23rd Sunday in
Ordinary Time – Luke 14:25-33
The Gospel
for today can be a difficult one to understand. Jesus once again was on
the road with his disciples and great crowds were following him. At one
point, Jesus turned to the crowds and addressed them. He said: “If anyone
comes to me who does not hate his father and mother, wife, children, brothers
and sisters, and even his or her own life, he or she cannot be my disciple.”
Jesus then adds: “Whoever does not carry his or her cross and come
after me cannot be my disciple.”
These are
extremely strong words! Did Jesus truly mean that we are to hate our
parents, brothers, sisters, children and friends? Or is Jesus telling us
that if we choose to follow him we need to realize that Jesus needs to be first
in our lives? Jesus is making a very clear and strong point. Our
primary allegiance always needs to be to Jesus. Jesus is not saying that
we cannot or should not love and care for our families and our friends.
He realizes that we have committed ourselves to our families and we need
to live out that commitment.
Rather,
Jesus is telling his listeners what is essential. First and foremost,
Jesus must be first in our lives. However, Jesus also wants us to love
and care deeply for our family, our friends and for the world community.
Today may we strive to love each person we encounter: the person we pass
in the grocery store, a co-worker who is struggling, or an individual we simply
do not like. The quality of love that Jesus hopes we will have for one
another surpasses the simple notion of liking another person. Rather,
Jesus hopes that we truly will love every person in our world. This may
sound impossible. However, with Jesus’ grace and love, we have the
ability to do this. Will we choose to do this?
I think it would be good to look closer at the word "Hate" as used in the original Greek. This word is very strong in English. The word "hate" in the Bible is often used to express priority and preference rather than emotional hatred. In this biblical passage the Greek word used is miséō (μισέω) and means: – properly, to detest (on a comparative basis); hence, denounce; to love someone or something less than someone (something) else, i.e. to renounce one choice in favor of another. One should not hate his mother and father. One should place them less than their love for God. Not all followers of Christ are disciples, but all followers are called to be disciples. We are all called to place God first.
ReplyDeleteNow read the Gospel passage and see how different it feels when understanding the definition of the word "hate." Are we just a follower or a full disciple of Christ?
Vivat Jesus, Bill Gilman