Is 50:5-9
The Lord God opened my ear;
I did not refuse,
did not turn away.
I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who tore out my bread;
My face I did not hide
from insults and spitting.
The Lord God is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
Therefore I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
He who declares my innocence is near.
Who will oppose me?
Let us appear together.
Who will dispute my right?
Let them confront me.
See, the Lord God is my help;
who will declare my guilty?
See, they will all wear out like a garment, consumed by moths.
Second Reading
Jas 2:14-18
What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and had no food for the day, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well," but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead. Indeed someone might say, "You have faith and I have works." Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works.
Gospel Reading
Mk 8:27-35
Jesus and his disciples set out for the villages of Caesarea Philippi. Along the way he asked his disciples. "Who do people say that I am?" They said in reply, "John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others one the prophets." And he asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter said to him in reply, "You are the Messiah." Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He began to teach them the Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priest, and the scribes, and be killed, and rise after three days. He spoke this openly. Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human being do."
He summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.
The Word in other words
In our seminary days, being formed for the priesthood meant that we must learn to "take up our cross daily, and deny ourselves." It meant learning how to live simply and to live without the things that can make life easy and comfortable. This was aimed to prepare us to endure harsh living conditions in the so-called mission frontiers. We saw how seminarians who came from affluent families had a difficult time living simply and eventually dropping out when they realized they were not meant for that kind of life. During weekends and summer vacations we were encouraged to spend time with people in the far flung barangays of Cavite, Mindoro, and other places. We lived with them and they were happy to have us with them. For some of us, it was an eye opener to see how simple and poor people live. For me personally it strengthened my resolve to give my life to serve God's people as an SVD missionary.
When Jesus exhorts us to "lose our faith for his sake," he is inviting us to leave behind a life of riches and material comfort. He is inviting us to discovery the true riches that can be found only in a life of selfless service.
It does not mean, however, that in this consecrated way alone can a man save his life. Our former classmates who did not make it to the priesthood were able to discover other ways of following Christ. They learned how to deny themselves and take up their daily cross. The SVD is especially happy with the establishment of the Lay Society of Saint Arnold Janssen, initiated by former SVD seminarians. With their motto of "Faith transforming life" and their activities linked with the various apostolates of the SVD, they showed another way of being disciples of Christ.
