26th week of Ordinary time, Wed. October 4, 2006

Scripture: Job 9:1-12,14-16. Psalm 88:10-15. Luke 9:57-62

When I read the passage from Luke this morning, I had a strange feeling about the evangelist who is considered to be the kindest and most compassionate of the four. Dante loved Luke and portrayed Jesus as the gentlest Savior and lover of humankind. But today, I was stunned by the demands of discipleship that Luke expects of his readers and his community. As you read this pericope about following Jesus, you, too will be a little shocked at what Jesus is asking and demanding of those who wish to follow him. The excuses given in the three who seem to want to follow him are dismissed by the Lord Jesus in short order! When it comes to the following of Christ in the building of the Kingdom, there are no excuses for those who decide they want to follow Jesus. I am sure from former readings of Luke that this is a constant in his call to the challenge of being a disciple. This makes my own desire to follow Jesus very challenging for I can come up with excuses for taking it easy and not following the Lord all the way.

These are called the "difficult sayings of Jesus" and Luke will return to them in chapter 14. Discipleship is one of the principal themes within the third evangelist's narrative. I really was not making much progress in my own thought so I turned to a friend of mine (now deceased) Fr. Carroll Stuhlmueller whose Sister Louise is living in nearby Cincinnati. She, too, is a longtime friend of mine and is now in the Assisted Living of the Sisters of Notre Dame Damur. Fr. Carroll interpreted Luke in the original Jerome Biblical Commentary. Here is how he interpreted the harsh challenge of Jesus: "Jesus does not trick anyone into following him; he wants total dedication. ... Jesus does want to be taken literally, but rather he wanted to stir thought. Jesus demands more than Elisha; ploughing for the kingdom entails sacrifice; one cannot look back, lest the work suffer. I may have to return to this original challenge of Jesus as a disciple. How about you?