Jesus Can Handle Our Burdens

The Fourth of July. Independence Day. It was Saturday, July 4th, when our parishes here in Connecticut had their first public weekend Masses since early March. It was a wonderful experience. Attendance at the 5 p.m. Vigil Mass was limited by design. Everyone wore facemasks. Every other pew was blocked off, so folks kept at least six feet from each other. Rather than incense, the smell of hand sanitizer wafted throughout the sanctuary. But just being back at church for Mass—finally!—was a terrific sensation.

The gospel reading that day, for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, was from Matthew, chapter 11. Jesus exclaimed, “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.”

What a wonderful coincidence that particular reading just happened to be the gospel for our first public Mass in months. (Although, maybe rather than a coincidence, it was instead a mysterious God-incidence.)

What have the last four months been for most Americans? A single word best answers that question: burden.

Just think about what we’ve been through since early March: Loved ones got sick, and many died because of the horrible COVID-19 virus. Jobs were lost. Classes were cancelled. Businesses were shut down; many never to reopen. Lives were completely disrupted. Then, an act of horrible violence sparked waves of more horrible violence throughout the country. Without a doubt, life in America over the past four months has been a burden.

And for faithful Catholics, the burden was compounded when we were ordered by the bishops NOT to attend Mass. Out of an abundance of caution and the fact this virus is so contagious, the bishops regretfully closed our churches. Just imagine if last Fall someone announced, “I’ll bet a thousand bucks that next year the bishops will order all Catholics to stay home and not go to Mass.” Everybody within earshot would’ve laughed at the guy—and quickly accepted his wager. Well, if that had happened, that fella would be a rich man today.

So, on the first day we were allowed to attend weekend Mass once again, Jesus said He will give rest to everyone who is burdened. That sounds great! Where do I sign up? Does He take credit cards?

Well, it’s not exactly something we “sign up” for. There’s a spiritual concept in Christianity that teaches we must surrender to be victorious. Now, by worldly standards, that makes no sense. To be victorious in any struggle, we instinctively know that we have to fight hard and overpower our enemies. Only then will we be able to declare victory.

Much of the burden that people endure these days is self-inflicted. We assume it’s our responsibility to run the universe and make everything right. I’ve got news for you. None of us have the skill-set to pull that off. It’s not in our job descriptions. The only One who has the ability to do that job is Christ.

After all, don’t forget: Jesus was not simply a Jewish carpenter who offered a lot of nice teachings 2,000 years ago. Scripture says this about Jesus: “Through Him all things were made.” Before lowering Himself to become a man, Jesus was “one-in-being” with God Almighty, and He was instrumental in the creation of the entire universe.

We need to surrender to Christ; that is, we need to get out of the way and let Him be God. He has the power and strength and majesty to assume our burdens. If we just relax and trust that the Lord is in charge, we will be amazed at how light our burdens become.

Now that our churches have reopened, try to attend Mass on the weekend once again (only, of course, if you are not in a high-risk category). It’s been a long spiritual drought since early March, and we all are weary and troubled. Throw your burdens onto Jesus. He can handle them.