The Two Favorites (2015-10-18)

SUNDAY 18  October 2015 29^th Sunday

• Isaiah 53:10-11 •Psalm 33  • Hebrews 4:14-16  •Mark 10:35-45 •

[__01__]    Several years ago, a friend of mine was giving a tribute to his younger brother, the younger brother who was also the youngest and the front-runner for affection and adoration.

As I recall, he said,  “Everyone loves my brother Mike. He’s the favorite in the family.”  We laughed.

“Now, my father tried a little bit to conceal this affection. He tried to be evenhanded, but we knew Mike was his favorite. Of course, Mike also followed in my father’s footsteps … Mike became a police officer in Los Angeles with the LAPD.… My father was an NYPD detective.”

“My mother was a different story. She did not conceal her adoration or affection at all, letting everyone know that Mike was her favorite. She never tried to hide this.”

Then, he went on…

“In some families, this would be a problem. It would cause division, disruption …. But Mike was our favorite too. He was – and still is – the favorite in our family.”

[*** P A U S E ***]

[__02__]     What happens when someone emerges as the favorite within a particular group or family?

What happens when someone tries hard to obtain favors or to curry favor to boost his or her approval rating?

The favored one can cause disruption, discord, problems.

[__03__]     In the family of Jesus and the 12 apostles, this is the problem. James and John want to be the favorites, the favored ones with special treatment.  They do not know, however, what they are asking.

And, we read that the apostles became indignant at their request.

This was not the only time that there would be division or discussion or contradictions among the apostles, disciples and friends of Jesus.

Consider …

[● Thomas the Apostle]  He was absent during the first appearance of Jesus to the apostles. This report is not enough for Thomas who responds he needs something more: “Except I see in his hands the print of the nails and put my finger into the place of the nails and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25)

A week later, Thomas believes because he sees. And, well known to us are Jesus’ words about the fact that this high-def interview and vision does not give Thomas any special or exclusive status.  Jesus says, “Blessed are they that have not seen and have believed.” (John 20:29)

[__04__]    Do we not experience, at times, division in our hearts, envy or jealousy, or a lack of charity if we were to see partiality or favoritism?

St. Paul himself wrote, “There is no respect of persons with God.”  (Romans 2:11)

That is, in God’s eyes we are all equal.

[*** P A U S E ***]

[__05__]  I recall a spiritual director’s advice to those of us who might experience envy or jealousy. For example, perhaps, we see someone attain …

·       great wealth, material comfort

·       a scholarship

·       high-paying job

Or, we might imagine that another family – or married couple – has  a life of greater ease and luxury than we do.

In other words, someone enjoys a favor that we do not possess.  We may behave in a way similar to the apostles of this Gospel. We may become indignant, bitter, resentful.

What to do? This spiritual director’s advice was to pray for this person, to pray even that their wealth and advantage would increase.

As we read in Psalm 128, we could pray that person would eat the fruit of his handiwork, that he would be “happy” and “favored”.   (Psalm 128:2)

We could pray that their blessings may bring them eternal salvation and a place on the right and/or left hand of Jesus.

[*** P A U S E ***]

[__06__]    Could we not, at times, experience the bitterness of these 10 apostles, whenever we encounter the inequality or the uneven distribution of God’s gifts.

The other 10 apostles are aroused to anger by a possible injustice. Are James and John going to gain these personal-seat-licenses for themselves?  Or, as the disciples would prefer, should they be suspended for a couple of games?

Jesus intervenes and tells the apostles and tells all of us,

“whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, whoever wishes to be first among you, must be the slave of all.” (Mark 10:43-44)

This was also the message of Pope Francis recently in Washington D.C. to his modern-day apostles, to the bishops of the United States And, this message applies to all of us who are called to service in the name of Christ.

The Holy Father is reminding us that being a priest, religious sister, brother, a disciple is a vocation to service, to compassion, to humility.

This calls us to experience the  struggles and difficulty which remind us of St. Paul’s letter about the paradox of the Cross, “that the foolishness of God is wiser than human strength and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” (1 Corinthians 1:25)

Pope Francis writes:

“Certainly it is helpful [for a priest… for example] to have the farsightedness of a leader and the shrewdness of an administrator, but we fall into decline whenever we confuse the power of strength with that powerlessness with which God has redeemed us.  [There is a] battle between light and darkness being fought in this world …the price of lasting victory is allowing ourselves to be wounded and consumed.” (Philippians 2:11) (Pope Francis, St. Matthew’s Cathedral, Washington D.C., 23 September 2015)

[__07__]   Pope Francis is reminding us that the Christian life is not about equal shares but shared sacrifice.

And, this also what motivates and animates Catholic and Christian teaching about care for the innocent, for respect for the migrant peoples for whom Europe is now a refuge, about the respect for life at all stages, about respect for unborn life, for care of the terminally ill.

In these cases, “advantages” and “favors” are also distributed unevenly. 

And, when we care for the life which God gives us we are also caring for Christ’s body, we are receiving the Holy Eucharist, and making acts of adoration – of favor – toward the poor.

We are living the words of service which Jesus tells to the apostles in this Gospel and later when he says that we can extend God’s “favor” to others, “as often as you did to one of the least of my brothers and sisters, you did to me.”  (Matthew 25:31)

[__fin__]