Monday, March 4, 2019
Monday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Saint Casimir – Optional Memorial
Yesus memandang dia dan mengasihi dia, lalu berkata kepadanya, “Hanya satu lagi kekuranganmu. Pergilah, juallah apa yang kaumiliki dan berikanlah kepada orang-orang miskin, maka engkau akan beroleh harta di surga; kemudian datanglah dan ikutilah Aku.” Mendengar perkataan itu, wajahnya menjadi muram, lalu ia pergi dengan sedih, sebab banyak hartanya. Markus 10:21-22
Ada dua hal penting yang perlu diperhatikan dalam perikop Kitab Suci ini. Yang pertama adalah tanggapan Yesus dan yang kedua adalah tanggapan orang muda yang kaya itu.
Jesus, it says, looked at him and “loved him.” It’s important to be aware of this line as a precursor to what Jesus calls this young man to do. He calls him to give up everything he has, give it all away, and come follow Jesus. And Jesus invited him to do this out of love.
Jesus is inviting this young man to gain much more than he currently possesses. That’s why Jesus looked at him with love before He invited the young man to follow Him in a total and radical way. But, in this case, loving Jesus was going to hurt. It was going to hurt in the sense of his following of Jesus required a total sacrifice of everything. It was total and radical. It was hard, at least from a purely human and worldly standpoint. But Jesus’ love for this young man was so perfect that He was willing to invite him to endure the sacrifice of everything so that the rich man could gain so much more.
We are invited to do the same. No, we may not be called to follow Jesus in the unique and radical way of giving up all our physical possessions. But we are called to follow Jesus to the same degree of trust and abandonment to His divine will. And that will inevitably require sacrifice. Sacrifice to the greatest degree.
Our reaction to Jesus’ call to discipleship is key. How will we respond to this invitation to give completely of ourselves? The rich young man reacted at first with sorrow. He did not accept the invitation Jesus offered. We do not know if he eventually did follow Jesus in this radical and total way, but we do know his first reaction.
Sering kali, itulah juga tanggapan awal kita. Kita ingin setia dan ingin mengikuti Kristus, apa pun yang Ia minta. Namun, ketika kita menerima undangan konkret untuk menjawab panggilan-Nya, kita berpaling dengan sedih karena menganggap undangan itu terlalu menuntut.
Renungkanlah hari ini tentang orang muda yang kaya ini. Lihatlah hidup Anda sendiri dan renungkanlah seberapa siap dan rela Anda mengatakan “Ya” sepenuhnya terhadap apa pun yang Yesus minta dari Anda. Mengatakan “Ya” dengan rela berkorban adalah keputusan terbaik yang dapat Anda ambil. Sesungguhnya, itulah kesediaan untuk menerima kehidupan paling mulia yang dapat Anda jalani.
Lord, following You at times can seem hard and demanding. It can seem as though it’s too much. Help me, especially in those moments, to trust You more than the many attachments I have in this world. Jesus, I trust in You.
Saint of the Day – Saint Casimir
