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Take Up Your Cross
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A man by the name of Clarence Jordan published what
became known as the "cotton patch" version of the New Testament in the
1950-60's. During this period he also got involved in the civil rights
movement. He helped organize marches and sit-ins all over the south.
When he started to get into trouble for these activities, he turned for
help to his brother, Robert, who had become a prominent Georgia lawyer
and politician.
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Clarence was shocked when his brother refused to
help him. In fact, he made it known that he would have nothing to do
with the civil rights movement. Then Clarence reminded his brother of
his commitment to Jesus Christ and how that commitment should compel him
to get involved. His brother's reply was, "I follow Jesus Christ up to a
point. I follow Him to the cross, but not on the cross. I am not
getting myself crucified." Clarence looked at his brother and said,
"Robert, you are not a follower of Jesus. You are only an admirer of
Him."
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That true story came to my mind when I read this
gospel. Jesus pulls no punches. He is straight-forward when he tells us,
"Whoever does not take up my cross and follow in my steps, is not fit
to be my disciple." What kind of disciple are you? Do you stop to
realize that Christ is the word of God? Everyone else is a byword.
Jesus is the word. All of us are letters.
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I am sure that there are times when we can relate to
Robert's feelings. There are times in our lives when the name of Jesus
Christ was only a curse word. When the last thing we want to get
involved in is carrying a cross and following Him. In fact, we want to
turn away and run and avoid any kind of pain. And, we have many ways of
running. We can remove ourselves from a painful situation or escape it
with alcohol, drugs, work or pleasure. Hardship and tragedy enter all of
our lives at some time or another. It is part of the human condition.
We may try to run away but, we cannot.
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Just last week I was speaking to a young man of 26
who will spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair because of a drunk
driver. A woman I know, who is struggling to bring up two kids alone,
found out that she had contracted the AIDS virus from her alcoholic
ex-husband. What do people like this do when the cross that has suddenly
been thrust upon them seems to exceed their strength to carry it? What
do we do when a cross suddenly thrust upon us seems to exceed our
ability to carry it? A doctor gives us bad news or we are having
troubles with our children.
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At these times it is good to recall that there was a
time in the life of Jesus when His cross exceeded His strength to carry
it. When that time came, Jesus had to accept the help of a stranger,
Simon of Cyrene. Think of it. The Son of God, the Savior of the world
had to admit to Himself and to the world that He lacked the strength to
carry His cross. If the Son of God had the humility to do this then,
certainly, we should have the humility to follow suit. When the cross in
our life becomes too heavy for us to carry, we should reach out for
help just as Jesus did.
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And, to whom do we reach out? First and foremost, we
reach out to Jesus. He knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows
what it feels like to stagger and fall beneath a cross. He knows what
it feels like to have to admit that a cross has become too heavy to
carry alone. He knows what it feels like to have to humble yourself and
accept help from another. Besides reaching out to Jesus, however, we
should reach out to those around us. God often works through other
people like friends, family or, when needed, a professional counselor.
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Finally, the story of how Simon of Cyrene helped
Jesus carry His cross and the story of how Robert Jordan refused to help
his brother in his time of need makes us ask ourselves, "How do we
respond to people when they reach out to us for help? Are we Simon of
Cyrene or are we Robert Jordan?"
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Another question — Are we out of practice in our
faith or do we live and breathe our faith? If someone watched us for a
day would they say, "That is a true Christian?" The help that we may be
asked to give can be as simple as a sympathetic ear or just
encouragement. In other words, are you a follower of Jesus or just an
admirer?
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Yours in Christ,
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Fr. Robert Warren, S.A.
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Spiritual Director
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