Jesus turned and said to them, “If any one comes to me and
does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and
sisters, yes, and even His own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not
bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple.” The way Jesus delivered
the message underlies its preeminence and urgency. The message of the Cross is
at the center of the Christian life; it a defining mark of every Christ
faithful. “We always carry around in our
body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our
body” (2 Cor 4:10). The crosses we bear make us personally responsible and
committed to the Body of Christ. And the immediate and prompt Cross each person
is summoned to carry is detachment from the most intimate natural attachments
of our life. This detachment comes by placing the love of Jesus above love for
oneself and love of father, mother, wife, brother, sister, etc. It becomes a
cross to give preference to Jesus and to His glory over and above one’s
self-preservation or honor to those we have filial bonds with. In this way, our
very selves are offered up to the Father through the passion of Jesus. “When I
am lifted up, I will draw all people to myself” (Jn 12:32).
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus
have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal 5:24). “I have
been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in
me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who
loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20). So, the hidden wisdom of God,
which the first reading talks about, is revealed to us through the Cross of
Christ. For by our prompt response to the invitation to carry our cross and
follow Jesus, we live, not by human reasoning, but by ‘the mind of Christ’ (1
Cor 2:7-16). This is how we can understand the mysteries of God, and live
uprightly.
We see a demonstration of the
wisdom of the Cross as St Paul appeals to Philemon to receive back his former
servant, Onesimus, and to regard him as a brother! St Paul saw through his encounter
with the young man in prison as divine plan to set Onesimus free and established
him as a beloved brother. The second reading displays humility, brotherly love,
forgiveness and reconciliation. These are external manifestation of the
internal mark of the Cross in the hearts of the faithful. That is why the
message of the Cross is urgent and prompt!
Therefore, Jesus explains further
that the wisdom of the cross is necessary for us to succeed in life, and it is
an important technique for us to conquer every opposition. Think about the
planning and gathering of resources needed to build a tower, or, the
preparations and training a king needs to put in place for his army to win? The
wisdom employed in each of these cases must be deep and far-sighted. That is
how far-sighted, urgent and prompt the wisdom of the cross is for our well-being and for our salvation. We must begin today to discover our most hidden and
intimate attachments, whether persons or possessions, and begin to offer to
Jesus a love greater than those attachments. With this we shall defeat every
enemy or opposition and succeed in our endeavors. Above all, we shall excel as His
disciples. Jesus said, “Whoever of you does not renounce all that he has cannot
be my disciple.” Amen.
Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter & Paul Catholic
Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Ojo, Lagos.
Sunday September 4th,
2022.
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