First reading Isaiah 53:10-11
If he offers his life in atonement, what the Lord wishes will be done
The Lord has been pleased to crush his servant with suffering.
If he offers his life in atonement,
he shall see his heirs, he shall have a long life
and through him what the Lord wishes will be done.
His soul’s anguish over,
he shall see the light and be content.
By his sufferings shall my servant justify many,
taking their faults on himself.
Responsorial Psalm 32(33):4-5,18-20,22
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
The word of the Lord is faithful
and all his works to be trusted.
The Lord loves justice and right
and fills the earth with his love.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
The Lord looks on those who revere him,
on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death,
to keep them alive in famine.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is our help and our shield.
May your love be upon us, O Lord,
as we place all our hope in you.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
Second reading Hebrews 4:14-16
Our high priest is one who has been tempted in every way that we are
Since in Jesus, the Son of God, we have the supreme high priest who has gone through to the highest heaven, we must never let go of the faith that we have professed. For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though he is without sin. Let us be confident, then, in approaching the throne of grace, that we shall have mercy from him and find grace when we are in need of help.
Gospel Mark 10:35-45
The Son of Man came to give his life as a ransom for many
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached Jesus. ‘Master,’ they said to him ‘we want you to do us a favour.’ He said to them, ‘What is it you want me to do for you?’ They said to him, ‘Allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory.’ ‘You do not know what you are asking’ Jesus said to them. ‘Can you drink the cup that I must drink, or be baptised with the baptism with which I must be baptised?’ They replied, ‘We can.’ Jesus said to them, ‘The cup that I must drink you shall drink, and with the baptism with which I must be baptised you shall be baptised, but as for seats at my right hand or my left, these are not mine to grant; they belong to those to whom they have been allotted.’
When the other ten heard this they began to feel indignant with James and John, so Jesus called them to him and said to them, ‘You know that among the pagans their so-called rulers lord it over them, and their great men make their authority felt. This is not to happen among you. No; anyone who wants to become great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave to all. For the Son of Man himself did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’
_____________________________
To be in a state of mission
“Today too Jesus needs hearts capable of experiencing vocation as a true love story that urges them to go forth to the peripheries of our world as messengers and agents of compassion. He addresses this call to everyone, and in different ways… To be on mission is to be willing to think as Christ does…” (Message for World Mission Sunday 2021, Pope Francis). By virtue of our baptism, all of us have a part to play in the mission of Christ. He calls us today to the mission of being servants to others.
The call to be a servant to all implies dying to our prideful desire to be first and great. In the gospel passage, James and John wanted to secure honour for themselves. We too tend to harbour the desire to be admired, honoured and thus, we pursue privileged positions, even in Church communities and ministries. Yet, Jesus sends us on a mission to serve selflessly in the same way He did. On this mission Sunday, let us commit ourselves to the mission that Jesus entrusts to us.
Questions for reflection:
As I read the gospel passage, which aspect challenges me in a particular way? Why?
As I read the gospel passage, which aspect challenges me in a particular way? Why?
