Christ Jesus is our peace. For he makes us one with God and each other through the cross. Hence, this peace comes at a great price, not of silver or gold, but of Christ’s body and blood. 

As he teaches his disciples to trust God, and not wealth, Jesus seems to go through a burst of enthusiasm. For he says, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” But it is not the enthusiasm of a romantic or of the disciples the Pharisees want the Teacher to scold; he knows the price he has to pay.

Yes, Jesus burns with zeal for God’s kingdom and justice (see SV.EN XII:215). He also knows the greater demands that come with the mission God has given to him. And this is not lost to him, for sure: to seek to better the lives of the poor is to incur the wrath of leaders who want no change.

But he is not only not naïve. He also accepts what his mission asks of him. So, he accepts the baptism he must go through and the griefs it brings.

And he is honest, besides, with his disciples. That is, he does not hide from them that he does not stand for peace all the time. For there are times when he cannot but stand for break-up. Because of him, yes, some fall and others rise; he is a sign of conflict. He means life and blessing for some, and death and curse for others (see Dt 30, 19-20).

Honest thus with his disciples, Jesus gives them a heads-up. To be his true disciples, they, too, will not bring peace but break-up. His lot will be theirs; those who make the Teacher suffer will make his disciples suffer also.

Yes, true disciples face and accept conflicts that come with doing good (SV.EN I:75). Like Jeremiah, too, they pay the price for speaking out and working for a more just and human world.

Lord Jesus, give us the enthusiasm and passion to change the world as you want.  We fix our gaze on you and recall the price of your body and blood that you paid to save us. Make us ever burn with zeal as we do so. For only thus shall we be true Christians (SV.EN XI:63).  

17 August 2025
20th Sunday in O. T. (C)
Jer 38, 4-6. 8-10; Heb 12, 1-4; Lk 12, 49-53