The two things we must do 

A Reflection for the Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop

Find today’s readings here.

My children say that if I were a superhero, this moniker would describe my superpower: The Questioner. According to them, I ask a lot of questions. I explain that I have a thirst for knowledge, but also maybe I’m nosy. So my kids may take heart that today’s first reading from Philippians urges us (me) to avoid doing two things: grumbling and questioning. I can grumble, but my grumbling is under control. My compulsion to question everything apparently is not.

Then Jesus tells us the two things that we must do to be his disciples. One is to carry our own cross. The other is to renounce all our possessions. Carrying our own cross seems like the easier of the two, until we remember that the cross is an instrument of a cruel death. Most of us will never be publicly executed, but in a metaphorical way, perhaps carrying our own cross means accepting any suffering that comes our way because of our beliefs, as well as owning the faults and false starts that impede our faith journey. 

Renouncing our possessions sounds pretty straightforward, although anyone who has cleaned out a parent’s longtime home understands that possessions can be a suffocating weight on the spirit. Jesus includes our families on the list of possessions to renounce, which is a harsh message for this mom. But hating our children and parents and siblings and spouses can also be metaphorical, as we are surely called to care for our loved ones. (See cleaning out the parent’s house, above.) To be disciples of Jesus, however, nothing—not family, not comfort, not belongings, not life itself—must be more important than our discipleship. Nothing must take precedence over our commitment to Jesus.

Two additional things to do, according to the letter to the Philippians: We are to shine with Christ’s light and hold tight to the word of life, even as we dwell “in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,” says St. Paul. He could be writing on his Substack in 2026, because we faithful today are challenged more than ever to rise above the petty politics and consuming corruption of our modern world, and instead to be beacons of Christ’s love. Jesus calls us to a purity of purpose and a stoutness of spirit, two more things that will fortify our discipleship.

Is following in the footsteps of Jesus a challenging mission for The Questioner? Yes. Which is motivation to pray for two necessary things: God’s grace and mercy.