AD SENSE

25 Sunday B

Fr. James Gillhooley:
Pain sometimes can be the making of us. Beethoven is the classic example. Deafness hit him as a young man. It did not sit well with the young Ludwig. As a consequence, this period of his life was not distinguished. But once he had come to accept it, his genius bloomed. Arguably his Ninth Symphony is the most beautiful work of music ever written. If Beethoven had written nothing else, the Ninth would have won him immortality. Yet, the night he conducted the symphony for the first time, he could not hear a bar of his music. Nor could he hear the wild applause that greeted its debut. Yet, he sensed his labor was a triumph. 
                                           

So will we rejoice if we learn to master our pain as Christ would have us. When it comes our turn to die, as somebody has noted, God will not be shouting to us to help someone else. Rather, He will Himself be rushing to comfort us and He will be telling us that "His love is greater than our pain." Jesus tells His people that He must suffer and die. In verse 32 of today's Gospel, Mark writes, "But they did not understand what He said..." Perhaps Sigmund Freud would tell us the apostles were blocking out understanding. They had no wish to know what He had spoken to them on this dour subject. They wanted to hear only pleasant lines that promised them happy days. However, there should be none among us ready to throw the first stone at the twelve. Who among us gets our pleasure out of suffering? It is a condition we wish would become history. It is said that our conscious life begins with a cry and will end with one. In the first case, it is a shout of bewilderment. And in the second, it is often a cry of pain. The Gospels assure us that God will not turn His back on our pain. To underline that assurance He sent us His Son.

We are, says Michael Himes, what God chose to become. The Jesus story of pain is familiar to us. But we are reminded that without a Good Friday there can be no Easter Sunday. The British writer CS Lewis wrote an incisive line in The Problem of Pain. "God whispers to us in our pleasure, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain." And why cannot we as Christians shout to another who is in pain? A woman with terminal cancer told me how much the prayers and visits of a fellow Christian mean to her. That visitor brings with him a special broth, mums from his own garden, and the day's newspaper.

Then they spend some time in prayer together. That man may be doing but a small thing, but he is doing it with love. In Frannie and Zooey of JD Salinger, we learn of Mama Glass' answer to all difficulties: consecrated chicken soup. Very often a chicken, run quickly through some boiling water, is just the medicine the doctor ordered for many of us. In Genesis rings that ugly question of Cain, "Am I my brother's keeper?" Christ gives a clear response, "YES!" The genuine Christian looks at the person in trouble and speaks, "I look at you and I see myself." Remember: "Great occasions for service come seldom. Little ones surround us daily." Furthermore, it is only through suffering whether it be our own or someone else's, that we for the first time begin to appreciate the gifts that God has given us. It has been observed that it took centuries for our ancestors to stand erect and put one foot in front of another. But, as our doctors testify, few of us take the effort to exercise.

So, our bodies, these temples of the Holy Ghost, begin to come unglued before our eyes. Do we take care of this wonderful machine that is our body? Or take the question of sight. As one philosopher noted, so many of us look but do not see. Many of us confess to reading trash. But few of us take the time to read the magnificent prose poetry of the Book of Isaiah or the Psalms or Dag Hammarskjold's Markings. Why not refresh our spirits with the giants? Or the ability to pray. Reflect on Karl Barth's words. "To clasp hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorders of the world." It is time to begin again. Why do we wait? But be gentle on yourself. Jesus attempted to reach everyone about Him, but He was not successful. Why should you get a hit every time at bat?
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From Fr. Jude Botelho

Dear Friend,

Mohamed Ali, the one-time heavy weight champion would often boast, "I am the greatest!", and people believed he was. We may not openly claim to be the greatest in any particular field but deep down we like to feel that we are on the top, we belong to the elite, second to none. We all play the power game in one way or another and much of our behaviour is aimed at asserting: "I am No.1!" For that matter, who is the greatest in the Kingdom of God? Is my life running on man-power or God's power? May His word challenge us to be powerless in His Kingdom.                           


Reflection

The first reading from the book of Wisdom reminds us that often the just man has to endure suffering not because he has done evil, not because he has sinned but precisely because He is walking the path of justice, the path of truth, and the path of God. Because of his upright life others feel threatened, others feel uncomfortable, others feel guilty and challenged and so they retaliate, they hit out at the just person who stands for God and His values. When we are put to the test do we resort to proving how tough we are, or are we ready to accept our powerlessness so that God can reveal His power and presence in our lives?

