The Apostle Paul speaks to us in today’s reading from 2 Corinthians of his role as apostle. It is something the apostles share that, in their mortal bodies, in their weakness and tribulations, the great glory of God shows itself. It is their treasure in earthen vessels: the power of God revealed mysteriously through suffering.
Certainly, every Christian also has access to the glory of God within. In our individual lives, in each one of us, lies the cause for great thanksgiving—the abundant grace by which we entered into relationship with the One from whom we were separated by sin. It is a relationship characterized by thanksgiving, which the Greek of the New Testament calls eucharistia. While every Christian may potentially experience something similar in his or her life to that which St. Paul describes, the focus in today's Feast is on the apostles. Nevertheless, we share similarly in our calling.
In his lifetime, the opponents of St. Paul used his suffering to make the claim against his apostleship. However, a closer look reveals that the suffering of the apostle manifests, rather than negates, his role.
Interestingly, the suffering inherent in the role of the apostles is foretold by Jesus in his dialogue with James and John, which we see in the gospel today. Jesus asks them, “Can you drink the chalice I am going to drink?” In their affirmation Jesus lets them know that they will, in fact, drink from his chalice. Again, the Eucharistic implications are clear; however, it is in a way that elucidates the meaning of Eucharist in a manner that we may not be accustomed to seeing.
James and John couldn’t have known at the time what lay in store for them. They likely interpreted drinking from the chalice as being able to share in the responsibility of ruling an earthly kingdom. They couldn’t have foreseen Jesus’ plea in the garden on the night before he was crucified, “Father let this cup pass from me…”
Mark’s gospel adds the idea of the apostles sharing in the Lord’s baptism as well as his chalice, which for us ties together the two sacramental moments into a single outpouring of grace through ministry. While the imagery undoubtedly points to martyrdom, it also points to the sanctifying role that the apostles would take. Furthermore, it points to each and every Christian sharing in the ministry of salvation as a cooperative partner in grace. It also points toward a common share in suffering.
Throughout my life as a Christian I have always felt that somehow each one of us shares something with the apostles—we identify with them, and thus they still lead us in our search for greater depths of experiencing the holy and blessed life of discipleship. Truly we rejoice with the apostles in an outpouring of thanksgiving.
However, as St. Paul shows us, following Christ in the way that an apostle would does not necessarily mean a rosy life of pure bliss. In our desire to be Christlike we must be willing to bear in our bodies the dying of Jesus. For us, in our times, this means being at the service of those who suffer most. You get first-hand experience of what it means to bear the sufferings of Christ when you minister to those whose lives cry out in need.
Being a Christian—a Catholic—has much more to do with our service to those who suffer than anything else we might say in terms of whatever controversies exist in the Church today. I see a tendency in some Catholics to focus primarily on things that should be secondary considerations. Our truest call is to make the gospel available, to provide the healing power of grace, and to bring solace by reaching into those lives that seem to be devoid of hope. In doing so we follow the path of the apostles.
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