Gospel: Matthew 8:18-22
When Jesus saw the crowd pressing around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. A teacher of the law approached him; and said, “Master, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another disciple said to him, “Lord, let me go and bury my father first.” But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.”
Reflection:
"Accepting the way of the cross."
Today’s readings and feast highlight aspects of bravery in the spiritual life. We are called to a holy boldness or daring. Abraham shows this by repeatedly pleading for mercy for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. This is not arrogance on the part of Abraham. He knows that he is “dust and ashes” before the majesty of God, but he trusts in God’s loving care. This boldness of trust and honesty should be bedrock of our conversational prayer with the Lord. Christian boldness and daring also expresses itself as bravery in the face of trial or persecution. Christ tells the first disciples that
the choice to be a disciple does not guarantee comfort. Indeed, the way of the disciple necessarily includes accepting the way of the cross. We see this especially in the lives of the martyrs. The first martyrs of Rome suffered greatly at the orders of the emperor Nero, who mercilessly persecuted the Christian community for his own cruel entertainment and for the purposes of finding a scapegoat he could blame for the great fire that was possibly started at his command. May the martyrs help us to grow in boldness before God and in bravery before men.
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