23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily by Fr Bala Kommathoti

Today we will focus our meditation on one simple question. Are you disciple of Christ or a follower of Christ? Jesus is not only calling us to be followers but to making daily life changing decisions of discipleship. Disciples are selected for a special mission. They sustain this mission and find purpose in it by deepening their relationship with the Triune God Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Like athletes chosen to play for a special sports franchise disciples are subject to higher expectations and must sacrifice to meet them. The disciple is fully committed to do the will of the master and becoming like him as much as the disciples’ spiritual, mental and physical capacity permits. In contrast a follower cannot commit and so he or she does not enter into the adventure of Christ’s mission, at least not fully. Today we hear one of the great attention grabbers in the Gospels. Jesus says if anyone comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, and even his own life he cannot be my disciple. Father Bala says this word “hate” can be very upsetting. The force of this word has upset many people including Father Bala himself. Many helpful scholars try to soften the blow by pointing out that in the Hebrew culture to “hate” something or someone often means to prefer it less than the greatest good not to despise or have negative feelings about the object being hated. Although that explanation of the word “hate” is true, zeroing in on that one word “hate” can keep us from hearing Jesus’s command to lay down our lives for him and for one another. Make no mistake Jesus is asking for something radical, something that requires a change of mindset and invites us to a lifestyle of generous self-giving love. We absolutely must count the cost of discipleship before committing to God's optimal plan for us to lay down our lives by entering into marriage, consecrated celibacy, single life, or when we face major decisions in our lives. Even if we cannot commit to the exacting standard of a perfect disciple today, Jesus wants us to know we can work our way up to it. Strengthening our interior life (relationship with God) in the power of the Holy Spirit will offer us real intimacy with God Father, Son and Holy Spirit and give us the strength to journey deeper in discipleship. This discipleship will lead to detachment from ourselves and from our lives. Ultimately it is about finding the highest good in being transformed into the image of Christ not about a stoic desire to distance ourselves from the people, goals, and things that we love.