Numbers 10-12; Mark 8

Mark 8:35 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.”  I recently watched a dramatization of the life of Dr. Edith Stein, also known as St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross.  She was a Polish Jew who attained a measure of fame as a philosopher, who converted to Catholicism and became a Discalced Carmelite nun, and ultimately was gassed in Auschwitz.  Her love of Jesus put her through a trial of great suffering.  Her family was generally outraged, with many members accusing her of betrayal, and the Catholic community by and large was cold.  She endured the suspicion from both sides that her conversion was a ploy to save herself from the Nazis.  She was offered the opportunity to “save her life” by a former academic colleague turned Nazi power-broker, but because of her love of Christ and of the Gospel she declined.  “My burden is easy and my yoke is light” Jesus said.  The peace and joy one experiences from faithful discipleship is liberating from the fears and anxieties of the world, but still it is not easy to carry the Cross.

GOD’S ANSWER: Yes, if you want to be more like My Son, you must carry your Cross as He did.

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