One thing that is clear from the readings today is that the will of God the Father was never meant to be easy – for any one of his people – all throughout salvation history – including Jeremiah in the first reading today, including Jesus in the gospel passage – and including all of the disciples and followers of Jesus including us! This is so as a result of the Original Sin, which brought with it the necessity of work and effort; pain and suffering. But the will of God is meant to be doable, achievable and even quite satisfying as the LABOR OF LOVE that it is also meant to be! And this idea of laboring fits right in with our national celebration of Labor Day this weekend.
The primary work that all of us need to be concerned about FIRST, however, is that which contributes to our eternal salvation. Jesus tells us in the gospel passage: what profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit the life of his soul?
Other, secondary work is, of course, vital and necessary for us in order to provide for the welfare of our selves, our families, and the economic stability of our country and world. But the priority needs to be kept that this is truly secondary to the primary spiritual work of determining where we will spend eternity!
Jeremiah – the prophet of the first reading – was but a teenager – who was selected by God to be his spokesman to the errant people of Israel. He did not like the job, as we heard in the reading! Not at all! People were mocking him and laughing at him and playing him for a fool – the very last thing that a teenager of any age and era needs. But when he tried to stop speaking out – stop doing what God would have him do – he said that the words became like a burning fire in his chest – and he had to let them out!
Sometimes it is like that for us – we get ridiculed for doing good things and speaking the truth, speaking about God – but when we plan on stopping – we find that we cannot keep it in because we know that deep down inside God wants us to be his representative – and so we speak!
In the gospel passage Peter tries to trip Jesus up and derail him from doing what God, his Father, wanted him to do – to suffer and die for our salvation! But Jesus quite bluntly tells Peter where to go – "Get behind me, Satan!" This is reminiscent of Satan tempting Jesus three times in the desert – to likewise take his sights off the cross and place them elsewhere - at the beginning of his public ministry. Jesus told Satan to be gone then too! Jesus had eyes, ears, mind, heart and will only for his Father's desires, wishes and will!
Jesus then tells Peter and everyone else that not only will he be accepting that cross and going through with all it involved – but that we would have to embrace our own crosses and do the same if we want to share the glory of the resurrection that lay at the end of his cross! It is available to us ONLY if we carry our crosses, die to ourselves, and lovingly offer our lives to our heavenly Father. There IS NO OTHER WAY!
This seems like a tall order: but St. Paul from his letter to the Romans today tells us how to begin: be transformed by the renewal of your minds – so you can know the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect!
Our minds – especially in this day in age – in this country – in this world – can be far from seeing things as they truly are: crosses are to be avoided (the world shouts at us), pleasure to all extremes are to be sought after; the high, the mighty, the powerful and the rich are to be envied. But St. Paul says: CLING TO THE CHURCH – READ THE SCRIPTURES – LISTEN TO HOMILIES – READ THE MANY GREAT SPIRITUAL AUTHORS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH – PRAY TO THE HOLY SPRIIT- RECEIVE THE EUCHARISTAND BE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWAL OF YOUR MINDS – then everything else will fall into place!
The distorted vision of the world around us will dissolve away – what is good and clean and beautiful and pleasing to God will become abundantly clear
and desirable to us– he will be first in our lives – and our crosses that we must still carry will become very light – because Jesus will be carrying most of the load: he does that for those who trust in him rather than in themselves!
It all comes down to this: our souls are really thirsting for one thing: and that is God! May we never satisfy that thirst with anything other than what God himself provides for us to quench and satisfy our thirsts – beginning with the words we are hearing right now, and the very Body and Blood of Christ which we will receive at this and every Mass!
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