Year: 2024

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Gospel: Matthew 20: 20-28

The mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her,
“What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your Kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“Can you drink the cup that I will drink?” Jesus questions his Apostles in today’s Gospel.

“Of course!” they say without understanding.

The Apostles are imagining themselves sharing a gilded chalice with the Lord at a royal banquet in Jerusalem. They believe that Jesus will soon be crowned king, and the Apostles will constitute his inner circle.

In a sense, they’re both right and wrong.

The Apostles are right in the sense that they will drink from the “cup” of the Lord. But this mysterious “cup” is a reference to his suffering and death – not an earthly coronation as they are hoping for.

We hear a final reference to this “cup” in the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus prays, “Father, let this cup pass from me. But not as I will, but your will be done.”

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The first Apostle to drink from the “cup” of the Lord’s suffering and death will be the Apostle James, whose feast day we celebrate today.

James was beheaded by the Roman Emperor Agrippa in the year 44 AD, about 10 years after the resurrection of Jesus.

Soon the others will follow. Matthew will preach the Gospel as far as Ethiopia, where he’ll be martyred. Some believe Thomas made it as far as India. Of course, Peter and Paul will die in Rome.

The only Apostle, aside from Judas, who will not die a physical martyrdom is the Apostle John, who spent his final years in exile on the Greek island of Patmos. But even that – living in exile – is a type of spiritual martyrdom.

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What might the story of the Apostles say to us today?

Often, we imagine our futures, much like they did. And quite often, we’re wrong. Once we learn how to surrender and drink the “cup” of the Lord, our life is no longer our own; it’s placed in the hands of Jesus.

God directs our path in ways – and to places – we would never have imagined. But our reward will always be the same: a seat in the kingdom of God with Saint James and the others, where, “neither moth nor decay can destroy.” 

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Image credits: (1) Christ Receives the Chalice from an Angel, Lombard School Artist 17th Century (2) Ibid. (3) Ligonier Ministries

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 1-9

On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea.
Such large crowds gathered around him
that he got into a boat and sat down,
and the whole crowd stood along the shore.
And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying:
“A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path,
and birds came and ate it up.
Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil.
It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep,
and when the sun rose it was scorched,
and it withered for lack of roots.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it.
But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit,
a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There are different ways of receiving the Word of God. The fruit it bears depends upon a person’s heart.

Some hear it without understanding. Others receive the Word with joy, but their faith lacks any root. Once a trial comes their way, belief is the first thing to go.

Still others receive the Word, but when left to choose, they prefer the things of this world to the things that are eternal.

Finally, there are those whose hearts are like rich, fertile soil. They hear the Word of God and are permanently changed by it.

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But consider the effort it takes to make soil fertile – and by extension, to make a human heart deeply receptive to the Word of God.

In order to make soil fertile, you must dig into it; break it; and repeatedly separate it. That period of chaos is what opens up the ground, allowing it to receive seeds, and ultimately, to give life.

Any sturdy plant was once a tiny seed placed inside broken, fertile soil.

So, what does that mean for us?

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Our hearts are most fertile after being broken. 

Think of any stressful, frustrating, or traumatic experience in life. In those moments, it feels like we’ve been tossed about – broken inside – much like rich, fertile soil.

They are blessed, Jesus says, who turn to him in that hour. It’s then that the Word of God has the greatest chance to take deep root, to change us, to strengthen us, and to bear good fruit.

As Saint Paul says, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” These gifts come from within; they are the fruit of a heart once broken, but receptive to the Lord.

May Jesus take any brokenness within us, bless it with his Word, and allow it to bear good fruit within – thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold. 

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Image credits: (1) AZ Quotes (2) Pinterest (3) C D Swanson

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Gospel: Matthew 12: 46-50

While Jesus was speaking to the crowds,
his mother and his brothers appeared outside,
wishing to speak with him.
Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside,
asking to speak with you.”
But he said in reply to the one who told him,
“Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?”
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said,
“Here are my mother and my brothers.
For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father
is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There’s an old Chinese proverb, “Not one family can put a sign outside of their home with the words, ‘No problems here.’”

Every family – even the Holy Family – experiences tension.

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We see such tension unfolding in today’s Gospel while Jesus is found preaching inside someone’s home. Suddenly, Mary and a few other family members show up asking to speak with him. 

They haven’t come to ask him if he’ll be home for dinner; they’ve come to silence him. Mark tells us, some of his family thought he was, “Out of his mind!” 

They knew the Lord’s teachings were revolutionary, so they feared Jesus might disturb the civil and religious authorities. In their minds, silencing him would be an act of mercy, keeping him from throwing his life away. 

Although his family cared for him, they didn’t always understand him.

The fact they are standing outside not only speaks to their physical separation, but also their distance in mind and heart. 

If they are to become members of his divine family – the Church – then they must enter the home, where they’ll be invited to, “hear the Word of God and observe it.”

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So, it is for us.

In baptism, each of us is welcomed into the “home” of the Church, where the Lord instructs us by his Word and Sacraments. Our mission is to remain inside this home, in good standing, in a state of grace.

What has been my experience of life in the Church? Do I feel at home? Welcome? Or, at times, do I disagree?

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“Not one family can put a sign outside of their home with the words, ‘No problems here.’” 

There is tension in every family – even this divine family, the Church. But nothing should separate us. As Saint Paul reminds us, “We are one body, the body of Christ on earth.” 

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Image credits: (1) iStock (2) Christ in the House of Martha and Mary, Johannes Vermeer (3) Nickel Designs Custom Doormats