The baptism of suffering

Good News Reflection
Wednesday of the Eighth Week of Ordinary Time
May 26, 2010
Today's Saint: Philip Neri
Pray to discover reasons to laugh more readily:
http://wordbytes.org/saints/DailyPrayers/PhilipNeri.htm
Today's Readings:
1 Peter 1:18-25
Ps 147:12-15, 19-20
Mark 10:32-45
http://www.usccb.org/nab/052610.shtml
USCCB Podcast of the Readings:
http://ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/10_05_26.mp3
The baptism of suffering
In today's Gospel reading, look at how James and John wanted spiritual growth the easy way! They wanted to achieve high places of honor in God's kingdom, and they wanted to get there just by asking for it.
Have you ever wondered why God doesn't snap his almighty fingers and make your problems go away when you ask for his help? Instead, he takes you by the hand and leads you deeper INTO the problem – true?
It's not because he wants you to suffer. The Father did not want Jesus to suffer, but it was the only way that humankind could be redeemed.
Do we want a quick escape from pain more than we want God to redeem bad situations into something good? To see the redemptive power of Christ in our lives, we have to accept that the way to get there is through the cross. We have to be willing to endure the people who are contributing to our difficulties, and in enduring them, learn patience, and in learning patience, develop unconditional love for them, and in developing unconditional love, become more fully united with God who IS love.
The benefits far outweigh the sufferings.
Jesus told James and John that they would have to drink of the cup of suffering and be baptized in pain. What does baptism do? Water baptisms are supposed to be by full immersion, and the Vatican has been encouraging parishes to restore this ancient tradition because it more easily conveys the true meaning of baptism. Baptism drowns our sinful nature and raises us up to a new life in God. Likewise, baptism by immersion into our problems redeems the situation much more fully than if God had taken us to a quick escape.
(Time out for a word of caution: If you are in an abusive relationship, this is NOT a situation you are being called to endure! This is NOT a redemptive cross. He is inviting you to get away to a safe place where you can insist that the abuser seek proper professional help. Only after real change takes place – real healing in both of you – can reconciliation and reuniting safely occur.)
Of course, we all want the easy way to glory. Jesus did, too. (Remember what he begged for in the Garden of Gethsemane?) But when we can look back at the sufferings that we've endured and see the blessings that they produced, we are thankful that we took the hard journey.
Evil is overcome, not by our avoidance of hardship, but by the victory that comes from embracing the cross.
© 2010 by Terry A. Modica
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