August 30, 2020

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Today we hear a message from St. Paul to the early Christians of Rome instructing them on how to live as followers of Christ. He writes, “Do not fit yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect” (Rom. 12:2). This is a good message to keep in mind as we unpack the other readings for today.

In the First Reading we hear from the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 20:7-9), one of the most persecuted figures of the Old Testament. In this passage, Jeremiah has just been released from the stockade after being placed there by the priest Pashhur for his prophesy of doom against the city of Jerusalem. Now Jeremiah is suffering what the author of the book calls an “interior crisis.”

Although God had warned Jeremiah early on that he would encounter resistance, he now feels that the LORD has deceived him, luring him into a mission which is hopeless and foolhardy. He accuses God of seducing him and making him an object of laughter and mockery. Later in the passage he even goes so far as to regret the day he was born. He asks, “Why did I come forth from the womb, to see sorrow and pain, to end my days in shame?” (Jer. 20:18).

Jeremiah claims that speaking the word of the LORD has brought him nothing but reproach and derision, and he adamantly insists that he will no longer mention God, nor utter God’s name.  Yet amidst his complaining and lamentation, Jeremiah makes an interesting admission. Try as he might, he finds it absolutely impossible to keep from pronouncing the message he has been commissioned to preach. He says, “It is as if fire is burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones; I grow weary holding back, I cannot!” (Jer. 20:9b).

It is almost as if this interior crisis of Jeremiah has turned into a battle between two wills. With one breath he is confidently praising God and with the next he is expressing disillusionment and despair. His words in a sequence of sentences are a total contradiction: “Sing to the LORD, praise the LORD, for, he has rescued the life of the poor from the power of the evildoers! Cursed be the day on which I was born! (20:13-14).

The tone of this conversation that Jeremiah seems to be having with himself is similar to the one that we hear today between Jesus and Peter in the Gospel (Mt. 16:21-27). Here we pick up directly from where we left off last Sunday in the Book of Matthew. Jesus has asked the disciples who do the people say that he is, and Simon Peter has proclaimed definitively, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Mt. 16:16).

Now that Simon Peter has ascertained the true identity of Jesus as the long-awaited Savior, Jesus delivers a shocking prediction. He tells the disciples, “He must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” (Mt. 16:22b).

That Jesus will suffer this fate sounds ludicrous to Simon Peter. So, he takes Jesus aside and rebukes him saying, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.” (Mt. 16:22).

Peter’s objection sounds like the complaint we hear from Jeremiah. Why would God send Jesus as the Messiah only to see sorrow and pain, ending his days with shame? How can the one who has come to redeem Israel from their oppressors and restore their nation to a great kingdom accomplish his task if he is going to be killed? Moreover, until it actually happens, the idea that Jesus will be raised on the third day is baffling and lacks reassurance.

Jesus, however, gives Peter a harsh response, “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

This declaration of Jesus sounds a lot like the other side of Jeremiah’s dialogue when he says that his mission is like a fire burning in his heart. Regardless of the consequences and the outcome, Jesus, like Jeremiah, has an objective that he must definitively accomplish. Anything less would be akin to surrendering to the devil instead of doing the work of God.

After scolding Peter, Jesus softens his tone a bit to explain the conditions required for discipleship to his closest followers. He tells them, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Mt. 16:24-25).

Jesus is telling the disciples that following him means they must absolutely submit to the will of God and forego any of their own personal goals. They must give their lives over totally to spreading the good news of the Gospel. It is the same message that St. Paul later delivers to the Christians of Rome as they battle the forces of an irreligious society.

This teaching of Jesus and sage advice of Paul apply to us today, as well. We know that there are things we have to do if we are to be true followers of Jesus. We have to sacrifice our lives and our own health and happiness for the sake of others – our spouses, our children, our elderly and ailing parents, and even our coworkers and neighbors – regardless of the ramifications.

This can be exceedingly difficult. Like with Jeremiah and Peter, it can sometimes seem unbearable or impossible. We want to cry out to God, “No! I can’t! I won’t do this anymore!” But we know in our hearts that we must if we are to conform to the will of God and fulfill the mission entrusted to us.

In the harshness of this reality and the discomfort it brings, it might be helpful to keep in mind the prayer of Jeremiah as he deals with his own interior struggle, “The LORD is with me, like a mighty champion. Sing to the Lord, praise the LORD.” (Jer. 20:11, 13b).