Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent

Today's Mass Readings

Today’s gospel passage is very short, only three short verses (Mt 11:28-30); and it begins very comfortingly: “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” The next verse becomes a little bit more intense but still comforting: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves.” The talk about a yoke is where the intensity comes in. A yoke is what oxen wears when they pull a plow or a wagon; who wants one of those? But then it follows up again with the promise of rest. Maybe the yoke is not so bad if it ends with rest?

But then the last verse kicks in and everything screeches to a halt: “for my yoke is easy and my burden light.” Here we might find ourselves disagreeing a little bit if we pause and really think about what Jesus is saying. His yoke may require us to change in some way, give up some harmful or sinful behavior. Perhaps we need to become more patient, and stop being so impatient with certain people around us. So, we try this, and we find that we don’t change so easily. Or we may be asked to take up some new work, perhaps volunteering in the soup kitchen the parish. This puts a burden on our time, and some of our other activities need to change. No, if we think about it, Jesus’ yoke doesn’t seem very easy at all.

But here we need to remember another saying of his, which is just as true: “apart from me you can do nothing.” We perhaps always start out trying to carry his yoke by ourselves, in which case it is heavy indeed. We need to learn to let go and to give ourselves entirely into his hands. The more we can do this the more we will walk in his peace and his rest, even if the yoke remains challenging.

Reflection by Fr. Aquinas Keusenkothen, OSB