8/9/2013 23RD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 1st Reading: Wisdom 9:13-18 2nd Reading: Philemon 9-10, 12-17 Gospel: Luke 14:25-33 We know the old commandment, “Honour your father and your mother” (Exodus 20:12). We know the new commandment of Jesus, “Love one another; even as I have loved you” (John 13:34). And we come here today and we hear these words of Jesus: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). How can we reconcile these seemingly contradictory demands? How can we “hate” those we are supposed to love? And, more importantly, why? The paradox of hating those we love was dramatised in a most fascinating way on Saturday, September 8, 2001 in the women’s finals of the US Open tennis tournament in Flushing, New York. For the first time in the history of the tournament, the world watched a sportive and emotional roller-coaster as two sisters who love themselves so much that they live in the same house and share the same hotel room fought each other. Could you imagine what was going on in the minds of Venus and Serena Williams as they battled and slugged it out against each other, suspending their love for each other and at least temporarily “hating” each other? They had to “hate” each other because the one was standing in the way of the other becoming the world champion. The one was an obstacle to the realisation of the other’s dream to wear the world crown. And so they had to hate and fight each other. Venus won. But she did not do her usual victory leap and celebratory display. Instead she ran to the net, put an arm around her defeated junior sister’s shoulder and said, “I love you.” Why did she say that? Because the game is over now and her sister is no longer an obstacle in the way of her victory. She said, in other words, “I am sorry, but I had to do it: I had to fight you so hard, I had to “hate” you because you were standing in my way. But I still love you.” That was a rare example of hating those we love, and from it we can learn much about the injunction to “hate” our loved ones. Ordinarily Venus loves Serena, except when Serena becomes an obstacle that could prevent her from realising her ambition to win the crown. Similarly we are lo love our parents and siblings and spouses, and indeed everyone else, except when they become obstacles in our bid to win the crown of eternal life. The crown of heavenly glory that the Father gives us is worth much more than the ephemeral crown that Venus won on that day. So we should be prepared to wage an uncompromising war to see that no person or thing stands in our way to make us lose the crown. Possessions constitute a formidable obstacle in many people’s bid for the crown of salvation. That is why Jesus concludes today’s gospel with these words: “So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions” (v. 33). Jesus implies that to be his disciple is to relativize every other thing in life: family or wealth, prosperity or health, pleasure or fame. He means that on the list of our goals and priorities in life, attaining the kingdom of God must come first and then everything else will follow. It is a matter of life and death. And the examples he gives to illustrate the seriousness of his teaching come from the field of war. The first illustration is that of the man who intends to build a tower. The tower in the ancient world was basically a strategic structure for the defence of the city in time of war. The second illustration is that of the king marching out to war. Notice that the king has only 10,000 troops whereas the enemy has 20,000. Identifying ourselves with the king in the parable, we can see that the enemy outnumbers us two to one. “For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). We are bound to fail unless we appeal to a stronger king to come to our assistance. And that powerful king, the King of kings, is none other than God Himself. Today’s gospel, therefore, shows us how absolute and how radical are the demands of discipleship. Following Jesus is much harder than winning the US Open. The good news is that Jesus recognises our human weaknesses: we are 10,000 strong and the enemy is 20,000. It is, therefore, an invitation for us to have recourse to God, for without God we can do nothing. Be blessed.
Posted on: Sat, 07 Sep 2013 08:32:11 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015