From Shock to Amazement!

Saturday, September 26, 2026

Eccl 11: 9-12:8; Lk 9:43b-45

Today’s Gospel highlights the shift from amazement to shock.

At the healing of a demon-possessed boy, the crowd begins to marvel at Jesus’ power and authority over evil spirits. But Jesus shifts their attention from the glory they witness to the mystery of the cross. In other words, when people are amazed at Jesus’ divine identity and power (the glorified Messiah), he shifts their attention to his identity as the suffering servant.

Why does Jesus refuse to build on their expectations? Does Jesus spoil their joy by shifting the mood from amazement to shock? Does Jesus destroy their hopes? No. While all these questions may appear reasonable, we are called to realize that what Jesus does here carries a formative value. This is why Jesus breaks the truth even when they are not ready for it. 

Thus, by shifting their attention, Jesus does not want to allow the moment to become a distortion of his identity. He does not want them to understand him solely through his power and glory. Instead, by forcing them to look at the reality of the cross, Jesus does not just satisfy the crowd but wants to train them in truth.

Hence, it is not that Jesus spoils their expectations but purifies their hope. When they are lost in what Jesus can do, he wants them to look at who he really is. He wants his disciples to discover that the idea of ‘suffering servant’ does not denote failure. Instead, he reveals that his glory lies precisely in the manifestation of his selfless love on the cross.

Though the idea of the suffering servant comes across to people as a shock, Jesus only intends the revelation as a corrective. When we properly understand the mystery of the cross, we will certainly be moved from shock to amazement. This is how Jesus tilts our perspective through his corrective revelation. 

Let us pray that we may always discover and adore Jesus’ glory manifested in his selfless love on the cross.

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar