Reading 1
2 Cor 4:7-15

Brothers and sisters:
We hold this treasure in earthen vessels,
that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us.
We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained;
perplexed, but not driven to despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed;
always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body.
For we who live are constantly being given up to death
for the sake of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since, then, we have the same spirit of faith,
according to what is written, I believed, therefore I spoke,
we too believe and therefore speak,
knowing that the one who raised the Lord Jesus
will raise us also with Jesus
and place us with you in his presence.
Everything indeed is for you,
so that the grace bestowed in abundance on more and more people
may cause the thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 126:1bc-2ab, 2cd-3, 4-5, 6

R. (5) Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Then they said among the nations,
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those that sow in tears
shall reap rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.

Gospel
Mt 20:20-28

The mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her,
“What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your Kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Meditation
Matthew 20:20-28

St. James

Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink? (Matthew 20:22)

Jesus asked James and John this question when they sought to reserve the best seats at the banquet table in his kingdom. Instead of assuring these impetuous "sons of thunder" of places of honor, he challenged them to follow his own example of service—even unto death, if necessary. "The Son of man did not come," he told them, "to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28).

James must have taken Jesus' exhortation to heart, because not many years later he did indeed drink the same cup that his Master had. Around Passover time in the year a.d. 44, King Herod Agrippa, grandson of the murderous Herod the Great, began persecuting the Christian community in Jerusalem: "He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword" (Acts 12:2). According to an early church tradition passed on by St. Clement of Alexandria, the accuser who brought James before Herod was so moved by the apostle's courage and testimony to Jesus that he became a Christian on the spot and was beheaded along with James.

James lost his life because he was committed to serving the fledgling church. He could have run away to Cyprus or Antioch and hidden from King Herod's rage. But he chose instead to stay where God had called him and give himself to the very end. As a result, the church in Jerusalem was able to stick together and grow during a very dangerous time.

In the ancient world, offering another one's own cup to drink from was considered a great sign of friendship. James didn't shrink from sharing Jesus' cup, although it meant spending himself in service and even sharing in his Master's suffering. Jesus has called us his friends (John 15:14-15), and he offers us his cup, too. Therefore, in every relationship we are in—with our family members, friends, coworkers, and neighbors—and in every situation in which we find ourselves, our primary question is, "How is Jesus asking me to serve here?" As we generously respond, we'll see God's grace flow through us as it did through James, and we too will bear fruit in God's kingdom.

"Lord Jesus, make my heart like yours. Give me the love and courage to look beyond myself and to serve others generously, as you did."