Gospel – Mark 9:30-37

Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee,
but he did not wish anyone to know about it.
He was teaching his disciples and telling them,
“The Son of Man is to be handed over to men
and they will kill him,
and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.”
But they did not understand the saying,
and they were afraid to question him.They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house,
he began to ask them,
“What were you arguing about on the way?”
But they remained silent.
They had been discussing among themselves on the way
who was the greatest.
Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them,
“If anyone wishes to be first,
he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”
Taking a child, he placed it in their midst,
and putting his arms around it, he said to them,
“Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me;
and whoever receives me,
receives not me but the One who sent me.”

Reflection on the Gospel

Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.

It turns out that to be great is to be focused on something quite other than oneself. Greatness lies in welcoming one who is not viewed as great by the culture, the child.

Once again, Jesus is challenging us to reverse long-standing, ingrained, human habits.  He asks us to set aside our common human understanding of how to win fame and glory, and instead to focus on welcoming the weak and vulnerable.

As the walk progresses, the disciples find their way into a discussion about which of them is the greatest. They are graduate students comparing GRE scores. They are our students comparing test grades.  They are anyone who has ever written a memo containing the words ‘measurable outcomes.’ Which of the disciples is the star pupil? Who is the greatest?

Saint John Baptist de La Salle gave up his worldly goods and his esteemed position within the church in order to work for the betterment of a segment of his society who had little hope for a brighter future. He received the children whom others had ignored and shunned from the educational system of his day.

“Those who keep my commandments and teach them, will be called great in the kingdom.”  – Jesus

 

Ms. Margaret “Peggy” Perkins
Director of Campus Ministry – Christian Brothers Academy-Syracuse

Saint John Baptist de La Salle – Pray for us.
Live, Jesus, in our hearts – Forever.