THE WORD
Jer 18,18-20 / Mt 20,17-28
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached him with her sons and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something. He said to her, “What do you wish?” She answered him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.” He replied, “My cup you will indeed drink, but to sit at my right and at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this, they became indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus summoned them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
IN OTHER WORDS
A story is told of a foreign missionary who went home to visit his ailing mother who eventually died. Upon returning to the mission area in Tanzania he was greeted with lots of “pole” (condolences) by his parishioners. One of them explained that in Africa the dead do not disappear or go away but remain in the community through the children named after them. Later, the missionary was informed that an infant in the village had been baptized bearing the name of the priest’s mother. Then the missionary upon seeing the infant was told: “Your mother wants to greet you.”
Today’s gospel features the story of a mother who approached Jesus on behalf of her sons. She requested the Lord that her sons be given a privileged eternal reward, which was to sit right next to Him. Although many Bible commentaries focus on what Jesus said to the woman, equally relevant would be the concern and the aspirations of the mother for her children. She wanted her children to succeed, and so she demanded a guarantee from Jesus that this would happen.
A mother’s love knows no bounds. It also stays forever in the hearts of children. If there is someone who knows what true sacri ce and success mean, it would be the one who carries a human being in her womb for nine months, goes through the most excruciating of pains to deliver the child, and then raises the child almost without rest at the expense of her own health. This is pure love, and it is manifested through humble service, the kind of service Jesus was talking about when He commented to the mother of the sons of Zebedee, saying: “Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.”
Like the dead in Africa, mothers do not go away, and their memories of sacrifice live on eternally in our hearts. So too are our acts of humble service which the Lord has taught and shown us.
- Fr. Sisoy Cellan, SVD | Kenya
The Word in other words 2016
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.
