Gospel Commentary for 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Father Raniero Cantalamessa, OFM Cap
ROME, AUG. 29, 2008 (Zenit.org).- In this Sunday’s Gospel we hear Jesus who says: “Whoever wants to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. Because whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
What does it mean to “deny” yourself? And why should you deny yourself? We know about the indignation of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche over this the request of this Gospel.
I will begin answering these questions with an example. During the Nazi persecution, many trains full of Jews traveled from every part of Europe to the extermination camps. They were induced to get on the trains by false promises of being taken to places that would be better for them, when, in fact, they were being taken to their destruction. It happened at some of the stops that someone who knew the truth, called out from some hiding place to the passengers: “Get off! Run away!” Some succeeded in doing so.
The example is a hard one, but it expresses something of our situation. The train of life on which we are traveling is going toward death. About this, at least, there are no doubts. Our natural “I,” being mortal, is destined for destruction. What the Gospel is proposing to us when it exhorts us to deny ourselves, is to get off this train and board another one that leads to life. The train that leads to life is faith in him who said: “Whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live.”
Paul understood this transferring from one transport to another and he describes it thus: “It is no longer I who lives, Christ lives in me.” If we assume the “I” of Christ we become immortal because he, risen from the dead, dies no more. This indicates the meaning of the words of the Gospel that we have heard. Christ’s call for us to deny ourselves and thus find life is not a call to abuse ourselves or reject ourselves in a simplistic way. It is the wisest of the bold steps that we can take in our lives.
But we must immediately make a qualification. Jesus does not ask us to deny “what we are,” but “what we have become.” We are images of God. Thus, we are something “very good,” as God himself said, immediately after creating man and woman. What we must deny is not that which God has made, but that which we ourselves have made by misusing our freedom — the evil tendencies, sin, all those things that have covered over the original.
Years ago, off the coast of Calabria in southern Italy, there were discovered two encrusted masses that vaguely resembled human bodies. They were removed from the sea and carefully cleaned and freed. They turned out to be bronze statues of ancient warriors. They are known today as the Riace Warriors and are on display at the National Museum of Magna Grecia in Reggio Calabria. They are among the most admired sculptures of antiquity.
This example can help us understand the positive aspect of the Gospel proposal. Spiritually, we resemble the condition of those statues before their restoration. The beautiful image of God that we should be is covered over by the seven layers of the seven capital sins.
Perhaps it is not a bad idea to recall what these sins are, if we have forgotten them: pride, greed, lust, wrath, gluttony, envy and sloth. St. Paul calls this disfigured image, “the earthly image,” in contrast to the “heavenly image,” which is the resemblance of Christ.
“Denying ourselves,” therefore, is not a work of death, but one of life, of beauty and of joy. It is also a learning of the language of true love. Imagine, said the great Danish philosopher Kierkegaard, a purely human situation. Two young people love each other. But they belong to two different nations and speak completely different languages. If their love is to survive and grow, one of them must learn the language of the other. Otherwise, they will not be able to communicate and their love will not last.
This, Kierkegaard said, is how it is with us and God. We speak the language of the flesh, he speaks that of the spirit; we speak the language of selfishness, he that of love.
Denying yourself is learning the language of God so that we can communicate with him, but it is also learning the language that allows us to communicate with each other. We will not be able to say “yes” to the other — beginning with our own wife or husband — if we are not first of all able to say “no” to ourselves.
Keeping within the context of marriage, many problems and failures with the couple come from the fact that the man has never learned to express love for the woman, nor she for the man. Even when it speaks of denying ourselves, we see that the Gospel is much less distant from life than it is sometimes believed.
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
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Father Raniero Cantalamessa is the Pontifical Household preacher. The readings for this Sunday are Jeremiah 20:7-9; Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 16:21-27.
