By Anthony Jayaraj csc –
Readings: Jer 31: 31-34; Heb 5: 7-9; Jn 12: 20-33
The liturgy of the word is challenging me to be committed to the life that I have chosen to live. The commitment that I make before God is not a contract. It is a covenant and sacred to live by
what I profess to God. My covenantal relationship with God will be compromised when I fail to withstand against worldly allurements, self-seeking activities, and personal failures. The
covenantal or committed life in essence is promising and inspiring, yet demands loyalty in times of sickness, loneliness, despair, and grief.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus knew the kind of his death that was imminent for him. Towards subjection of his will to God and because of the fulfilment of a new covenant of his Father to humanity, he accepts the pain in love. His life was an offering acceptable to God because of his willingness to go through suffering, pain, and agony for life that he embraced in love. So, I am being invited to ‘offer my life and my life’s work in the service of the Lord for the needs of the Church and the world.’
The only consolation for me is that God never remembers my sins and forgives my iniquities. If this is the beauty of God’s new covenantal relationship with humanity, his followers must do the same in life to renew the promise that each one makes with and before the Lord.