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“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.” Matthew 20:22–23
Saint James was the brother of the beloved disciple John and the
son of Zebedee and Salome. Jesus called both James and John while
they were working with their father, mending their fishing nets in
their boat. Their response to Jesus’ call was immediate: “...they
left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and
followed him” (Mark 1:20). James was present at the raising of
Jarius’ daughter, the Transfiguration, and is mentioned a few other
times in the Gospels. In the Acts of the Apostles, James is
identified as the first of the Apostles to give his life as a
martyr, being beheaded by Herod in Jerusalem in the year 44 AD (See
Acts 12:2).
Among the other references to Saint James in the Gospels is the
passage quoted above in which Salome, the mother of James and John,
asks Jesus for the unique favor of allowing her two sons to sit at
His left and right in His Kingdom. Upon her request on behalf of
her two sons, Jesus turns to them and asks if they can drink the
chalice that He is going to drink, to which they respond, “We can.”
And though this is a bold request on their parts and that of their
mother, there is also something courageous and holy about their
request.
Just prior to this passage, as Jesus journeyed to Jerusalem with
the Twelve, He explained to them the fate that awaited Him.
“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be
handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will
condemn him to death, and hand him over to the Gentiles to be
mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on the
third day” (Matthew 20:18–19). This was the third time that Jesus
explained this to the Twelve and, therefore, it must have started
to truly sink in. It is within this context that James and John ask
to remain close to Jesus in His mission of establishing His
Kingdom, even though Jesus explained that the path to that Kingdom
was His suffering and death.
Each of us should learn from James and John. Though their request
might have had some selfishness mixed in with it, it was also
courageous. It showed they did not fear Jesus’ prediction of His
passion. Instead, they wanted to be part of it and were willing to
endure whatever was necessary so as to share in the glory of the
Kingdom to come.
Reflect, today, upon making a similar request to our Lord. Say to
Him that you desire to be close to Him in His Kingdom, and do so
with the full knowledge that the path to this glory is by drinking
the chalice of selfless sacrifice that Christ drank. It is obtained
by courageously following Him, no matter what that requires of you.
If that means suffering and persecution, so be it. If that means
great sacrifice, so be it. If that means abandoning certain hopes
and dreams, so be it. See yourself walking with these disciples and
Jesus on the road to Jerusalem where our Lord would offer His life
in sacrifice. Saint James would soon follow, dying by the sword of
Herod. Say “Yes” to whatever our Lord asks of you and commit
yourself to the drinking of the chalice of selfless sacrificial
love. Doing so will enable you to share in the glory of the Kingdom
of Heaven.
My glorious King, You invite all people to share in Your
glorious Kingdom to come. May I enter that Kingdom with all the
saints and fully share in its glory. I choose that path that leads
to that Kingdom and willingly offer my life in sacrifice to You and
for others. Jesus, I trust in You.
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