Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, February 17, 2017.
1st Reading: Book of Genesis 11:1-9.
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words. While men were migrating in the east, they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, “Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire.” They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth.” LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men had built. Then the LORD said: “If now, while they are one people, all speaking the same language, they have started to do this, nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do. Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says.” Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the speech of all the world. It was from that place that he scattered them all over the earth. The word of the Lord.
Responsorial Ps: 33(32):10-11.12-13.14-15
R/. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
Holy Gospel: Mark 8:34-38.9:1.
Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, «Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.” What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? What could one give in exchange for his life? Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this faithless and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” He also said to them, “Amen, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see that the kingdom of God has come in power.” The gospel of the Lord.
FRIDAY REFLECTIONS:
Intellectually speaking, everyone reading this has most likely answered that question in the affirmative numerous times. Each time you go to Mass, spend time praying, or read the Scriptures you are, in one way or another, saying, “Yes, I want to come after You, Lord.” Most likely, we have all even said specific prayers by which we make the conscious choice to follow Christ. But we should see much more than the need to simply make an intellectual choice in this passage. The phrase, “Whoever wishes” seems to reveal even more than a decision, it also reveals a desire. It reveals that a desire to follow Christ is not usually the first step in the process, it’s the last. The first step is to come to an understanding of the truth and to profess it.
Secondly, we must will what we have chosen. Thirdly, once grace begins to work on us to transform us, we begin to “wish” or “desire” all that Jesus wants of us and all that He calls us to embrace. So what will we find ourselves “wishing” if we are following Christ with our whole being? We will find that we desire what Jesus reveals next; namely, we will desire to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow in the footsteps of Jesus. Do we desire that? It’s easy to desire to love and be loved, at least on a more superficial level. Hopefully, we all enjoy kind and caring words, both giving them and receiving them. But the true love of Christ, following His example of love, requires a desire for selfless and sacrificial love. This is the perfection of love! We are called, ultimately, to love without even considering the cost or the demands that Christian love places upon us. Or, to take it even further, we are called to love even that which is painful and difficult when it is the will of God. His will most certainly includes acts of sacrifice. True love, ultimately, desires even this.
Pray with me: Lord, I want to desire Your Cross. I want to come to a level of love through which I desire to give myself completely to You, without counting the cost, and even desiring those acts which require great sacrifice. You embraced Your Cross without reserve out of love for us. Help me to imitate Your perfect example. Jesus, I trust in You that You alone will heal our sick brethren and set them free. May the souls of our faithful departed brethren rest in perfect peace, amen. Have a blessed and fulfilled weekend.
Sourced by Wiezman Eleanya