True Greatness
King Oscar II, monarch of Sweden and Norway at the turn of the century, enjoyed visiting schools and talking informally to the pupils. Calling on a village school one day, the king asked the pupils to name the greatest kings of Sweden. The answers were unanimous: Gustavus Vasa, Gustavus Adolphus, Charles XII. The teacher was embarrassed with the response so she leaned over to one little boy and whispered something in his ear. "And King Oscar," proclaimed the child. "Really? And what has King Oscar done that is so remarkable?" asked the King. " I-I-I don't know." stammered the confused child. "That's all right, my boy," said the king. "Neither do I."
Denis McBride

In the Gospel, as they come down the mountain, Jesus tells his disciples that he will have to suffer, be handed over and put to death. But the disciples do not want to understand what Jesus is speaking about. While Jesus is talking of being powerless in the face of suffering and death, they are talking of who among them is the greatest of all! For the apostles and maybe for us what matters is power, to show, to exercise authority, to make known who is the boss. For Jesus what mattered was the power to submit to God's will, the power to submit to others, to trust in His Father's power rather than his own. To drive the point home, Jesus says, "If you want to be first in God's kingdom, first in God's eyes, you have to be ready to be last of all, to be servant of all." The disciples still do not understand the point that Jesus is trying to make; so Jesus takes a little child present, sets him in the centre and says to his disciples: "Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me, welcomes not me but the one who sent me." What is the point Jesus is making through this enigmatic statement? Why did Jesus use a little child? In the time of Jesus the child had no rights till it grew up to be an adult. Yet God came to us in the form of a child, totally dependent on others. Jesus in today's Gospel once again affirms his readiness to give up all power, to submit to suffering, to submit to death itself, the ultimate loss of the power of life. In embracing the child, Jesus is embracing weakness, is affirming his choice of being on the side of the powerless, who believe not in their own strength but rely totally in the power of God. Are we ready to embrace our weakness to experience His power in our lives?

Measuring Greatness!
Peter said: "Of course without doubt, I am the most important! Didn't he call me the rock on which that community of his is going to be built?" John said: "I am sorry for you. What you say might be true, but that is only a question of administrative bureaucracy. The fact that you might be a good administrator does not make you the most important one. You should look for something else. You should be attentive to something more important. You should look for his love, and if you do that, well, he loved me most." Then Judas spoke: He said: "The most important fellow is the man with the money. You don't need to be a Marxist or a capitalist to know that. The world is ruled by money, and to whom did he entrust his money? To me, and that is why…" Phillip spoke: "All that is very nice. Do you remember when he had that catering problem in the desert with all those thousands, when nobody knew what to do, him included? He turned to me for advice. I am sorry for you but he asked me!"
Joseph G. Donders in 'Praying and Preaching the Sunday Gospel'

Servant of All
Dr. Charles Mayo with his father and brother founded the famous Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. One time a group of European medical experts were guests of Dr. Mayo at his home. According to the custom of their homeland the guests placed their shoes outside their bedroom doors to be polished during the night. Dr. Charles was the last to retire. As he went to his room he noticed the shoes. It was too late to wake up any of the servants. With a sigh he gathered up all the footwear, hauled them into the kitchen, and spent half the night polishing them.
Msgr. Arthur Tonne

All God's Children
There is a legend told about Abraham in the Mideast. According to the legend, he always held off eating his breakfast each morning until a hungry man came along to share it with him. One day an old man came along, and of course Abraham invited him to share his breakfast with him. However when Abraham heard the old man say a pagan blessing over the food, he jumped up and ordered the old man from his table and from his house. Almost immediately, God spoke to Abraham. "Abraham! Abraham! I have been supplying that unbeliever with food every day for the past eighty years. Could you not have tolerated him for just one meal?" We are all children of God. God has no grandchildren!
Jack McArdle in 'And that's the Gospel Truth'

