25th Sunday in Ordinary Time B. Sept. 22, 2024
Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; James 3:16—4:3; Mark 9:30-37
Theme: Our Selfishness and Wickedness Prevent Us From
Being Good Disciples
September
is the month of the Word of God. The Church encourages us to regularly study,
meditate, share, and pray with the Sacred Scriptures. Today’s Scripture readings
deal with our selfish ambitions and wicked desires, which prevent us from being
good disciples. In the first reading, the author talks about the unnamed righteous
person whom the selfish and wicked people plot to condemn to a shameful death unjustly
because his teachings challenge their wrong actions. The tradition connects
this righteous person to Jesus, who was also unjustly condemned to death, as he announces it to his disciples in our Gospel. In the second reading,
Saint James affirms that selfishness and jealousy cause conflicts and wars
among his people.
Today’s
Gospel passage immediately comes after the story of the Healing of a Boy with a
Demon (vv.14-29), and it precedes the story of Jesus’ disciples who wanted to
stop one exorcist from driving out demons in Jesus’s name because he was not
one of Jesus’ followers (vv.38-41). Our Gospel story is in the context of Jesus
revealing the type of Messiah he is to his disciples. He does it through the predictions
of his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, which he announces to his disciples
during their journey to Jerusalem. Like Mathew, Mark has recorded three
predictions of Jesus’ Passion. All of them follow the same pattern. (1) Jesus
announces his Passion, Death, and Resurrection to his disciples. (2) His
disciples reject or object or ignore his announcement purposely. (3) Based on
their attitude, Jesus teaches them a lesson. For instance, in the first
prediction (last Sunday’s Gospel, Mark 8:27-35, its parallel is in Mt 16:21-28),
first, Jesus announced to his friends that he would suffer, die, and resurrect
after three days. Second, the objection came from Peter, who, on behalf of his
fellow disciples, objected by rebuking Jesus. Third, because of their attitude,
Jesus taught them a lesson regarding the three conditions of discipleship: deny
oneself, pick up one’s cross, and follow him. Jesus’ second prediction of his
passion is in Mark 9:30-37 (today’s Gospel. Its parallel is in Mt 17:22-23 and 18:1-4.)
The three phases are: first, Jesus announces his Passion, Death, and Resurrection
to them. Second, the disciples ignore him purposely by arguing among themselves
about who will be the group leader after Jesus dies. Third, based on their
attitude, Jesus teaches them that whoever wants to be the first and greatest must
be the last and servant of all. The third Jesus’ prediction is in Mark 10:32-35.
(We will read a part of it [10:35-45 or 10:42-45] on Sunday, October 20, 2024, the
Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time B. Its parallel is in Matthew 20:17-28.)
The three phases are: First, Jesus predicts his Passion, Death, and
Resurrection as usual. Second, the disciples ignore his announcement and focus
on their selfish ambitions. The two sons of Zebedee want Jesus to grant them
the privilege of sitting one on his right and another on his left in his glory.
The rest of the disciples became indignant. Because of their selfish attitude, Jesus teaches
them the same lesson of the second prediction story: whoever wishes to be the greatest
and first among them shall be the servant and the slave of all.
Our
Gospel passage is a narrative story. It is structured in three movements. (1)
Jesus announces to his disciples his Passion, Death, and Resurrection (vv.30-31).
(2) The disciples ignore him and dispute among themselves who will be the group
leader after their Master dies (vv.32-34). (3) Jesus teaches them a lesson based on their
attitude (vv. 35-37).
The
first movement is Jesus’ prediction of his Passion. Mark begins our story by commenting
that Jesus and his disciples are on a journey through Galilee, but he does not
want his friends to know about it. He will reveal Jerusalem as their
destination when he announces to them his Passion for the third time (Mk 10:32.)
Note that this trip to Jerusalem is significant because it is when and where the
Paschal Mystery (Jesus’ Passion, Death, and Resurrection) will take place. On
their journey, Jesus announces to his friends that he will undergo Passion and Death
but will resurrect on the third day. Here, Jesus reveals to his disciples what
type of Messiah he is. He is not the political conqueror Messiah as the
disciples taught before. Instead, he is a Messiah who accepts suffering and death
to save the world.
