Tuesday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Today a teacher might start the day with, “Where did we leave before the break?” Today we return to “ordinary time” with readings from the Letter of St James, and back to Mark’s gospel chapter 9. We left off back in February before Ash Wednesday. Since then, we’ve had our annual revisiting of what we’re about: the life, death, resurrection, and ascension, of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Our celebration of the Paschal Mystery.
Once again schooled in the basics and wonders of our faith, we return to the weekly round of Scripture lessons and instructions.
Both the passage from the Letter of St James and the gospel today address some rather basic truths.
The question: where do conflicts and wars come from? St James says from the passions: coveting, envy, and misguided ambition. Human weakness. Jesus reminds everyone who asks “If you want to be first, you must be the last and the servant of all.”
Even Jesus’ closest disciples were not immune from ambition. Who is the greatest among them? They knew immediately that those ambitions would win no favor with Jesus, and they fell silent for they had been arguing about who was more important.
The Letter of St. James gives some wonderful advice. “Submit yourselves to God; draw close to God and God will draw close to you; humble yourselves before the Lord.” The psalm today is, “Cast your cares upon the Lord and the Lord will support you.” And from the Gospel, “We are called to be the servant of others.”
A good lesson for the first day back after the Paschal Season.
Reflection by Fr. Peter Ullrich, OSB
Posted in Articles for Ordinary Time, Daily Reflections