Wisdom 9:13-18 / Philemon 9-10, 12-17 / Luke 14:25-33
There are many things that nature can teach us when we observe and reflect upon it.
And there are many proverbs that are from the wonders of nature, like, “make hay while the sun shines”, “still waters run deep”, “time and tide wait for no man”, “nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished”.
But we don't have to look that far and wide in nature to see the wisdom of life.
When we look at the human body, then we may come to realize that the human body is a wonderful teacher of nature.
The more we learn about it, the greater the appreciation we have about the human body. And every part of the human body has something to teach us.
For example, our hands, besides being very useful, can be a subject of reflection and meditation.
The fingers of the hand are of different lengths, but they are all joined together at the palm, and the fingers complement each other. So there is unity in diversity.
Hands also speak a language of their own and it is called sign language.
Hands can be creative as they can cook, sew, write, draw and play musical instruments.
But hands can also be aggressive as they can be used to make vulgar signs, and slap and punch to hurt others.
A sign of possessiveness is when the fingers of the hand curl inwards into the palm and clenched into a fist.
That says a lot about possessiveness, and with the fingers of the hand clenched like a fist, it may also show that we can resort to violence in order to protect our possessions.
When our hands are clenched into a fist, then we are not going to hold anyone's hands, and we don't want anyone to hold our hands either.
Indeed, the fingers in our hands say so much of who we are and how we look at life.
In the gospel, Jesus tells us that no one can be His disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.
But our most precious possessions are not things. The most precious possession is none other than our self. It is about our freedom, our choices, about what we like and what we don't like.
Yes, it is our self that is most difficult to give up. Because it is about giving up our freedom, giving up our choices, giving up what we want.
And so, we hold on tightly to our self, like fists that are clenched tightly. But when we clench our fingers tightly into our palms, it will be painful. We are only hurting ourselves.
Jesus is asking us not to hurt ourselves and open our hands. When we open our hands and let go, then God can do something for us.
He will put His blessings into our hands so that we can see the wisdom of life with open hands.
With open hands we can also touch and feel. With open hands, we let go of ourselves so that we can reach out to God and reach out to others. That is what loving God and loving others is all about.
And with open hands, we can take up the cross and follow Jesus.
The cross is illogical and foolish for those with clenched fists and they won't take it up.
But when we open our hands to take up the cross, we take up the power and the wisdom of God.
As the 1st reading tells us, it is by the power and wisdom of God that the paths of those on earth are straightened, and men are taught what pleases God and be saved.
One more thing about hands. There are gaps between the fingers.
Jesus wants to fill those gaps with His fingers by holding our hands as we carry to cross.
And when we have learnt about the power of the Cross, let us also reach out to hold others’ hands and to live life with love and wisdom.