The
second movement is the disciples’ ignoring Jesus’ announcement by focusing on
their selfish ambitions. Unlike Matthew, who, in his version of the same account,
said that the disciples understood Jesus but were overwhelmed with grief (Mt
17:22-23,) Mark, first, reports that they did not understand Jesus’ saying and
were afraid to question him (v. 32). What kind of misunderstanding does Mark
speak about here? We know that in the first prediction, Mark already added an
important detail to clear the possibility of misunderstanding. He said that
Jesus spoke to them openly (Mark 8: 32), meaning not in parables but in simple
words, making it easier for all of them to understand. In our text, when Mark
says that they did not understand, he does not refer to the lack of comprehension.
The stress is not in the first part of the phrase, “they did not understand,”
but rather in the second part, “they were afraid to question him.” The
disciples refuse to ask Jesus a question for further clarification because they
are afraid to hear the same prediction again, which frustrates them. The real
problem here is not intellectual teaching (which requires intelligence to
understand) but a personal experience with Jesus, which entails their total
commitment. Jesus invites them and all of us to relate to him as a suffering
Messiah ready to lay down his life to save the world. Consequently, they, including
us, must be prepared to lay down our lives to save our brothers and sisters. Jesus’
teachings are a big challenge for the disciples. They do not want to accept
them. That is why they avoid asking a question for further clarification. In
our first reading, the sacred author of the Book of Wisdom tells us that the wicked
people plotted to unjustly condemn an unnamed righteous man to a shameful death
because this man’s teachings challenged their wrong actions. Jesus’s teachings
continue to challenge us today. Many of us sometimes do not read the Bible and
refuse to study it because we avoid being challenged. Let us humble ourselves
and allow the Word of God to challenge and transform us.
Second,
Jesus shares with his disciples the painful and emotional situation of his
upcoming death. He expects them to give him support and show him their
compassion. However, his disciples ignore Jesus, do not support him, or show
him their compassion. Instead, they are preoccupied with their selfish
ambitions and wicked desires as they argue among themselves about who will be
the group leader after their Master dies. Today, Jesus expects us to listen to
him with consideration when he speaks to us through the Scriptures (especially
at Masses) and our brothers and sisters (particularly those suffering.) Many of
us, like the disciples, ignore Jesus. We do not listen to him attentively.
Instead, we are concerned about our selfish ambitions and wicked desires. In
our second reading, Saint James teaches his people and all of us about the
danger that selfish ambitions and wicked desires cause. He says that where
jealousy and selfish ambition (what he calls “passions”) exist, there is
disorder and every foul practice. They are the reasons for the conflicts and
wars among us in our families, neighborhoods, and societies (James 3:16; 4:1).
So, the Church teaches us to eliminate our selfishness and wickedness. Christians
are called to listen to Jesus when he speaks to us through the Scripture
readings and our brothers and sisters.
The
third movement of our Gospel passage is the lesson Jesus teaches his disciples.
Based on their selfish ambitions and wicked desires to be the greatest among
others, Jesus describes the two characteristics of discipleship. “If anyone
wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” (v. 35).
A disciple must be the last of all and the servant of all. To illustrate his
lesson, Jesus takes a child, places him in their midst, puts his arms around
him, and then invites them to be like that child. There are two interpretations
here. (1) Jesus uses a child to symbolize the anawim: the poor in spirit
and lowly in the Christian community. So, Jesus let his disciples and all of us
understand that discipleship is a service to the people, especially the poor
and lowly. (2) At Jesus’ time and in their culture, the children were seldom
noticed, much less served by the people. So, here, Jesus wants his friends to
know that they may be treated likewise by the people they will serve. If or
when it happens, they should know that whoever receives them, like a child,
receives Jesus himself and receives God. Our Holy Mother Church exhorts us to
receive well and support the Church and all its ministers. When we do so, we
receive and support Jesus himself.
May
the liturgy of this Mass enable us to eliminate our selfishness and wickedness,
accept to follow Jesus, the suffering Messiah, and be the “last” and “servants”
of our brothers and sisters, especially the poor and lowly. Amen.
Rev. Leon Ngandu, SVD
SVD USS Biblical Apostolate Coordinator &
Retreat Center Director
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