22nd Ordinary Sunday (A) 01 September 2002

	22nd Ordinary Sunday (A) September 1, 2002
Renewed Integral Evangelization -- Focusing on the Family

"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."

Dear Friend,

Jesus was going to build His Church with Peter as its first leader, our first Pope. The Church is a community of disciples living in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus, in the Gospel for Sunday (Matthew 16:21-27), reiterated His conditions of discipleship.

Please read this Gospel to your family to see how Jesus presented to His disciples these conditions.

The conditions are: "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." (v.24-25). See also Matthew 10:37-39.
Jesus would not expect His disciples to follow anything that He Himself would not undertake.

So Jesus had to show His disciples that he must go to Jerusalem (deny Himself) and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes (take up His cross), and be killed but on the third day be raised. Peter could not accept that the Messiah would expose Himself in Jerusalem where the Jews are known to be hostile to them and He would certainly suffer and possibly be killed. He could not accept that the disciples, too, would suffer the same fate and be killed -- a natural human tendency of self-preservation.

So Jesus rebuked him: "You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."

What did Peter fail to understand? For a person to grow in his discipleship, Jesus said he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow Him.

"Deny himself" ~ The disciples are human beings but they must learn how Jesus thinks, feels and acts. A disciple must, therefore, turn away or deny himself of anything that separates or distracts him from the way Jesus would think, feel and act in situations at hand. In other word, a disciple must turn away from sin.

"Take up his cross" ~ To take up his cross is to suffer, or experience pain of denying oneself inordinate worldly attachments and addictions. This suffering or pain of rejection is a temporary thing. There is a resurrection on the third day. The reward is eternal life with the Father.

"And follow me" ~ A disciple must learn to follow Jesus to deny himself and take up his cross. A disciple must walk with Jesus as He shows him His life. He was a human being also who went through a process of transformation that made Him One with the Father � perfect human being as the Father is perfect -- a way of finding out and giving love in any situation, even on the cross.

Meditation ~

There many, many things I have to learn from Jesus and I hope He will give me these opportunities.

I have to learn how He would think, feel and act in life situations of today and be humble and gentle as He is.

I must learn how He can see the positive aspects of situations, even in my crosses.

I must learn how He can love an "enemy."

I must learn to accept the pains of rejection, of denying myself of my inordinate attachments.

I have to be aware that I am that person who needs to be transformed through His grace.

And be aware of His presence as I go through these trials because He loves me.

Contemplation ~

In contemplation, listen to Jesus repeat to you His conditions of discipleship and let His words sink into your heart and being.

Family Response ~

Support each other in becoming disciples of Jesus to build the Church of the Home -- your family.

Joe & Charito

THE CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF MANILA'S
ONLINE RESOURCE FOR FAMILY MINISTRIES
www.simbahayan.org
servants@simbahayan.org