Wednesday of the Second Week in Lent
(Matthew 20:17-28)
The great virtuoso violinist Ishak Perlman tells the story of a woman asking him to listen to her son play the violin. When Perlman rather reluctantly agreed, the mother took out a tape recorder and played a cassette. Perlman marveled at the beautiful music. “He sounds just like Ya Ya Haifitz,” Perlman exclaimed. “That is Ya Ya Haifitz,” the mother replied, “and my son plays just like that.”
Children may allow their parents to exaggerate their abilities. Evidently James and John do not mind their mother soliciting Jesus for places ahead of Peter and the rest of the disciples in the coming Kingdom. But the brothers’ hidden self-esteem does not impress Jesus. He is interested in whether they are willing to suffer for the sake of that Kingdom.
Lent is the season for us to get a grip on our pride. Most of us generally think too much of ourselves. Rather than compare ourselves downwards by noting how we may be better than others in this or that, we should compare ourselves with the saints whose devotion we can hardly hope to emulate. Then we will see how exalted self-esteem betrays a firm trust in God and how our depreciation of others indicates a failure to love.
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