The kind of person one is
When Nelson Mandela was a student lawyer in Johannesburg he had a friend whose name was Paul Mahabane. Mahabane was a member of the African National Congress (ANC), and had the reputation of being a radical. One day the two of them were standing outside a post office when the local magistrate, a white man in his sixties, approached Mahabane and asked him to go buy him some stamps. It was quite common in those days for a white person to call on a black person to perform a chore. Paul refused. The magistrate was offended. "Do you know who I am?" he said, his face turning red with anger. "It is not necessary to know who you are," Mahabane replied. "I know what you are." The magistrate boiled over and exclaimed, "You'll pay dearly for this," and then walked away. That white man was convinced that he was superior to Mahabane simply because he was a magistrate. And it had become second nature to him to expect others, especially if they were black, to serve him.
Flor McCarthy in 'New Sunday and Holy day Liturgies'

Today one of the games most people play is one-upmanship. Everyone seems to want to reach the top to show others that they have made it and that they are better than others. To prove that they are better than others, people go to great lengths to prove their superiority. Greatness is equated with strength and power. But often, it is the weak and insecure who display their power to hide their weakness. Jesus reveals that the least is the greatest in God’s eyes!
The first reading from the book of Wisdom reminds us that often the just man has to endure suffering not because he has done evil, not because he has sinned but precisely because He is walking the path of justice, the path of truth, the path of God. Because of his upright life others feel threatened, others feel uncomfortable, others feel guilty and challenged and so they retaliate, they hit out at the just person who stands for God and His values.
When I am in the presence of lawless persons, of people who live according to worldly standards, does my life confront them? If I am truly a person committed to God, I do not have to sit in judgment over people, I don’t have to necessarily point out their wrongdoing, my life itself, the way I live, the way I act, should speak loudly of the values I believe in. The silent witness of the prophet’s life spoke more loudly than his words!
In the Gospel we have a juxtaposition of two different situations, two value systems. As they come down the mountain, Jesus tells his disciples that he will have to suffer, he will be handed over to the mob and put to death. The disciples heard what Jesus related, but they do not understand, and do not want to understand what Jesus is speaking about.
In fact while Jesus is talking of being powerless in the face of suffering and death, they are talking of who is the greatest of all! Here we have a confrontation of values and life styles. For Jesus what mattered was real power: the power to submit to God’s will, the power to submit to others, not to exercise power but to be helpless and trust in His Father’s power rather than his own.
To drive the point home, Jesus says, “If you want to be first in God’s kingdom, you have to be ready to be servant of all.” In other words, if you want to be the greatest, then you have to be the least, the servant, the one who does not give orders but does what he is ordered. God’s ways are not our ways; God’s values are so different from ours: to be powerful, you have to be weak!
The disciples still do not understand the point that Jesus is trying to make. Jesus dramatizes His message. He takes a little child present, sets him in the centre of the group puts his arms around the child embracing the child and says to his disciples: “Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me, welcome not me but the one who sent me.”
What is the point Jesus is making through this enigmatic statement? Jesus in today’s Gospel once again affirms his readiness to give up all power, to submit to death itself, the ultimate loss of the power of life. In embracing the child, Jesus is embracing weakness, is affirming his choice of being on the side of the powerless, who believe not in their own strength but rely totally in the power of God. Are we ready to embrace weakness to experience His power in our lives?
Dr Charles Mayo, with his father and brother founded the world famous Mayo Clinic in Rochester. One time a group of European medical experts were guests of Dr Mayo at his home. According to the custom, the guests placed their shoes outside their bedrooms to be polished during the night. Dr Charles was the last to retire. As he went to his room he noticed the shoes. It was too late to wake up any of the servants. With a sigh he gathered up all the footwear, hauled them into the kitchen, and spent half the night polishing them.
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From the Connections:

THE WORD:
Different hopes and expectations of the long awaited “age of the Messiah” collide in today's Gospel.
A somber Jesus speaks cryptically of the death and resurrection awaiting him in Jerusalem, while those closest to him argue about their own greatness and status in the Messiah's reign (that must have been quite a conversation to elicit the strong reaction it did from Jesus!).  The disciples, long resigned to their people’s humiliation and subjugation, dream of a kingdom of power and influence in which ambition is exalted; Jesus explains to them (yet again) that the Messiah's reign will be a kingdom of spirit and conversion in which humble service to others is exalted.
Jesus outlines here the great paradox of discipleship:  Do you wish to be first?  Then become last.  Do you seek to attain greatness?  Then become small.  Do you want to be masters?  Then become the servants of those you wish to rule.
To emphasize the point, Jesus picks up a little child and places the child in the midst of these would-be rulers and influence peddlers.  A child has no influence in the affairs of society nor offers anything to adults in terms of career advancement or prestige enhancement; just the opposite is true: a child needs everything.  To be “great” in the reign of God, Jesus says, one must become the “servant” of the “child,” the poor, the needy, the lost.

