August 16: Preparing to Celebrate Sunday’s Mass / Preparándonos para Celebrar la Misa Dominical

The entire second half of St. Luke’s Gospel is commonly referred to as “the Journey to Jerusalem.” All of the things that take place along the way and all of the things Jesus says will find their fulfillment in the Holy City during His Passion – and through His Resurrection.

Even better, the mood or spirit of the Journey to Jerusalem is set back in chapter 6 (The Sermon on the Plain), including these words: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man....”

With all of these “reversals of fortune” which Jesus says will happen, we cannot but conclude that the Kingdom of God is “an upside-down Kingdom.” Or perhaps it is “a right-side-up Kingdom” in an upside-down world! Plug this notion into this weekend’s Gospel (Luke 12, 49-53), where Jesus offers this paradox: “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division!” Well, that’s about as “upside down” as things can get. But Jesus wants us to know that the conscious choice of discipleship and our full engagement with it can, indeed, be disconcerting – if not disruptive – for nearly all, if not all, of our relationships. That’s one of the risks we take in following Him.

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Las Escrituras de la Misa dominical nos van a presentar a Jesús como “enviado a poner fuego en la tierra.” Su misión no consiste en sembrar la división, pero de hecho la provoca, y es por eso, signo de contradicción. Ante Él no puede existir la indiferencia, sino su aceptación o rechazo. 

La fidelidad a Cristo nos exige una opción que frecuentemente supone desgarramiento y contradicción, nos exige el ser “Bautizados en la Cruz.” Él ha venido a traer fuego – pero el fuego del amor, para que el corazón de los hombres arda en el amor a Dios y a los demás.

La Misa misma nos va a invitar a hacer un compromiso: de ser portadores del amor misericordioso del Señor, y de estar dispuestos a vivir constantemente la contradicción que supone el verdadero seguimiento de Cristo.