the unburdening burden
"What good is that for so many?" —John 6:9
Even during the joyful Easter season, we may feel heavily burdened. The risen Jesus invites us to come to Him if we are burdened. He will give us rest by:
- putting the yoke of His cross on us, for paradoxically His yoke is easy and His burden light (Mt 11:28-30),
- telling us to give Him all our resources, for He will multiply our "all" (see Jn 6:8ff),
- calling us to invite Him into the struggles of our journey, for He will miraculously get us to our destination (Jn 6:21), and
- commanding us to love sacrificially, for paradoxically His love is not burdensome (1 Jn 5:3).
Jesus frees us from the weight of our burdens by telling us to take on additional burdens and trust Him. Therefore, when we are burdened, let us not try to directly get rid of a burden but pick the additional burden which God has given us as an opportunity to exercise our faith. We are saved from burdens by receiving His grace through faith, not by dealing with our problems through human insights (see 2 Cor 5:7).
The ultimate removal of burdens was on Calvary when Jesus took away the burden of sin. Jesus did this by taking on the greatest burden, the sins of the world. Enter into the mystery of the unburdening burden of the cross.
Prayer: Father, give me rest — Your way.
Promise: The apostles "left the Sanhedrin full of joy that they had been judged worthy of ill-treatment for the sake of the Name. Day after day, both in the temple and at home, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news of Jesus the Messiah." —Acts 5:41-42
Praise: St. Athanasius was blessed to help unburden the Church of heresy by being part of the Council that formulated the Creed.
Nihil Obstat: Reverend Giles H. Pater, October 17, 2002
Imprimatur: †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, October 21, 2002