Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Delaney CoyneSeptember 29, 2023
Photo from iStock.

A Reflection for Saturday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time

I cannot help but laugh when I read today’s Gospel. Jesus tells the Twelve, “Pay attention,” and they do—kind of. They hear Christ’s words that predict his destiny: “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men,” but they do not understand and are afraid to ask Jesus what he means, so they let the conversation move on. The Twelve’s response is reminiscent of those awkward head nods in a conversation about a book you’re too ashamed to admit you haven’t read, or a student’s diverted eye contact when a teacher asks, “Any questions?”

This is not to say that asking would have resulted in an answer from Jesus, who only directly answered three of the 183 questions posed to him throughout the Gospels. That success rate would suggest that in all likelihood, the Apostles would not have found a direct answer to their query. In Christ’s parables and follow-up questions throughout the Gospels, we uncover the questions we should continue exploring. Jesus does not offer easy answers. Instead, he sends listeners down a rabbit hole. If you think you’ve hit bottom, you’re not digging hard enough; this is the nature of faith, revealed through Jesus’ ministry.

Where has my pride obstructed my view of the presence of God in my midst? What could have been revealed if only I hadn’t been afraid to ask?

I laugh at today’s Gospel because it is one of those readings in which we are reminded of the humanity and fallibility of those who followed Jesus. “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men,” Jesus says, and if you’re anything like me, you want to reach through the page and shake the Apostles. This is serious! This is at the heart of the Gospel! Pay attention!

But then, I think of all the times that I’ve nodded and said “I understand” while my head is swimming, the times I don’t even remember doing so. Like us, the Apostles are afraid to ask the “dumb questions,” to appear dense in front of their friend and teacher whom they so admire. They did not know what they were living through—neither do we.

Where has my pride obstructed my view of the presence of God in my midst? What could have been revealed if only I hadn’t been afraid to ask? Like a high school teacher, today’s Gospel reminds us that there are no stupid questions.

More: Scripture

The latest from america

Pope Leo XIV greets religious sisters during a meeting with officials and employees of the Roman Curia, Vatican City State and the Diocese of Rome in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican May 24, 2025. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Describing the Curia as the institution that preserves “the historical memory of the church,” Pope Leo called on these Vatican employees to “work together” with him “in the great cause of unity and love.”
Gerard O’ConnellMay 24, 2025
Paola Ugaz, a Peruvian journalist who helped expose the abuse committed by leaders of the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, gives Pope Leo XIV a stole made of alpaca wool, during the pope's meeting with members of the media May 12, 2025, in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Pope Leo offered a heartening message for a global media that has endured a pretty awful year.
Kevin ClarkeMay 23, 2025
If you think our enthusiasm for our basketball team was intense, just wait until you see our support for Pope Leo XIV.
Jack DoolinMay 23, 2025
“I don’t think he’s the kind of man who sends coded messages,” Cardinal Michael Czerny says in this exclusive interview with Gerard O’Connell.
Gerard O’ConnellMay 23, 2025