March 8th

March 8, 2023
Wednesday of the 2 nd Week of Lent
[Saint John of God, Religious]
Readings: Jer 18:18-20/Mt 20:17-28 (232)
Mr. Julian Ohizu: Campus Minister
From the two readings for today, one from the book of the prophet Jeremiah and the other
from the Gospel of Matthew, it is clear that doing God’s will often ends up in earthly suffering. 
In the first reading, the prophet Jeremiah teaches us that being God’s messenger causes and will
continue to cause one to be persecuted. The prophet is telling us modern-day Christians to be
ready to be persecuted especially when we resolve to live according to God’s will, that is, when
we decide to live contrary to the wishes of the world and those around us. The Responsorial
Psalm also is a prayer of one who suffers for doing good and calls on God to save them.   The
Gospel presents Jesus predicting not only His own suffering as a result of His being obedient to
His Father’s will but also the future suffering of His disciples. As we can see from the first
reading, the people are plotting to destroy Jeremiah.  Jeremiah asks God to help him during his
time of persecution.
The Responsorial Psalm picks up the theme of individuals asking for God’s help when
others are striking out against that person.  The Psalmist feels threatened by the people around
him and asks for God’s help and protection. In the Gospel, Jesus also is aware that the religious
leaders are planning on condemning Him and that He will end up dying because of their actions. 
But Jesus does not hesitate to go forward with his ministry of doing God and telling the truth in
love. This is the will of God for Jesus and for us Christians who have been or are been
persecuted for upholding an upright way of life. But sometimes, we like the Apostles in today’s
Gospel miss the mark. We fail to understand what it means for Jesus to be the Messiah or for us
to be His disciples.  It means that Jesus must suffer and die at the hands of others.  And such
would someday be our portion if we persevere in doing what is right before God.
Again, in this Gospel reading, Jesus tells all of His disciples that what will give them
positions of honor in the Reign of God is not where they sit or how much or how well they are
served by others, but how much they are willing to suffer for his sake and willing to serve others.
In this Gospel pericope, Jesus equates being part of the Reign of God with being willing to face
opposition and, at the same time, being willing to serve and help others.  Service is the hallmark
of the life of a disciple of the Master, just as it was an essential part of Jesus’ life.  In fact, service
must go all the way to being willing to give one’s life for the sake of another.
During this Lenten season, God offers us the opportunity of being his messengers and to
be part of the proclamation of the Good News. But the readings remind us that as we proclaim
the Good News and live in a world that hates that Good News, we will face opposition. People
will challenge us.  Those who feel threatened by our living out the Gospel will try to put us
down.  Opposition can come from within our family, our friends, our co-workers, etc. But our
response towards opposition is what matters. Are we going to shrink from doing what is good
before God or will we continue to proclaim the Good News even when it entails being
persecuted, hated by everyone, or even killed? God gives us the freedom to choose which
attitude to display in the face of such challenges.
Yet, our calling means that not only will we continue to announce the message for and
from God, but also, we will do it as servants, being willing to give to others from the position of
one who serves. The moral lesson from today’s readings is that to be a true Christian in our

world today is challenging.  It is particularly not easy to always be a disciple of Jesus.  Like
some of the followers of Jesus, we want to know what rewards we will have and what positions
of honor will be ours if we continue to be Jesus’ disciples.  Jesus asks us not to look at what will
be given to us but rather at what we can give to others in loving service.  Being a Christian
means thinking of others before thinking of ourselves.  We must be willing to serve, even if it
hurts (and it will), in order that others may come to a greater awareness of the Good News of
God’s love for them. In conclusion, I want us to read and reflect on this poem written by Mother
Theresa of Calcutta as we journey through this Lenten season.
Mother Teresa's Anyway Poem

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;

Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;

Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;

Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;

Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;

Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;

Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;

Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

God bless us all!