Dear Jesus, the Psalms tell us "Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing." (Psalm 126:5) Please show mercy and forgiveness to those who are today “sowing in tears” through their suffering, and hear their prayers. Amen.
Reflection
As I’ve stated before, most Sundays for me are spent going to Mass, sometimes going to the hospital to distribute Holy Communion, and visiting my mother. Very often, I have to cut the day short to make the drive back to work in Fresno so I can get an early start on Mondays. Today was one of those. But it’s OK, because I love the chance to meditate and reflect.
I was thinking today of my mother, and how much she is suffering from the effects of arthritis, vertigo, and other symptoms of old age. Throughout it all, she has made it her mission to pray for everyone and everything under the sun, including me and my family! (Note to self: remember to return the favor tonight!) In light of all the praying she does, I was trying to make sense of Mom’s suffering and coming up short. So I fired up my laptop when I got to the Fresno apartment to write tonight’s entry and—what do you know? Looking at tomorrow’s Mass readings, I was pleased that the first reading for tomorrow deals with the topic of suffering! And to top it off, the Gospel speaks of a woman very much like my own mom! Thanks, Holy Spirit! You take such good care of me!
St. Paul speaks so well of the mystery of human suffering (2 Corinthians 4:7-15). That is, that by God's grace, we carry in our own bodies the sufferings of Christ. It is a difficult concept, especially in the face of the apparent senselessness of catastrophic illness or injury.
What can we say to those who are suffering?
Holy Scripture tells us that in response to human suffering, Christ sighed, groaned and wept. Therefore in imitation of Christ let us be present to others who are suffering, not by trying to construct for them the whole of salvation history in the Word becoming Flesh, but by what is most effective, by having the living Christ animate our flesh that we might be Christ for others.
Bishop Fulton Sheen in one of his presentations encouraged the audience to remember that no one remained dead in Christ's presence, not the daughter of Jairus, not the widow of Naim's son, not Lazarus.
So, too, will it be for others who, by God's grace and their cooperation with His grace, recognize their suffering as a means of salvation for themselves and others.
 |
| The calling of Sts. James and John, the sons of Zebedee |
Even though he is my patron saint through Confirmation, St. James is one of the apostles about whom we know very little. And since we know so little about him, I find it difficult to distinguish him from the other apostle called James. We do know that this James was the son of Zebedee and the brother of John the evangelist. James and John were favored by Jesus to be present at some of the most memorable events of his public life here on earth. They were present at the Transfiguration and at the agony in the garden. St. Luke in the Acts tells us that James died when he was beheaded at Jerusalem by order of King Herod Agrippa. He was the FIRST of the apostles to die. (As a side note, my namesake saint—St. Stephen—was the FIRST martyr! I’m beginning to sense a trend here, you know?) lol.
We get only a glimpse of the mother of James and John in Matthew 20:20-28. Interestingly enough, St. Matthew does not even tell us her name. (Some say that she is the Salome mentioned in St. Mark's gospel.) Even in this one brief appearance this nameless woman caught my attention when I read this gospel passage. I think there is something very human and very attractive about her. She reminds me somewhat of my own mother; she only wants the best for her sons.
This mother made a very bold request, but she made it in a most proper manner. She didn’t make the request behind the backs of her sons, but rather in their presence and presumably with their consent. Before making her request she did homage to Jesus, showing that she respected Him as a great teacher and a good leader for her sons. She has the deference to wait until Jesus asks what her wish is before stating it. Then she simply departs the scene and the gospel story. This one brief scene is all that we know of her. The remaining dialogue in this scene is between Jesus and the brothers. Of their mother we hear no more. Although her life presumably continues she vanishes from the gospel story as quickly and completely as she came into it. Her brief appearance in the life of Jesus is similar to that of a number of others; people such as Simon of Cyrene, Zaccheus, and the Samaritan woman at the well. We are left with a beautiful picture of a woman whose name we do not know and who only wanted what was best for her two sons.
There has been much speculation about the mother of James and John. One tradition says that she was the sister of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Even if that were not true, it is very possible that she was privileged to know and spend time with Mary when John took her into his home. I like to think that this mother lived to see her son James enter into the heavenly kingdom. I am sure that it was a great joy for her even if James did not have a place at the right hand of Jesus.
No comments:
Post a Comment