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29TH SUNDAY B

TRUE GREATNESS IN THE EYES OF A SAINT
29th Sunday
What is the measure of true greatness? In the world today, there are numerous, varied responses:  Money! Control!  Skill!  Attitude!  Fame! Achievements!  Depending on who you ask and what his heart suggests, you will have an answer.
In the gospel (Mark 10), the Lord Jesus instructs his disciples to expect that the world will value greatness mainly on the basis of “who’s at the top of things”.  He is great who triumphed over the others, who beat the others, who showed the others his might.
Then He tells them to pursue another kind of greatness, one that will make people scratch their heads, shake their heads in unbelief, blow their minds off.  To be great, says Jesus, is to be the servant of all.  To be first is to be the last of all.
What better way to understand the Lord than to merely rejoice with the entire Filipino nation as we welcome our latest addition to the roster of the heroes of the faith. 
He was a mere youth, from obscure beginnings in the Visayas.  He accompanied the great St. Diego de San Vittores in his missionary forays into the jungles of Marianas, now Guam, in search of converts for Christ. He worked as a catechist while the priest performed the sacraments.  When the priest-saint was killed by enemies, he did not abandon him but instead came to his rescue.  It was this that sealed his fate and led to his own shedding of blood for his love of Christ and the Church.
Now, St. Pedro Calungsod is recognized by the universal church for the heroism of his faith and the fidelity he showed to his companion in mission.  Compared to the stature of the great missionaries, he was really just under their shadow.  But his faith proved to be so gigantic to convince the entire Church that in the arena of love, he is equal to all those who went before him in martyrdom.
Truly, greatness for God is in being a servant, priority is in being last of all.  What is the basis of this teaching of the Lord? It is none other than his very self.  “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus tells us today not to succumb to the temptation of false greatness.  He who works silently is great.  He who labors in the shadows is precious in the eyes of God.  The Overseas Filipino Worker, the laborer in the factory, the jeepney driver, the laundry woman, the sampaguita vendor, the caregiver of an invalid – these are all images of the new saint of the Philippines.  In God’s eyes, they too are great.  We too, are great even if we are not at the top.  As long as we do things out of love and fidelity to God and the people around us, we can be so united with Christ.
Today let us thank the Lord for opening wide for us the road that leads to true greatness!  Mabuhay, St. Pedro Calungsod.