Wednesday of the Twentieth-sixth Week in Ordinary Time
(Job 9:1-12.14-16; Luke 9:57-62)
When Russia invaded Ukraine, a man prepared his family for
asylum abroad. After he sent them away,
he went to fight for his country. The
man said that he wanted to be with his family but felt a moral obligation to
defend his homeland. Jesus’ reasoning is
similar in today’s gospel.
As if he were going to war, Jesus makes known the urgency of
his mission. Those who would join him
must be prepared to make sacrifices. They
will not have their own bed to sleep on.
More difficult, they will have to leave their families without knowing
when they will see them again. Such demands
can only be made for a supreme good, and there is no greater good than the
Kingdom of because it is God Himself.
God is the peace, joy, and love that constitutes the Kingdom Jesus proclaims.
A few young women and men today leave behind their families
to join religious orders to work for the kingdom. Their parents often feel a loss, not only of
their children but also of possible grandchildren. But God provides for them a hundredfold. Often it is the priest or religious who takes
care of their parents in old age. Parish
or the religious congregation, which surround the celibate, often provide the
support of a score of grandchildren.
