Poor Peter! Imagine soon after having been entrusted with the keys of the kingdom of heaven (last Sunday's Gospel) he is scolded by Jesus who refers to him as an “ obstacle in my path. ”

Jesus in preparing his disciples for his imminent demise is confronted with opposition from an empowered Peter who wants to change the direction that Jesus' life must take. This passage has significant relevance to our lives as it serves to remind us that personal achievements bring empowerment that seeks to distract and cause us to wander from the path of discipleship.

Peter it seems has become distracted from the path he must travel as a disciple. He protests against Jesus having to suffer and die but is rebuked by Jesus for his failing to understand. This is a failing that many of us who call ourselves followers of Christ are guilty of.

Like Peter it is easy for us who are Jesus' disciples to lose sight of our Christian calling and resort to thinking in a worldly manner and not how God expects us to.

Indeed this gospel passage is showing us that the price attached to discipleship is very high! Are we willing to pay the price as we move ahead in life?

To be a disciple of Christ we are called to be “ in the world and not of the world. ” We are expected to be ambitious not for worldly goods but for eternal life. The world as we know it today measures success by earthly achievements.

In this gospel passage, Jesus reminds Peter, the other disciples and by extension us, that to be his followers we cannot think like man but like God. In our everyday lives, our responsibilities as disciples of Christ are challenged.

We must remind ourselves at all times that earthly success is not as important as the crown to be gained in following Jesus to the cross. Peter having grown in confidence because of his new status loses his focus of what is required as a disciple.

Jesus' message of a suffering messiah and costly discipleship helps to remind him of the hardship he must endure. Additionally, as we become more socially and economically mobile our responsibility as disciples of Christ must not change.

Families in today's world are faced with barriers which inhibit them from living out their discipleship. Prosperity and higher standards of living are fast becoming obstacles in the Christian walk of discipleship.

It is a normal practice in our society today for parents to be absent from the home for lengthy periods of time because of career demands. They are torn between earning a living and providing financially for their children and sustaining family values.

Bonding and sharing with one another has become very difficult in some homes. Eating meals together as a family is limited to Sunday lunch and special occasions.

In some homes this tradition has become non-existent. Family worship together now has to compete with social activities and communication among members of the home is no longer personal but electronic, via text messaging and e-mail.

Some mothers who have migrated to what they consider greener pastures to help make a better life for themselves and their children have substituted their physical presence in the home with presents in a barrel.

In order to maintain Christian values and live out their discipleship parents must remember Jesus' teaching and give up some of their earthly distractions.

The personal and professional empowerment we achieve in the workplace can become obstacles in our path to discipleship. As we attempt to move ahead on the job and achieve social mobility it is easy for us to lose sight of the cross and become paralysed in our Christian walk.

In a “dog eat dog world” where everyone is seeking the “almighty” dollar our focus on the cross can be shifted very easily. The mad rush to achieve our earthly goals distracts us.

We do not think God's way when in our own desire for piece of the pie we allow ourselves to get totally caught up in the madness of the workplace.

Prayer

Lord we thank you for reminding us of the centrality of the cross in our lives. We thank you for those people who refuse to give in to selfishness and greed and remain faithful to your example of suffering and discipleship.

We ask pardon for the times when, like Peter, we were prepared to choose the easy way out rather than take up our cross and follow you. In the silence of our hearts may we hear you telling us that the way we have chosen is not your way but our way.

We pray for parents who are absent from the home as they seek to provide for their children. May they sacrifice some of their material goods in order to spend more quality time with their children. Amen.

Therese Ragoonanan is a wife and mother of two children who teaches at San Fernando East Junior Secondary School. She is also a Eucharistic Minister at St. Andrew Kaggwa RC Church, Vistabella.