HOMILY POINTS:           
To put another’s hopes and dreams ahead of one’s own, to bring forth and affirm the gifts of others for no other reason than the common good, to seek reconciliation at all costs is to be the “servant” Christ speaks of in today's Gospel.
In their simple joy and wonder of the world they are constantly discovering, in their ready acceptance of our love, in their total dependence on us for their nurturing and growth, children are the ideal teachers of the Spirit of humble servanthood and constant thanksgiving that Jesus asks of those who would be his followers.
The poorest and neediest, the forgotten and the rejected, the “least” and the “lowliest” – represented by the child in today’s Gospel – are signs of God’s grace in our midst.
“Child-like faith” is never dissuaded or discouraged, never becomes cynical or jaded, never ceases to be amazed and grateful for the many ways God reveals his presence in our lives.  The power of such “simple faith” is its ability to overcome every rationalization, fear, complication and agenda in order to mirror the selflessness of Christ Jesus.

All you can eat
Mom — or Dad — is feeding the baby.  The child is sitting up in the high chair, wearing a bib that will do little to prevent food from covering the baby’s clothes and face and hair; the child has no interest in food, having discovered that the chair’s plastic tray makes a great drum.
Mom has prepared a small dish of pureed vegetables for the baby’s lunch.  She loads a baby-size spoon with the greenish goop and pilots the spoon towards the child’s mouth. 
What happens next?  If you’ve ever fed a baby, you know.
First, Mom instinctively opens her own mouth wide.  Only then will the baby follow suit.  That’s because it’s impossible to spoon-feed a baby without opening your own mouth wide as you bring the food in for a landing. 
Try it sometime.

Feeding a child is a great image for appreciating Jesus’ point in today’s Gospel.  Catherine O’Connell-Cahill writes in At Home With Our Faith [September 2007] that, as parents hand on their faith to their children, “we find that our own spiritual hunger is being fed, too.  The experience can bring us back to church or prompt us to update what we know and believe, as we grow from the faith of childhood to a more appropriate version.”  Christ calls us to embrace the simple but profound faith that we seek to teach our children: to love God and one another with honesty and faithfulness, without condition or expectation, putting aside every “adult” rationalization and agenda.  Only in “opening” our own hearts to Jesus’ Gospel of uncomplicated and straightforward kindness, compassion, generosity and forgiveness, we can help our sons and daughters become authentic followers of the Jesus of selflessness and compassion. 
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Illustrations:

 

1)  “The  most  powerful  woman in the  world!"  

 

At  the  screening  of  the film  Mother   Teresa  during  the  celebration  of  the  fortieth   anniversary  of  the United  Nations  in 1983, the  Secretary  General,  Javier  Perez de  Cuellar,  rose from   his   seat   to   introduce   Mother   Teresa   to   an   elite   gathering   of   the representatives  of  all  member  countries  of  the   U.N. He  needed  only  one sentence for his introduction:  "I present to you the most powerful woman in the world!"  Hers was the  power of humble, sacrificial, Christian service and  agape love!  On  March  3, 1976, conferring  on  Mother   Teresa  the  highest  honor  of India’s  Vishwa  Bharati  University,  Mrs.  Indira  Gandhi,  who  was  at  that   time Prime Minister of India, said:  “I feel myself dwarfed when  I stand before this holy and  mighty  woman who heroically showed the world  how to practice Christian love  in sacrificial  and  humble  service.”  For  many  years,  the  world  watched, admired  and  honored  this  weak  and  elderly  nun,  always  dressed  in a  blue- bordered  white  sari,  as  the  incarnation  of  humble  and   sacrificing  Christian service.  She was the living proof  of Jesus' words in today’s gospel that  real greatness lies in serving others. She served all with love  and  compassion. From 1962 onwards, she received national and  international awards in recognition of her greatness, attained through the humble service done to the “poorest of the poor.”     On Sept. 5, 1997, the  day  of the  death of this holy woman who  lived with  us,  practicing  what   Jesus  commanded his  apostles  in  today’s  gospel, Pope  John  Paul II said: “Mother Teresa marked the  history of our century with courage.  She served all human beings by promoting their dignity  and  respect, making them  feel the tenderness of God.”

