24th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B - Who Is Jesus & “Songs of the Cross”

In this weekend’s Gospel (Mk. 8:27-35), we reach a pivotal moment in our walk with the Lord. After weeks of listening to his words and witnessing his deeds, along with the disciples, we’re asked to decide who Jesus truly is. Peter answers for them (and for us, too) when he declares: “You are the Christ.”

Many expected the Messiah to be a miracle worker who would vanquish Israel’s enemies and restore the kingdom of David. Jesus reveals a different portrait. He calls himself the Son of Man, evoking the royal figure Daniel saw in his heavenly visions. However, Jesus’ kingship is not to be of this world and the path to his throne, as he reveals, is by way of suffering and death.

Jesus identifies the Messiah with the suffering servant that Isaiah foretells in today’s First Reading (Is. 50:4-9). The words of Isaiah’s servant are Jesus’ words—as he gives himself to be shamed and beaten, trusting that God will be his help. We hear the same trust proclaimed in the Psalm (Ps. 116) as they give thanks that God has freed them from the cords of death.

As Jesus tells us today, to believe that he is the Messiah is to follow his way of self-denial—losing our lives to save them, in order to rise with him to new life. Our faith, we hear again in today’s Epistle (Jam. 2:14-18), must express itself in works of love. Notice that Jesus questions the Apostles today “… on the way.” They are on the way to Jerusalem, where the Lord will lay down his life. We, too, are on a journey with the Lord. We must take up our cross, giving to others and enduring all our trials for his sake and the sake of the Gospel.

In honor of these readings, we present our latest video, “Songs of the Cross”, a collection of ten (10) beautiful Catholic and other Christian hymns selected and sung by our choir to honor the sacrifice that Jesus made for us all.

This collection contains two never-before released songs (In Christ Alone, Glory In The Cross) and two new organ versions of some of our most popular hymns (Lift High The Cross, Go Make Of All Disciples).

Video can be watched by clicking here or on the picture below: