A sower went out to sow....

Saturday 5th week of Lent

There was a time in my ministry when I used to say, “No one is indispensable.” But after serving the people for several years, I humbly recognize my arrogance in making such a claim. The Lord showed me that I was wrong. Everyone is indispensable. No one is worth doing away with in favor of anything. We are all precious, irreplaceable, important, special. No one is dispensable.

It was a pity, Caiphas, the high priest during the time of Jesus, did not learn this indispensable lesson. “It is better for one man to die for the people, than the whole nation to perish,” he said. Worse, majority if the Sanhedrin agreed to Caiphas’ arrogant claim. The claim took the life of Jesus.

Many times we are confronted with a choice between one life and another. Many times we want to win another over. Many times we say, “It is okay to dispense with this person in favor of the other.” Many times we approach dialogue not as a win-win situation but as a battle where we do anything to win. Many times we sacrifice the life of another to preserve ours. We have not yet learned the lesson. No one is dispensable. Life is indispensable… no matter whose life it is.

As Holy Week begins tomorrow, we should now realize that the characters in the Holy Week story mirror each of us. The call to reflection during these days reflects to us our own selves in the story of every character. Their stories are our stories. Their mistakes are our mistakes, too. The lesson they failed to learn, we must learn. Who am I in the Holy Week story?