Thursday Feb 17, 2011

Scripture: Mark 8:27-33

Do you know there is a classic children’s story by Philip Dey. Eastman, Are you My Mother? It has been a favourite story not only for children but also for everyone. It talks about a mother bird while she is away from her nest, the egg in it hatches. The baby bird’s first words are, “Where is my mother?” He jumps out of the nest, falls to the ground and begins looking for his mother. Because he doesn’t know what his mother looks like, he begins by approaching different animals, and asking each of them, “Are you my mother?” He talks to a kitten, a hen, a cow, and a dog, but he cannot find his mother.

The baby bird thinks the red boat in the river or the big plane in the sky might be his mother, but they don’t stop when he calls to them. Finally, he sees a big red steam shovel. The baby bird is so sure the steam shovel is his mother that he eagerly hops into its shovel, only to be terrified when it gives a big snort and starts moving. To the little bird’s surprise, the shovel rises higher and higher and the baby bird is deposited back into his very own nest. Not only that, but he has found his mother, who has just returned from searching for food for him. The mother bird asks her baby: “Do you know who I am?”

The baby answer:

“Yes, I know who you are,

You are not a kitten.
You are not a hen.
You are not a dog.
You are not a cow.
You are not a boat
or a plane, or a Snort!
You are a bird, and you are my mother.”

Listen to the Gospel today; we also have to ask ourselves: “Who is Jesus for us?” The answer is easy or difficult that depends on us. If we see Jesus as a great man, the answer will be the same with the Jews long time ago. This is a vital answer to all of us. If we have a correct answer, we dare to follow Jesus, and if we have a wrong answer, Jesus will stay in the margin of our life only. Jesus today is also testing us personally with the same question: Who do you say that I am?

What did we do and what are we doing to show we are following Jesus, the Son of Man that God the Father sent Him to the world?

Lord Jesus, we profess and believe that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. You are our Lord and our Saviour. Make our faith strong and help us to live in the victory of the cross by rejecting sin and by accepting your will. Amen