jesus grants her request. Jesus cures the daughter of the Canaanite woman. Jesus showed His mercy towards the Canaanite woman and her daughter because the Canaanite woman displayed her deep faith in the Lord.
The Canaanite woman was rewarded for her deep faith. The faith of the Canaanite woman is a beautiful example for all of us. If we have faith in the mercy of God, just like the Canaanite woman in the Gospel, the Lord will show His mercy towards us. God may test our faith, just like Abraham and the Canaanite woman in the Gospel. We have to show that we have deep faith in God in the test He gives us. Once we have passed the test of God, God will show His mercy towards us.
Have faith in the mercy of God. God shows His mercy towards everyone who has faith and trusts in Him. If it seems that the Lord is not answering our prayers, just like the Canaanite woman in today's Gospel reading, He is just testing our faith. Once we have passed the test of the Lord God, He will show His mercy towards us. God's mercy endures forever.
