Thursday after Ash Wednesday
Gospel: Luke 9:22-25
In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks with clarity and urgency: whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for His sake will save it. At the beginning of Lent, this word confronts our instinct for self-preservation. We often try to secure ourselves through control, comfort, or recognition, yet Christ reveals a paradox, true salvation is found not in protecting the ego, but in following Him on the path of self-giving love. To take up the cross daily is not a call to suffering for its own sake, but an invitation to entrust our lives to the One who alone can redeem them. Following Christ is not optional for those who desire life in its fullness; it is the necessary path to becoming our true selves. In losing what is selfish and closed, we discover a deeper freedom and a life rooted in communion with Him. Let’s reflect: Lent is the sacred journey of following Christ through self-denial and trust, so that in losing what is selfish we may rediscover our true life in Him.
Don Giorgio