“They compelled a passer-by….to carry his cross” – Mark 15:21
Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that when Jesus was led out to be crucified, the soldiers of the governor compelled Simon, a passer-by, to carry the wooden crossbeam on which Jesus was to be hung. The evangelists drew on the notion of carrying the cross as a metaphor for paying the price of being a disciple of Jesus. In its original context, Jesus is asking us to deny ourselves and face the cost of following Him.
But there is another practical consideration involved in carrying our cross. There are times when we are hammered by undeserved suffering and we pray for release – or even some respite – and it never comes. What then? We may well have made the mistake of expecting that God would ‘do it my way’. We might surrender to total disenchantment and loss of faith, or we might find a new kind of hope in acceptance.
The book of Job wrestles with the ‘why’ of human suffering and concludes that suffering just is – we have no answers. But we can make a response in the face of suffering. Mere endurance is not a helpful response, but suffering can make us realise our vulnerability and our prayer can be not so much for deliverance as for acceptance; for the serenity to carry that cross with a measure of calm and peace.
If I am a disciple of Christ, I need to put myself into perspective. As a follower of Jesus, how do I deny myself? What is He asking? We are familiar with the idea of self-mortification through putting up with difficulties and sickness or by fasting or giving up something for Lent. These are all good, but they are not what Jesus had in mind.
Denying myself is not about undervaluing myself as an unworthy sinner. It is about priorities. It means I accept myself and realise that I have to put Jesus and His values first in my life. Self and selfish concerns have to take a back seat. With this realisation, I resolve to live a wholehearted life following Christ’s values as I strive to become the quality human being I am called to be. This is what Jesus meant when he said, “I came that they might have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
So many of the crosses we bear are self-imposed because of our misplaced priorities and values. The fullness of life that is important to Jesus eliminates self-imposed crosses by using common sense strategies, such as cultivating gratitude, truly naming and using our gifts and blessings, avoiding making comparisons, letting go of what other people think, and allowing other people to be who they are.
We can aim for growth to maturity by practising a habit of looking for the good in others. When we see Christ in the people we meet, we are always ready to reach out in simple ways – a smile, a cheery ‘hello’, a helping hand, being company to walk with others. While we are carrying our cross, we can gain perspective by seeing that what we are going through is part of our journey. We can strive to get outside of self and reach out to others. Living like this, we become one with Christ. Notice how Jesus drew crowds, not only through the charisma of His person and His down-to-earth wisdom but noticeably by the way He valued people so that they felt connected to Him.
Consider this question, ‘Was Jesus fulfilled; was he happy doing what he was doing?’ We can confidently say, ‘yes’ because he had spent 40 days in retreat carefully working out the cost of answering the call to be prophet and teacher. His complete trust in the God He called Father and His focus on important priorities enabled Him to set out wholeheartedly on this journey knowing He would face strong criticism and life-threatening opposition. And even when He knew at the end that death was only hours away, how did He cope with that stress and dread? He reached out to others; He washed the feet of His friends as a sign of His relationship with them. This was how He poured out the love that defined His connection with these precious human beings.
His way of carrying His cross was not to give in to self-pity, but simply to carry on accepting what is, with a constructive outlook and profound confidence in the eternal Presence. He could even beg forgiveness for His tormentors realising that they were not really aware of what they were doing. This kind of attitude can only come from those who have grown to a level of personal and spiritual maturity that enables them to carry their cross with wholeness and generosity.
It’s not about endurance. It’s about being positive in living out the values and priorities of Christ.
Dr Laurie Woods is a retired senior lecturer in Biblical Studies from the Australian Catholic University and currently conducts teacher in-service sessions and parish reflection days. He lives in the Diocese of Parramatta and is a member of Our Lady of the Nativity Parish, Lawson.
This article was originally published in the 2024 Easter | Autumn edition of the Catholic Outlook Magazine. You can read the digital version here or pick up a copy in your local parish.
