Friday of the
Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis 11:1-9; Mark 8:34-9:1)
Today’s first reading is filled with irony. It tells of how people congregate in a city
to improve their lot. Their working
together, however, leads to downfall. Inclined
to evil, they arrogantly try to build a tower so tall that it will reach into
the heavens. They probably think that they
then will be able to see God. But they
do not even come close to reaching their objective. God has to come down to frustrate their
efforts before they kill themselves. The
gospel today prescribes the only path to God.
Jesus tells his disciples that people have to carry their
individual crosses after himself. The
crosses are made of suffering and emptiness.
They involve a letting go of self to serve others. A woman gives up his career to attend to her
dying mother. A reporter returns to
Syria after being captured and released to chronicle the lot of the people
there. These Christians cling to the
hope that God will provide for them. Arriving where Jesus is, they will know
God face-to-face. But sometimes they
wonder as day after day they find no relief.
We achieve nothing by wondering if there is another way
to God. God is love which gives of
itself for the other. We thank God for
saving us time and again from our folly.
Even more, we praise him for coming to us in Jesus. Here he suffered horrendously for us. As his cross led to glory, so following him, we
will be saved saved.
