Fr Kevin Kilgore

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I’m amazed at how quickly technology moves. Gone are the days of Blockbuster, for example. People now use smart tv’s to tune into Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.

The same is true with music. Nine times out of ten while driving, I listen to music I’ve downloaded on iTunes, not the radio.

Tuning into the radio demands patience, as you literally have to turn a knob to the left or the right until you find the right station.

One turn too far creates static, muffling the music.

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Isn’t that what Lent is all about? Making adjustments, fine tuning, searching for the voice of the Lord, much like finding a station on the radio?

So what adjustments do we need to make in order to hear his voice clearly this Lent?

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Maybe we need to dial down time spent on our phones, turning up time spent in prayer.

Maybe it means dialing down our portions at meals, turning up our awareness of the poor.

Maybe it means dialing down our need to be heard, fine tuning our listening skills instead.

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Just as we expect to hear a musician’s voice when tuning into the radio, so we should expect to hear the Lord this Lent. 

It’s just a matter of making the right adjustments; of tuning out – and tuning in. 

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“What were you arguing about on the way?” (Mark 9:33)

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Mark uses this phrase – “on the way” – repeatedly to describe Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem. But he gives it a double meaning.

On the surface, Mark’s referring to that physical journey Jesus makes.

But on a deeper level, he’s referring to Jesus’ own inner journey towards his death.

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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.”

He knows when he enters Jerusalem, his life is over.

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Imagine carrying the weight of that knowledge in your mind. 

If I said to you, for example, once you cross the Pennsylvania line, you’re dead. How many of us would run away or drive in the opposite direction?

That’s just self-preservation 101. Avoid all unnecessary danger.

But Jesus doesn’t. 

Day by day, step by step, he teaches in their synagogues, heals their sick, and prepares his disciples for his death. 

In that sense, Jesus carried his cross long before that wooden beam was laid on his shoulders.

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Tomorrow we begin the journey of Lent, 40 days of increased fasting, almsgiving, and prayer.

At times that journey may feel like a steep climb; we may be tempted to give up, to give in, to turn around.

But just as Jesus persevered, so should we.

How can we make this Lent count? In what ways can we take the road less traveled?

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If we persevere, then we’ll only be stronger disciples come Easter.

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Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?”

Peter said to him in reply, “You are the Christ.”

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Although Peter understands who Jesus is, he still doesn’t understand the implications of that.

As Savior of the world, Jesus must suffer. And as his disciple, Peter must suffer, too. That’s a truth he will struggle to accept for the rest of his life.

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Like Peter, how often we shy away from suffering for the Lord.

We lose our temper when we should hold our tongue. We give into temptation, even when our conscience urges us not to. 

We ignore the poor when we pass them on the street. We’re selfish with our time; slow to forgive; private about our faith.

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“Get behind me Satan!”

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It is the strongest rebuke Jesus ever says – and he says it to Peter for not embracing his cross. 

Yet Jesus will still entrust Peter with the future of the Church, because Peter’s a model for all of us. He reminds us about the paradox of Christianity.

Our faith is a constant story of flight and return; of sin and forgiveness; of failure and redemption.

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“Who do you say that I am?”

“You are the Christ.”

May our words and actions reflect this truth today.