First Reading
Wisdom 9: 13 - 18
13 For what man can learn the counsel of God? Or who can discern what the Lord wills?
14 For the reasoning of mortals is worthless, and our designs are likely to fail,
15 for a perishable body weighs down the soul, and this earthy tent burdens the thoughtful mind.
16 We can hardly guess at what is on earth, and what is at hand we find with labor; but who has traced out what is in the heavens?
17 Who has learned thy counsel, unless thou hast given wisdom and sent thy holy Spirit from on high?
18 And thus the paths of those on earth were set right, and men were taught what pleases thee, and were saved by wisdom."
Second Reading
Philemon 1: 9 - 10, 12 - 17
9 yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you -- I, Paul, an ambassador and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus --
10 I appeal to you for my child, Ones'imus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment.
12 I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart.
13 I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel;
14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own free will.
15 Perhaps this is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back for ever,
16 no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
17 So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me.
Gospel Reading
Luke 14: 25 - 33
25 Now great multitudes accompanied him; and he turned and said to them,
26 "If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?
29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,
30 saying, `This man began to build, and was not able to finish.'
31 Or what king, going to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?
32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends an embassy and asks terms of peace.
33 So therefore, whoever of you does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
Commentary
This life is filled with uncertainties. There is in us a clinging to say "maybe" because oftentimes unsure. The first reading posits this thesis when the author of the Book of Wisdom tells us that our earthly body and mortal minds cannot grasp whole of reality and prone to to error. This tendency to fall for error brings fear to people. Frightened to commit mistakes, humans are becoming more and more unsure as they grow older. Later on, the reading ends by saying that when the Spirit of the Lord takes over the minds of the unsure creature there is wisdom. It is the Lord who gives wisdom. He opens our eyes to heavenly things which our earthly eyes cannot see because blinded by too much temporal and transitory concerns. Only those made straight by the Lord can have capacity to discern.
A case for example is the second reading. Saint Paul sending Onesimus back to Philemon. Saint Paul himself was unsure why Onesimus was for a while away from Philemon. At first, he wanted to keep Onesimus so he could help him in his ministry. It was after he discerned in prayer,however, that the decision of sending him back was finalized. Truly a man of wisdom, Paul provided an opening for a heavenly relationship between Philemon and Onesimus as he said "...no longer as a slave but more than a slave...a brother," which can only be seen by a man of the Lord. Philemon was blinded by earthly stratification and economic segregation. But in heaven, there is no boss nor slave, only brethren.This heavenly reality is what St. Paul wanted Philemon to see.
Now turning to Jesus, we read his words saying that we cannot be his disciples if our sights are still focused on earthly relationships. He is telling aspirants fro discipleship that it is not easy to follow Him. We need to bear His cross. Each one will carry a cross like Jesus did thousands of years ago. If we are going to follow Him, we need to discern first. That does not mean we have to quit following Him when we see we cannot. We need to discern what we have to let go by following Christ. We need to determine which is our cross. What relationship we need to cut off so we could be free to follow Him? That will be our crosses. For many, it is the relationship with the family. This is why Jesus said "...without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters and even his own life cannot be my disciple."
Jesus not only points to the family but even to our own life. He ended up the statement saying "...you who does not renounce all possessions cannot be my disciple" and I believe that. If you have other plans then you will never be able to finish the plan for discipleship. One day people will laugh that once you tried to be good but ended up worse. So Jesus tells us prepare for the life time task of a disciple.
We cannot let uncertainties and ambiguities of life overtake us. We have Christ in our life. We can always ask God to give us counsel and send us enlightenment from heaven. That should be our prayer, that we may always look as things heavenly like Saint Paul did with Philemon and Onesimus. That in our decisions we will always consult the Spirit to come up with firm stance according to the criteria of God. Practically, the Lord teaches us to calculate. To survey. To gather data first. We need to stop or pause a while and take time thinking over them and pray. When we are unsure ... pause and pray.
Application
Who or what is the Onesimus of your life. That is your cross. Onesimus is teh cross of Philemon and Saint advised him to carry the cross. Embrace him as a brother and not as a sacrifice or headache.
Today we commemorate Mother Theresa of Calcutta. She is a rich lady from Albania and when she decided to follow the Lord, she never looked back to her family. She embraced the life of poverty and live among the poorest of the poor attending to their need.
I want you to reflect on the life of Mother Theresa and how she embraced her cross and leave her family for the sake of following the Lord. The Gospel indeed is very timely as we remember her death.
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