 

2)  “She could have jumped.”

 

There was a story a number of years ago  that was carried in the  newspapers and  in Time  magazine. Mary  Frances  "Frankie" Housley (October 12, 1926 – January  14, 1951) was the lone stewardess on National Airlines flight 83 which crashed after  landing at Philadelphia Airport  in January,  1951. Frankie Housley had  made 10 trips into  that  burning  plane... to help   passengers  get   out.   As  soon  as  she  had   finished  getting  all  of  the passengers  to  safety  Housley  also  started  to  jump  from  the  plane.  But  just before  she  made her  escape,  a  passenger  on  the  ground  screamed,  “My baby, my baby!” Flight attendant Mary Housley turned  back into the  plane to find the baby, and  that  was the last time anyone saw her alive. She died  in the attempt to save the baby, and  rescue workers found her charred body holding the  four-month-old baby in her arms. The story of her courage made national headlines, including an item in Time magazine. ("Take Your Time," Time (Jan. 22,

1951). One passenger called her a "real heroine."  A congressman labeled her the  bravest American  in history. Today’s gospel challenges Christians to serve others with Frankie,s dedication and  sacrificial commitment.

 

3)  MBA – Mop  Bucket Attitude:   

 

One  man  who  had  an enormous impact on his company was the founder and  former CEO of Wendy's fast-food restaurants, Dave  Thomas. Dave  Thomas' life was a remarkable success story. Adopted as a child, he never  finished high school. In his book,  Well Done:  the Common Guy's Guide  to Everyday Success, Dave  said he got his MBA long before his G.E.D. He says  he  has  a  photograph  of  himself  in his  MBA graduation  outfit--a  snazzy knee-length  work  apron.  He claims  to  be  the  only  founder  among America's big   companies  whose  picture  in  the   corporate  annual  report   shows  him wielding a mop  and  a plastic bucket. That wasn't a gag. He calls it leading by example. At Wendy's, he says, MBA doesn't mean Master of Business Administration.  It  means  Mop   Bucket  Attitude.  It  means  a  commitment  to service.  Dave   Thomas,  who   died   in  2002,  had   a  commitment  to  service. [(Harper  Collins, 1994), p. 159. Cited by  Dave  Redick, That's what  Jesus wants from  his disciples--a Mop  Bucket Attitude. We exist to serve, not  to be  served. That's the  secret of happiness in any  job--to see it as a calling, a vocation, an opportunity.

 

4)  Remember  potato salad  and  jokes: 

 

Tony  Campolo, used to say,    "If you ever  start to feel  proud, thinking  that  you are  somebody great,   just  remember  that  soon  after  your  body has  been lowered  into  the grave,  your family  & friends will be  eating potato salad and  telling  jokes, and you’ll be history."

 

 5)  The humble pastor:

 

Did you hear about the pastor who  prepared a great message on humility.   But he was waiting for a bigger congregation to preach the sermon to!  Another pastor was given  an  award for humility.  A week later, the congregation took the award back because the  pastor displayed it in his office!

 

 6)  A horrible mistake:

 

“Father, I have  a besetting sin, and  I want  your help.  I come to church on Sunday and can’t help thinking I’m the  prettiest girl in the congregation. I know  I ought not  think  that,  but  I can’t help  it. I want you to help me with it." The pastor replied, "Mary, don’t worry about it. In your case it’s not a sin. It’s just a horrible mistake."

 

 7)  Prime minister’s humility: 

 

Winston Churchill was once asked, "Doesn’t it thrill you to know   that   every   time you make   a speech,  the  hall  is  packed to overflowing?" "It’s quite flattering," replied Sir Winston. "But whenever I feel that way,  I  always  remember  that  if instead  of  making  a  political  speech  I  were being hanged, the crowd would be twice as big."

 

 8)  More My Size!

 

George Washington Carver, the scientist who developed hundreds of useful products from the peanut: “When I was young, I said to God,

‘God, tell me the mystery of the universe.’ But God answered, ‘That knowledge

is reserved for me  alone.’ So I said, ‘God, tell me the mystery of the  peanut.’ Then God said, ‘Well, George, that’s more nearly your size.’ And He told me.”

