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Gospel: Mark 9: 30-37
Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee,
but he did not wish anyone to know about it.
He was teaching his disciples and telling them,
“The Son of Man is to be handed over to men
and they will kill him,
and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.”
But they did not understand the saying,
and they were afraid to question him.
They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house,
he began to ask them,
“What were you arguing about on the way?”
But they remained silent.
For they had been discussing among themselves on the way
who was the greatest.
Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them,
“If anyone wishes to be first,
he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”
Taking a child, he placed it in their midst,
and putting his arms around it, he said to them,
“Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me;
and whoever receives me,
receives not me but the One who sent me.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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“What were you arguing about on the way?”
Mark uses this phrase, “on the way,” repeatedly to reference Jesus’ journey towards Jerusalem, giving it a double meaning.
On the surface, Mark is referring to the physical journey Jesus is making. But on a deeper level, he’s also referring to Christ’s spiritual journey towards Calvary.
As Jesus tells his disciples plainly in today’s Gospel, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him.”
Jesus knows what will happen to him once he reaches Jerusalem. Yet, he never turns away from it.
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Imagine carrying the weight of that knowledge in your mind, knowing that once you cross a certain line, life as you know it will end.
For example, if I said to you, if you cross the Pennsylvania line, then you’ll perish. How many of us would run away or drive in the opposite direction?
It’s self-preservation 101. Avoid all unnecessary danger.
But Jesus doesn’t. Day by day, step by step, he teaches in synagogues, heals the sick, and prepares his disciples as they journey “on the way” to Jerusalem. In that sense, he carries the weight of his cross long before the wooden beam is laid upon his shoulders.
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Tomorrow, we begin our own 40-day Lenten journeys, which will include fasting, almsgiving, and prayer.
At times our journey may feel like a steep climb; we may be tempted to give up, to give in, to turn around. But Jesus persevered, and in honor of him, we should, too.
How can we make this Lent count? In what ways can we take the road less traveled?
Persevering through these 40 days will make us stronger disciples, ready to welcome the Lord at Easter.
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Image credits: (1) Lent, Transforming Center (2) Jesus Triumphal Entry, Crosswalk (3) Feathers for your Journey