Friday, February 21, 2020 — Sixth week of Ordinary time — Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 8, 34-39 — I call you friends, said the Lord, because all I learnt from my Father, I have told you.

Being a Christian is clearly defined in this passage of the gospel. It is not an ideological argument, but a life according to Christ: to walk in His footsteps, to take a model from Him, and to accomplish what He has done. The cross is the way He has traced out and which His disciples must follow in order to obtain eternal salvation. It is Jesus the Savior who teaches His followers to carry the cross to the point of accepting death and remaining faithful to the faith in order to participate in His resurrection.

Jesus warns us against the temptation to turn away from the way of the cross: persecution, hardship.