Servants of the suffering servant

Generally speaking, human beings like to be successful and comfortable.

Indeed, for many, success and comfort are the primary consideration for valuing human life: the life of a wealthy entrepreneur is more valuable than the life of a wino and the life of a person in pain is not as valuable as healthy young person.

This tendency even creeps into religious practice, as many people in many different faith systems throughout history have at different times emphasized, explicitly or implicitly, material prosperity and accomplishments as monuments to their faith and proofs of divine blessing.

Thus grand temples and cathedrals are built and religious leaders go about in luxury cars with ostentatious entourages (atheistic ideologues have done the same in their own ways, of course).

That is not to say that there is necessarily anything wrong with building glorious places of worship or with leaders of religious organizations utilizing resources appropriate to the scope of their responsibilities and to the work they do.

But these are only tools, as valuable as they may be. Today’s readings remind us that, as our Lord tells us in the Gospel (Matthew 6:19-23), our hearts must be set on the things of heaven and not on things in this world, and as St. Paul tells us in the first reading (2 Corinthians 11:18, 21-30), serving the Lord fully and truly often means hardship.

By the grace of God, may we be worthy servants of the suffering servant - our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.