SERMON/HOMILY FOR WEDNESDAY SECOND WEEK OF LENT 28TH FEBRUARY 2024

SERMON/HOMILY FOR WEDNESDAY SECOND WEEK OF LENT 28TH FEBRUARY 2024

Jeremiah 18:18-20; Ps.31; Matthew 20:17-28

Improved Perception

While Jesus spoke of his impending passion and eventual victory, Salome, the mother of James and John did something quite usual. She understood Jesus to mean that he will establish a new kingdom, something that will come about after he has defeated those who persecute him. Salome wanted to ensure that her children will share in this future victory. This is quite expected. Tradition has it that Salome was a sister to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and so, an aunt to Jesus. James and John were Jesus’ cousin. Again, James and John together with Peter, formed the inner cycle of Jesus’ disciples.

So, just as people meet their influential relatives for job opportunities, Salome was only reminding Jesus of the need to share his future glory with relatives. Again, since Jesus had no siblings, the cousins were closest to him by blood.

It becomes easy to understand why the other ten disciples (including Peter who has been made head of the disciples) became indignant at James and John. They feared that Jesus will not refuse the request of his aunt for his cousins; they feared that they were less fortunate since they were not related to Jesus biologically. All these while they had been following Jesus, nothing has ever been done or shared on the basis of biological ties; why now that the new kingdom was about to be establish?

Though, Salome and the 12 disciples did not understand what Jesus said to them about his passion and eventual victory, their action speaks loudly of a typical human inclination – the desire for security and greatness. If Jesus had granted the request of Salome just as she meant it, it would mean that Jesus is merely a man who can only share biological ties with a limited number of persons. But because Jesus is God, there are no frontiers to his relationship with us. If only those who are related to Jesus can be saved, then we all stand the chance of being saved because we are children of God.

The response Jesus gave to Salome and the ten indignant disciples, was not only to teach on humility but also on perception. We need to improve how we see one another. It is in God’s adoption of us that we can be saved. Consequently, the act of Christian Charity that lent calls us into can only be possible when we see one another as brothers and sisters; that is, when we love one another. You cannot deprive yourself of your meal (fasting) in order to have something for an enemy or a stranger. Our acts of kindness for one another will improve to the extent that our perception for one another has improved.