 

 9)  Clothed with Humility

 

The word "humility" means literally a low estimate of self. But this does not imply self-deprecation. When you hear someone deprecating himself, usually you can put it down as a sort of counterfeit humility. Someone has said, "The true way to be humble is not to stoop until you are smaller than yourself, but to stand at your full height before some higher nature that will show you how small your greatness is." "Walk humbly with thy God." Here is where we learn true humility. Walking with God, seeing ourselves by the side of His greatness, we see how little we are. And seeing how little we are is the first step toward becoming what we can and ought to be.

We never become truly great, we never do our best work until we are "clothed with humility"; until, like our Lord and Savior, we are willing to live to serve others.

John R. Gunn, Facing Life

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10)                 The Ambitious Disciples

 

Jesus and his disciples were coming to the town of Capernaum. As they entered the house where they would be staying, he asked his disciples, "What were you arguing about on the road?" But they kept quiet, says the writer of Mark's Gospel, because on the way they had argued about who was number one among them.

So, the disciples were human just like you and I are human. Who doesn't want to stand out? Some of the greatest people who have ever lived were also among the most ambitious.

It is said that Michelangelo prayed: "Lord, grant that I may always desire more than I can accomplish."

Abraham Lincoln often said to himself as a boy studying by the pine log fire at night: "I will study and get ready and perhaps my chance will come." And, indeed, it did come.

Having an African-American president reminds us of other people of color who have succeeded against even greater odds. They, too, were driven to succeed.

Who can help but be impressed by the accomplishments, for example, of George Washington Carver? Carver was born to an African slave mother. He never knew his father. But he wanted to make a difference in the world, and he did! Carver became one the greatest scientists in American history.

The disciples were human beings. They wanted their names to be in lights just as you and I want to stand out from our peers. There is nothing wrong with that as long it does not cause us to mistreat others or betray our values. My guess is Jesus wanted them to be ambitious because ambitious people get things done. He just wanted them to be ambitious in the right way.

 

King Duncan,

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He that is down needs fear no fall,

He that is low, no pride:

He that is humble ever shall

Have God to be his guide.

 

From the Song of the Shepherd Boy, The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

_____________________

 

11)                 Passing by the Children

 

A persistent judgment leveled against parents today is this: they gladly provide their children with every resource: Leaders, coaches, teachers, tutors, and youth workers. Certainly children should be happy and well-adjusted. They have everything money can buy. But they do not have the listening ear of Mom and Dad. "Too busy, later, not now, I'm working hard for your good." Recall the old saying:

"For the want of a nail the shoe was lost;

for the want of a shoe the horse was lost;

for the want of a horse the rider was lost;

for the want of the rider the battle was lost."

It is still true. For want of a quiet, caring intimacy, a child's primary sense of self-worth is lost. And for want of security and self-worth, the child is lost. In most churches I've known, members find it quite easy to pass a youth by; they are more timid to engage a child than a stranger in conversation. Frequently, when youth are on committees, little sensitivity is expressed toward making them comfortable and enabling them to contribute.

 

Thomas Peterson

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12)                 Teaching

 

The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.

 

William A. Ward
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13)                 Carry Someone with You

 

There was a tribe of Indians who lived a long time ago in the state of Mississippi. They lived next to a very swift and dangerous river. The current was so strong that if somebody happened to fall in or stumbled into it they could be swept away downstream.


One day the tribe was attacked by a hostile group of settlers. They found themselves with their backs against the river. They were greatly outnumbered and their only chance for escape was to cross the rushing river. They huddled together and those who were strong picked up the weak and put them on their shoulders; the little children, the sick, the old and the infirm, those who were ill or wounded were carried on the backs of those who were strongest. They waded out into the river, and to their surprise they discovered that the weight on their shoulders carrying the least and the lowest helped them to keep their footing and to make it safely across the river.


Jesus is trying to teach the disciples an object lesson about greatness, about servanthood, about leadership. He is saying to them and to us, "Have you lost the childlike joy and love and faith that once were yours?" He is also saying to them and to us, "If you want to walk on secure ground in this world it helps to carry someone with you."

King Duncan