Dear Immaculate Family,

“Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left…” James and John wanted to be as close to Jesus as possible. There is nothing wrong with that. The problem is that the two brothers understood the glory of Jesus’s Kingdom in a wrong way. They had in mind a political kingdom where they were able to occupy positions of power and prestige. The rest of the apostles became indignant at the brothers because they all wanted the same thing.

In reply, Jesus shows us another way to be close to him, actually to be like him: the way of service: “the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many”. That’s Jesus’ greatness and it is our greatness too.

How do we measure greatness? Our world tends to define greatness in terms of power, privilege, and prestige. We measure the importance of a person by external markers – the house they own, the car they drive, the ostentatious nature of their lifestyle. We are impressed by the visible achievement of people: their prestigious honors and academic degrees, the importance of their profession, and sometimes even the accomplishments of their children.

But when Jesus speaks of greatness he inevitably links it with service. Greatness is measured in service, in spending our lives for the sake of others. As he said to James and John, that which makes us great is not our ability to rule over others, but, rather, our ability to invest ourselves for the welfare of others. In a world where most people want to put as little as is necessary into life and to get out as much as possible, our Lord shows us a better way, the way of service and self- giving love for the good of others.

May God help us to always follow that path which is the one leading to true greatness and glory!

God bless you all!

Fr. Rolando