Tuesday, March 10

Scripture for the Day: While Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and said to them on the way, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified; and on the third day he will be raised.’
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. And he said to her, ‘What do you want?’ She said to him, ‘Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.’ But Jesus answered, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?’ They said to him, ‘We are able.’ He said to them, ‘You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.’ When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’ - Matthew 20:17-28

Reflection – A Whole New Way of Thinking

Jesus, through his teachings and his life, asked us to redefine the most fundamental goals of human existence: wealth, greatness and justice.

Wealth does not come from the possession of material goods. Rather, lasting riches come from giving to others. Jesus made the ultimate gift.

Greatness does not come from wielding physical power over others. The truly great serve others. Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.

Justice does not come from exacting punishment. True justice comes from love, not might. Jesus did not punish sinners, he loved and healed them.

These precepts conflict with some of the most elemental components of human nature. Consequently, they are extremely difficult to put into practice. We continually rationalize them away. Our ends justify our means. The enemy is evil, and the war is just. To defeat the enemy, one must sometimes fight fire with fire. As a result we find ourselves striving for material wealth, seeking physical power and arguing for the severe punishment of wrongdoers. The illusory nature of these goals is revealed in the fact that upon attaining them, we still feel unfulfilled. Nonetheless, they are difficult goals to discard. Our society, despite moralistic protestations to the contrary, is largely built on them.

Life is a struggle and a journey. Jesus continually reminds us that we should strive for those goals exemplified by his life and teachings.