25th Sunday B

25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time B

Readings: Wisdom 2:12,17-20  James 3:16-4:3  Mark 9:30-37

“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”  To best appreciate the shocking character of Jesus’ proclamation to his disciples in today’s Gospel, we should consider the criticism of the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), who argued that such teachings contradict our human nature because they advocate a “slave morality” that makes Christianity “the most fatal and seductive lie that has ever yet existed.”  Against the worldly wisdom of Nietzsche, who proposed a “master morality” rooted in “man’s will to power,” today’s readings present us with the heroic challenge of humble service rooted in the teachings of the Old Testament and Jesus.

In the first reading, the Book of Wisdom brilliantly contrasts a worldly life spent in the pursuit of power with a life dedicated to justice and trust in God.  The Book of Wisdom is an exhortation to worldly Jews, living in Egypt near the time of Jesus, not to abandon their faith in God as creator and lawgiver for a materialistic philosophy that advocated pleasure and immorality (see Wisdom 1:16-2:21).  Our selection is part of the speech of “the wicked,” lapsed Jews who have given up their faith.  They plan to torture and kill “the just one,” who is a reproach to their lives, as a test case to see if God “will defend him and deliver him from the hand of his foes.”  The fact that “the wicked” cannot even tolerate the existence of “the just one” says something very profound about the ongoing struggle between good and evil.

In the Epistle reading from James, the conflict between “wisdom from above” and worldly acquisitiveness is applied to the Christian community, and even to the inner life of the individual. James insists that envy and conflict in the community originate in the inner cravings of jealousy within the individual.  When one does not obtain his desires, these can even lead to murder.  In contrast, “wisdom from above,” or a life remade by God’s word, is rich in sympathy and kindness and results in “the harvest of justice” and “peace.”

The Gospel continues Mark’s journey to Jerusalem with Jesus’ second prediction of his passion and resurrection and a teaching on the implications of this for Christian discipleship.  Jesus has just descended from the Mount of Transfiguration where he was revealed as God’s beloved Son to Peter, James and John.  But now, as he journeys through Galilee to Capernaum, Jesus still insists upon secrecy about his identity and teaches his disciples: “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.”  As with the first prediction, the disciples fail to understand (see 8:32-33), and now are even afraid to question Jesus (9:32). 

The following incident in the house at Capernaum illustrates how far the disciples are from comprehending Jesus’ mission and the requirements of following him.  When Jesus questions them about what they were discussing on the journey, they fall silent because they had been arguing about “who was the greatest.”  This provides Jesus with the opportunity to proclaim and then illustrate the revolutionary ethic of the Kingdom of God.  After sitting and calling the twelve around him, Jesus announces: “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last one of all and the servant of all.”  As an example, he takes a child, someone without legal status in the ancient world, stands him in their midst and puts his arms around him as he proclaims: “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me; and whoever receives me receives not me but the One who sent me.”

As we continue to hear Mark’s story of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, we must ask ourselves if we are living the life of service and care for the lowly which marks Christian disciples.