“Whoever wishes to come after me must take up his cross and follow me.”
It doesn’t take a genius or guru to recognize that life is hard. But it does take a wise person to know the difference between responsibly shouldering your burdens and doing your best to duck out of them. I know a man who abandoned wife and children, quit working, and devoted himself to drinking as a means of escaping the hard realities of life. At the end of his days, he admitted it hadn’t worked. Sorrow had dogged his steps every hour along the way, and he’d never been free of suffering as he had wished.
It’s hard to love a cross. It’s unhealthy, in fact, to be in love with our pain. But we do have to make peace with what’s ours to carry. Our loved ones have needs we can’t meet. There are things money can’t buy. We face disappointments, betrayals, and crises thrown on the heap of our present troubles that often feel like the last straw that will bring our forbearance crashing down. To deny the hour of sacrifice and suffering is to risk being “Satan,” the liar and denier of Jesus. The cross is where we learn the true cost of love.
Who taught you the most about responsibly bearing a burden?
(Reflection and questions by Alice Camille in Exploring the Sunday Readings)
Since the Sunday Gospel is the heart of the Gospel Weeklies, an important part of preparing to share the Gospel with children is to read and reflect on it in advance of your class session. The Gospel at Home and The Gospel for All Ages (see Gathering Rituals/Questions) are resources on our website that can help you do this. While these resources take a break in the summer months, we’ll be drawing our weekly reflections from Exploring the Sunday Readings.
Image credit: Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing via Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
This was a very good reflection on Sunday’s Gospel. It came at a very important time in my life.
Susan,
We’re always humbled when something we write hits home for a reader. It’s an affirmation that the Holy Spirit is guiding our efforts. We keep all those who use our products in our prayers. We wish you God’s peace!