耶穌來到了納匝肋，自己曾受教養的地方；按他的習慣，就在安息日那天進了會堂，並站起來要誦讀。有人把依撒意亞先知書遞給他；他遂展開書卷，找到了一處，上邊寫說：「上主的神臨於我身上，因為他給我傅了油，派遣我向貧窮人傳報喜訊，向俘虜宣告釋放，向盲者宣告復明，使受壓迫者獲得自由，宣佈上主恩慈之年。」他把書卷捲起來，交給侍役，就坐下了。會堂內眾人的眼睛都注視著他。他便開始對他們說：「你們剛才聽過的這段聖經，今天應驗了。」眾人都稱讚他，驚奇他口中所說的動聽的話。並且說：「這不是若瑟的兒子嗎？」他回答他們說：「你們必定要對我說這句俗話：醫生，醫治你自己吧！我們聽說你在葛法翁所行的一切，也在你的家鄉這裡行吧！」他又說：「我實在告訴你們：沒有一個先知在本鄉受悅納的。我據實告訴你們：在厄里亞時代，天閉塞了三年零六個月，遍地起了大饑荒，在以色列原有許多寡婦，厄里亞並沒有被派到她們中一個那裡去，而只到了漆冬匝爾法特的一個寡婦那裡。在厄裡叟先知時代，在以色列有許多癩病人。他們中沒有一個得潔淨的，只有敘利亞的納阿曼。」在會堂中聽見這話的人，都忿怒填胸，起來把他趕出城外，領他到了山崖上——他們的城是建在山上的——要把他推下去。他卻由他們中間過去走了。
耶穌開始向自己的門徒說：他必須上耶路撒冷去，長老、司祭長和經師要使他受許多痛苦，並且要殺害他，但是第三天他要復活。伯多祿便拉耶穌到一邊，勸諫他說：「主啊，千萬不可這樣！這事絕不可臨到你身上！」耶穌轉身對伯多祿說：「撒殫，退到我後面去！你是我的絆腳石，因為你所體會的，不是天主的事，而是人的事。」
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耶穌對門徒講了這個比喻：「天國有如一個要遠行的人，將自己的僕人叫來，把財產託付給他們；按照他們的才能，一個給了五個「塔冷通」，一個給了兩個，一個給了一個；然後動身走了。那領了五個「塔冷通」的，立刻去用來營業，另外賺了五個。同樣，那領了兩個的，也賺了另外兩個。但是那領了一個的，卻去掘開地，把主人的銀子藏了。過了多時，僕人的主人回來了，便與他們算賬。那領了五個「塔冷通」的上前來，呈上另外五個「塔冷通」說：『主啊！你曾交給我五個「塔冷通」，看，我賺了另外五個「塔冷通」。主人對他說：好！善良忠信的僕人，你既在少許事上忠信，我必委派你管理許多大事：進入你主人的福樂吧！那領了兩個「塔冷通」的也前來說：主啊！你曾交給我兩個「塔冷通」，看，我賺了另外兩個「塔冷通」。主人對他說：好！善良忠信的僕人！你既在小許事上忠信，我必委派你管理許多大事：進入你主人的福樂吧！隨後，那領了一個「塔冷通」的也前來說：主啊！我原知道你是個刻薄的人，在你沒有下種的地方收割，在你沒有散布的地方聚斂。因為我害怕，所以我去把你的「塔冷通」藏在地下；看，你的仍還給你。主人回答說：可惡懶惰的僕人！你既知道：我在沒有下種的地方收割，在沒有散布的地方聚斂；那麼你就該把我的銀子，交給錢莊裡的人，待我回來時，把的的連本帶利取回。所以，你們把這個「塔冷通」從他手中奪過來，給那有了十個「塔冷通」的，因為凡是有的，還要給他，叫他富裕；那沒有的，連他所有的，也要由他手中奪去。至於這無用的僕人，你們把他丟在外面黑暗中，在那裡必有哀號和切齒。」
黑落德為了他兄弟斐理伯的妻子黑落狄雅的原故，因為他娶了她為妻，曾遣人逮捕了若翰，把他押在監裡；因為若翰曾對黑落德說：「你不可佔有你兄弟的妻子。」黑落狄雅便懷恨在心，希望殺害他，只是不能，因為黑落德敬畏若翰，知道他是一個正義聖潔的人，曾保全了他；幾時聽他講道，就甚覺困惑，但仍樂意聽他。
聖奧思定從早先的放蕩生活皈依天主的榜樣，使他成為啤酒製造者的主保。因為聖人徹底轉變與悔改的過程，常感動許多長期致力於改除己過的人們，特別是那些有特殊惡習的人們。
