Fr Antony Christy, SDB –
The Word in the Holy Week
March 25, 2024: Isaiah 42: 1-7; John 12: 1-11
On the Monday of the Holy Week, the Gospel specifies it, ‘six days before the Passover,’ Jesus is found in Bethany, just on the outskirts of Jerusalem… in the house of Lazarus and his sisters. Jesus’ entry this time into Jerusalem, points to the beginning of a definitive clash between Jesus and the authorities, leading to the tragic crucifixion that we would soon reflect on.
One of the most crucial points of contention between Jesus and the Authorities, besides the temple, was the popularity of Jesus! They wanted to kill Jesus, and also Lazarus, because they did not like the popularity that Jesus was hoarding.
But for Jesus it was not so much about popularity, as about his fidelity to his vocation! This day could be called the Vocation Monday – the first reading reminding us of the call to which Jesus wanted to be faithful right till the end!
Jesus is in fact faced with extreme counter testimonies. To begin with, those who outrightly belittled their call to be people of God and plotted the end of Jesus – the leaders and authorities who considered Jesus a threat. Then there were those who seemed to be with him, but were already beginning to compromise regarding the right thing to do, forgetting their call – Judas who was losing his focus thinking more about the money involved than the love involved in what he saw. There were also those who were unwittingly ignorantly confident about their faithfulness to the call, not knowing they would be soon tested badly!
The message to us is, that we remind ourselves of our vocation, the call that we have received and examine how faithful we are, hoping that we do not fall into any of those three categories – neither ignorantly giving into a failure, nor falling into a compromise and certainly not blatantly going against the call we have received. It is a reminder at the beginning of this journey of Christ towards the highest price that he paid for our tendency towards infidelity. We are challenged to grow more conscious of our vocation, to be dedication disciples of Christ, and true people of God.
Fr Antony Christy is a Salesian Priest from 2005, who has a Masters in Philosophy (specialisation in Religion) and a Masters in Theology (Specialisation in Catechetics). He holds doctoral research in Theology at Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. Walking with the Young towards a World of Peace and Dialogue is the passion that fires him on.