Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today's Scripture

In today’s reading from the Gospel of St. Mark St. James and St. John ask Jesus to sit beside Him when He enters His glory. In the previous chapter, Jesus had already singled out these same two apostles (along with St. Peter) to witness His transfiguration (Mark 9:2-13). At the transfiguration, they caught a glimpse of Jesus in His glory, so their request is not so odd. They fail to realize, however, that Jesus’ glory is linked to His suffering death which is described for us in today’s first reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.

Jesus, however, redirects them by emphasizing what constitutes true greatness in His Kingdom: service. Whoever wishes to be great will be a servant (10:43). This20is the key to greatness in Jesus’ Kingdom. Unlike the kingdoms of the world where the greatness of a ruler is indicated by the number and quality of servants, in Jesus’ Kingdom, one’s greatness is determined by one’s own service to others. As the many Saints who have followed Jesus down through the millennia have shown, such service need not be grandiose, but rather faithful service in the little things of life is what God calls us to.

This is the Gospel message for us today, to become better servants of one another. This can often be difficult, and indeed, service is a kind of mortification, a dying to self. We may find encouragement in the fact that Jesus, our High Priest, faced trials just like us, as we read in today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews. Indeed, the sacrifice He offered as our High Priest was the sacrifice of Himself. Let us, therefore, approach our High Priest for the graces we need to live Christian lives of service to those around us.
 

Perhaps today we can think of one way in which we can be better servants and really work this week at serving better in this way. This can be a simple task even if it remains a challenge for us. For some of us, we may need to consider doing more service than we already do. Perhaps for others of us we don’t need to do “more,” but we can improve upon how we already serve. If we are used to complaining about how we serve others, perhaps this week we can work on not complaining but trying to serve joyfully. If we are inconsistent in the service we already intend to do, like making our bed regularly or cleaning the dishes, or whatever our regular chore may be, we can try this week to be more consistent in at least one area. Our service can take on many different forms. Empowered by the grace of God, let us grow closer to Jesus by better following His model of loving service. In this way, we allow God to transform us into the gifts of love He intends us to be for one another.

Jeff Morrow