Sunday, October 18, 2015

Homily: 29th Sunday in OT - 2015 - Suffering Servitude

Our first reading is one of several prophecies from the prophet Isaiah about God’s suffering servant.  The Jewish people were not quite certain about whom this prophecy was about: was it about the king, about a prophet, about the messiah? What was clear is that this Suffering Servant was a person whose whole existence would be given to offering himself as sacrifice for others—through him, God would right the world’s wrongs.

You might remember the story from the book of Acts, there was an Ethiopian eunuch going through the desert, reading one of the Suffering Servant Passages from the prophet Isaiah, and he was very confused by it.  And the Holy Spirit told the deacon Philip to go Eunuch to explain the passage. Philip explained that, this suffering servant who gives his whole existence as an offering to God and a sacrifice for others, is Jesus Christ. Tell me more, the Ethiopian asked, and after Philip taught him, the Ethiopian was so moved, that he asked to be baptized, and the Deacon Phillip baptized him, on the side of the road.

Jesus alludes to his identity as the Suffering Servant in the Gospel today.  Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, where he was going to have to suffer and die.  And on the way he was giving lessons to his followers of what it means to follow him. 

Immediately, before this morning’s passage, he had told them, for the third time in Mark’s Gospel, that he would have to undergo suffering and death in Jerusalem. But in response to that terrible news, James and John this morning, seem to sort of miss the point.  Now, James and John were amongst the first disciples called by Jesus, they were fishermen, the sons of a man named Zebedee.  And they were among Jesus’ closest friends, who went everywhere with him.  But as Jesus is talking about his suffering, they ask a question that would immediately set off red flags for any parent.

“Mom, dad, promise to say yes to anything I ask for. You don’t need to know what it is, just say, yes” No parent in their right mind would ever concede to that, and neither did Jesus. “What do you want?” Jesus asks.  “We want the highest thrones in your kingdom, not as high as yours, of course, but right next to yours.”  Giving them the benefit of the doubt, they probably asked this because they wanted to be significant in Jesus’ mission, they wanted to remain close to him. 

But Jesus perhaps detecting some ulterior motive, responds  "You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?" In the Old Testament, one’s cup, referred to, one’s lot in life, one’s destiny.  To drink the cup meant to accept the destiny. So Jesus is asking, are you willing to share my destiny? The one that he had just talked about, suffering and death in Jerusalem? Are you willing to suffer and die with me? Can you be baptized, immerged, into the will of the Father as I am, will you be plunged into death like me?
Not likely understanding the magnitude of the Jesus’ question Jesus, they look at each other and nod and said, “We Can”.  We sometimes respond to Jesus with the similar naïve enthusiasm.  “Jesus I’ll do anything you want me to do.” Really? “Will you suffer for me?” ummmm “Will you become a priest?” ummmmm…”Will you become a missionary and bring my Gospel to Africa?” ummmm… “Will you stand up for the faith when you might get mocked for it?” “Well…when I said I’ll do anything for you, what I meant, is I’ll do anything if I don’t have to change.”

Jesus says to James and John, “The cup that I drink, you will drink” They would suffer greatly in their lives, James would be martyred for the faith, executed by the sword in Jerusalem. John would be tortured then exiled to the island of Patmos.

The other 10 Apostles heard James and John’s question, and they became indignant, so Jesus summoned all twelve together to give them a lesson. You want to be Great in my kingdom? Greatness in the world means lording your authority and power over others, but greatness in the kingdom comes through service.  You want to become greatest in Jesus’ kingdom, become the greatest servant. Be willing to serve in whatever capacity God is calling you, spend your life in service. Give God the blank check.

Jesus is giving a radically counter-cultural teaching here.  Again, greatness in the world usually means, having the position of power, having the wealth to do whatever you want, having fame where everyone recognizes you and applauds you as you are coming down the street.  But that’s not greatness in the eyes of God.  No number of Heisman Trophies will gain you entrance into heaven; heaven is not contingent on the number of people you have working for you, the size of your house, or your bank account. To become great in the eyes of God requires one to pour out one’s life in service to God’s Holy Will.

And the greatest of these, is Jesus, the suffering servant, the one whose whole existence was in service of pouring his life out that sinful man could gain eternal life.  “For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many." And he is the model for all Christians.

The fundamental attitude of the Christian is one of service.  When we see a neighbor, our first question shouldn’t be “what have they done for me lately?” But, what can I do for them? Mom, Dad, what can I do around the house? What can I do to help? Dear husband, dear wife, what can I do for you?

The saints show us what suffering servitude looks like at the heroic level. Something to aim for. Monday is the feast day of one of my favorite saints, one of the north American martyrs, Saint Isaac Jogues.  In 1636, the Jesuit Priest Isaac Jogues traveled to Quebec to preach the Gospel to the Huron Indians.  The Hurons were a very peaceful tribe, and many Hurons converted to Christianity through the preaching of Fr. Isaac and his companions. However, the Hurons were constantly attacked by the Iroquois, and during one attack, Father Issac was captured by the Iroquois and imprisoned for 13 months.  He and his companions were beaten, tortured, and forced to watch as the Huron converts were tortured and killed by the Iroquois. 

Isaac was able to escape imprisonment and he returned to his native land of France. He had to receive special permission from the Pope to continue to celebrate Mass because several of his fingers had been cut or chewed off during his tortures.  Father Isaac could have stayed in Europe to die peacefully, but in 1646, the Iroquois signed a peace treaty with the Hurons and Fr. Isaac thought it a good opportunity to bring the Gospel to the Iroquois Nation.  So he returned to North America, but on his way to evangelize the Iroquois he was captured by a war party of Mohawk Indians, and on October 18, 1646, Father Isaac was tomahawked and beheaded.

Yet because of his tremendous courage and willingness to suffer for the faith many Iroquois converted to Christianity and welcomed missionaries with open arms.  And The faith began to grow amongst the Mohawks as well. .  Because of the suffering service of Father Isaac, another figure of holiness was born to Christ—a young Mohawk princess named Kateri Tekakwitha, who was canonized a few years ago.

In a letter composed before his death, Saint Isaac Jogues wrote: “Our single endeavor should be to give ourselves to the work of the spread of the Gospel and faithfulness to God, and to not let our own desires get in the way of doing God’s work.”


May that become our single endeavor, inspired by the saints, instructed by the Word of God, may we follow in the way of the suffering servant, Christ Our Lord, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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