24th Sunday 2012
The question that Jesus poses to his disciples on the road to Caesarea Phillipi
may be the most important question in the Gospels. In the Gospel of Mark it
comes almost exactly at the midpoint of the Gospel. In a way it’s the
lynchpin of faith. The question, the answer and the follow up. Who do you
say that I am? You are the Messiah. Take up your cross. In Mark’s gospel
Jesus’ mission is taking up his cross and asking his followers to do the same.
Take up your cross. Those can be frightening words. When we look at Jesus
and his suffering we may back off and say, “I don’t have the wherewithal for
that, I’m afraid that I just can’t handle it.” As if you have to handle it alone!
That’s what’s often missing when we shy away from carrying our cross, our
burdens, whether they be illness, broken relationships, personal challenges
of all kinds. (My insight in prayer this morning was that my cross is me. Just
being me is the cross I bear.) But what we often miss is that we do not carry
the cross alone. There are many Simon of Cyrenes who carry the cross with
us, friends, even strangers, who sometimes give us the courage to continue
on, to face the challenge, to laugh when we want to cry.
But even more than those friends and allies who help us in remarkable ways
through their words, their hands, their embrace of love and acceptance, it is
Jesus himself, the Crucified and Risen one, who is with us in our journeys.
I was reminded of this yesterday in our day of reflection for our Pastoral
Council. Knowing that today’s gospel would contain the question, “Who do
you say that I am?” I asked folks to do an Ignatian contemplation, walking
with Jesus and hearing him ask each of them the question: Whom am I for
you? The answers that people shared with me moved me greatly and I’d like
to share some of them with you. What you will hear is that Jesus is not a
theological “idea,” not a sum of all the names we call him (Savior, Son of
God, Son of Man, Risen One, etc.) but a real person, a real presence and a
real friend and support. These reflections come from parishioners who are
still teenagers up to the age of 80.
“In my life of faith, Jesus is my anchor. He is the one who keeps me
grounded and humble. He is what centers me. He is the only one I am truly
100% honest and real with because you can’t lie to God and that keeps me
from lying to myself . He is what guides my relationships and decisions and
actions. I hear him in music. I feel him in hugs and laughter and my dogs
and coffee and Christmas trees. He’s the only one I don’t have to wear
make-up for.”
“Jesus brings me back to happiness and the joys of life when all I can see is
darkness. He has brought people into my life that remind me of who I am
and that I am valued. He shines a light on my life.”
“Jesus, for me is both the prime example of self-sacrifice and one of the
three true manifestations of love. I really like the whole “where two or more
are gathered in my name, I am there too,” thing because the people are Jesus
for each other. The spirit of unity and love is enough to have his presence.
Jesus is also a friend who is always there and whom I can talk to freely and
see how he is doing (if he has had a bad day or whatnot.)”
“Jesus is the poor people down in Camden as well as everyone who has
given their life to helping them.”
“Jesus is the strong hand holding on to me when life’s undertow is pulling
me beneath the water. Jesus is living water, my life’s blood.”
“Jesus is companion and friend. Jesus chooses to walk with me, accompany
me and calls me into a deep friendship.”
“Jesus is teacher and friend, an outstretched hand, an arm around me, a
shoulder to cry on, a foothold to help me climb the mountatin, a guide to
show me the path, a light in the distance.”
“Jesús es mi hermano, mi amigo.”
“Jesus is My Lord and My God.”
“Jesus is my protector, my anxiety healer, the one who sees if I am ok. My
safety person to whom I can turn. The person who loves me without judging
me. The one who says not to worry, everything is fine even if I am not
constant with him.”
“Jesus is the balm and steadying presence in my life. He is the heart of my
intellectualism. That is why I love the image of the Sacred heart. He is the
reconciling of my head and heart.”
“Jesus is like a first base coach, supporting me, advising me, remind me of
potential dangers. I want Jesus to be what Pedro Arrupe’s answer was,
‘For me Jesus is everything.’ I am not there yet but it is where I want to be.”
“Jesus is the one I put all my trust in and the supreme model of sacrifice,
service and love.”
“Jesus is for me the incarnation and personification of freedom. Jesus is the
standard, the exemplar, the source of my spiritual guidance.”
“Jesus is teacher. The disciples and especially Peter have all the wrong
answers but Jesus opens their minds and hears to see how present God is to
them and around them. Whey they start to see learn the become companions
and partners as they travel.”
“Jesus is my rock, pillar of strength. Jesus is by my side every moment. He
is there for joyful times. He is there in fear and in sadness. He centers me
and calms me, he listens to me, guides and grounds me. He catches me when
I fall and will envelope me into his arms when I die. I see him in my
children, a blue sky sunrise. I connect in silence but in every waking
moment as well.”
“It seems that no matter how much theology I study or how long I work for
the Church, Jesus for me is still the friend who sits with me when I am on the
floor crying. He is the friend who I can’t rattle; the one who is always there,
always loving, always willing to meet me where I am, good or bad. He is
someone I can be with when I am at my worst, most desperate self, and he
wants to be there and loves me, deeply, in those moments. He’s happy to be
there at other times, happier, joyful times, too, and I rejoice in his presence,
but it is with him and very few others with whom I feel safe being sad,
vulnerable, and honest. And in those spaces it is Jesus who makes me feel
less of a fool, less self-absorbed, more whole and more human. With Jesus,
it is ok to be who and how I am, and with Jesus it is possible to work for
something better. Jesus’ humanity is reassuring: my feelings aren’t petty or
difficult for him to understand. His divinity is life-giving, because
throughout everything in my life there is hope of something more,
something healing, something salvific. So who do I say Jesus is?
Confidently, I say Jesus is my friend and my God, and I am profoundly
grateful for both.”
You are the teacher, showing me the light. The way. You are my guide, my
reference point, the source of wisdom and understanding.
You are life giver, the one who teaches me what life really is about. To love,
to grow in freedom , in service, and in giving up oneself for the sake of
others and in the process finding oneself.
You are the one who holds my hand – because you have a hand I can hold:
flesh and blood and bone. You are the one who asks for my commitment –
not an easy “yes” but a cutting to the bone, a sharing of my blood, my whole
self, my whole anguished heart. Yet you are the one who holds my hand
firmly and gently and does not let go. You embrace me and hold me up. I feel
your love, radiant and warming, finding its way to my heart and giving me
peace. I feel the beginnings of a dance, my feet move together with yours – a
lightness that had eluded me. I look into your face and know joy, and the
promise of joy. Hand in hand still, hand in hand always, we walk together,
ahead.
I am the crushing pain of the sadness of loss
I am the person you see before you
I am the deep belly laugh of inexplicable joy
I am the unseen sustenance that keeps you going when you want to stop.
I am the dancing elusive love that follows you through your life
I am the one that will always welcome you home.