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Political issues come and go. The political scene in the world is constantly changing. What prevailed when I was a child is history. What prevails today was unthinkable 50 years ago. The mindset of political parties has always changed and will be altered sooner or later by people with influence.

Some protest that politics shouldn’t be mentioned in church yet I will tell them that Jesus was very political. Read the gospels and you will find many scenes where he is adamant about governance. Our political views, whatever they may be, don’t bring about the kingdom of God nor will they usher us past the gates of heaven. When we are focused on worldly politics and standards rather than the gospel, we’re missing the point of how to follow Jesus and if we are doing that, we aren’t alone.

James and John, known as the sons of thunder, came to Jesus with political motives. “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” “What do you wish me to do for you?” Jesus asked. The brothers replied, “Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.” They still anticipated that as their Messiah, Jesus would somehow overthrow the Romans and restore the kingdom of Israel. For three years they listened to this teacher but still hadn’t grasp his lesson that the kingdom of God was not of this world but of the world to come.

They called Jesus “teacher” but apparently had not been listening well. Three times Jesus told them that he, the son of man, would be condemned by the high priests and be handed over to the gentiles to be mocked, beaten, flogged and killed. But three days later he would rise. The disciples didn’t understand what he was saying and were afraid to question him. Despite what he had said, James and John still anticipated a worldly kingdom.

Jesus cautioned the brothers, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink?” In other words, can you accept the lot in life that will befall you as one of my followers? They said, “We can.” Can we?

His kingdom is a contrast to worldly kingdoms. As the eternal king of kings, Jesus puts all his power, all his wisdom, all his energy, and his talents at the service of those whom he rules. Unlike most kings, he seeks nothing for himself.

Most of us who live in this fallen world do just the opposite. Thinking that we deserve comfort and honor (just as James and John did), we demand it whenever we can from the waiter at a restaurant, the clerk at the store, our siblings, or even from the church. “My will be done” is the world’s motto but Jesus teaches to the contrary, “God’s will be done.”

Because he was faithful to God’s will, Jesus put our salvation before his comfort and honor. He knew what awaited him in Jerusalem and yet he didn’t turn away. In the hour leading up to his arrest, Jesus prayed, “Abba, Father, remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.” He willingly suffered not for any personal gain but for our sake and for our salvation.

Jesus had no self-centered agenda, unlike James and John. He came to serve and to give his life for others. That’s the law that ruled the eternal king’s conquest and that same law ought to rule the lives of all his followers. Every Christian should say, “Teacher, we want to do for you and for many whatever you ask of us.” And what does he ask of us?

Putting others first before ourselves is so central to being a Christian that during the Last Supper after washing their feet, Jesus declared to the apostles that serving others would be what identifies them as his followers. “By your love for one another, everyone will recognize you as my disciple.”

This being Mission Sunday, I am mindful of the many missionaries who adopted that tenet and made a world of difference for peoples wherever they served, including St. Frances Cabrini, an Italian nun who became an American citizen when she lived in Seattle more than a century ago.

When we put others first, we draw closer to Christ, which alone can give us the meaning of life we ultimately yearn for. We can put others first in many ways from feeding the hungry as some of our parishioners do with St. Anthony’s kitchen to comforting the sorrowful, caring for a dying spouse or forgiving those who have offended us. But there is one form of service so hidden that we tend to overlook it and yet it is perhaps the most profound type of Christian charity that exists; namely thinking and speaking well of others.

Putting others first in our thoughts and words is the most courageous way of all to obey the commandment of loving our neighbor as ourselves. Because it is precisely when others despise us in their hearts and harshly criticize us that we are wounded the most.

The failure of his followers to understand Jesus and his mission is still experienced by many today. We can’t follow his example unless we contemplate what he does for us. By virtue of our baptism, we are called to live a life of service. Let’s ask Christ to give us the grace to drink his cup and follow his example.

Whenever we embark on a journey, we need directions or we are likely to venture off course and get lost. Apps like Mapquest come in handy for those who are tech savvy. Until smartphones came along, we depended on maps and if we didn’t have one, we often stopped and asked for directions.

Life is much like taking a trip. For some, life has been very satisfying, for others not so. Some people just ramble through life day be day, oblivious of any ultimate destination, while others plan life down to the last detail, mindful of where they are going and where they intend to be. Think of the Olympic athletes. None of them would have made it to Tokyo had they not planned out their trip well.

A successful high school teacher once commented, “There is nothing more beautiful than watching young people preparing to go off to college to begin an exciting new life. And that’s the way it should be. It’s an exciting time for them. The world is out there, just waiting for them to enjoy everything it has to offer.

“But the day will come when these same young people will discover that what the world has to offer will leave them more hungry and more thirsty than they were before. The day will come when they will discover the truth of Jesus’ words, ‘Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life.’”

That teacher was right. What motivated me along the way in making the significant decisions of my life was the quest for happiness and satisfaction. Quite likely, they were your motivations as well but have we found the lasting satisfaction that makes life so meaningful? Are we happy with what God has given us?

The Declaration of Independence proclaims we have the right to pursue happiness but the founding fathers did not provide the blueprint for finding happiness. We presume happiness will be ours when we pursue the American dream, which for many people is symbolized by wealth and good health. Many graduates leave school bent on that pursuit but do they find lasting happiness in the process? The happiness many experience may be as fleeting as a breeze on a humid summer evening, enough to provide a moment’s relief but nothing lasting. In spite of their material success, some are left feeling dissatisfied.

The passages from Exodus and John suggest that humans have always struggled with dissatisfaction. Forgetting how miserable they had been in Egypt, the Israelites bemoan their plight in the desert. “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt when we ate our fill of bread. But Moses, you had to lead us into this desert to make the whole community die of famine!”

In the gospel, Jesus observes that in spite of having been fed with their fill of loaves, the crowd was not yet satisfied. They came to Capernaum looking for him. To remedy their emptiness, Jesus offers them the assurance that lasting happiness can be found in him. “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

Such reassuring words! To celebrate that truth, Catholics have gathered countless times to celebrate Eucharist, a sacramental moment of thanksgiving wherein we partake of bread and wine that have become for us the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ himself. The Catechism teaches that the Eucharist keeps us moving in the right direction by separating us from sin, those acts that draw us away from God and lasting happiness.

Should life seem empty for you at the moment, Paul provides a useful prescription. He is urging us to lay aside the old self of our former way of life, corrupted by deceitful desires, and acquire a fresh spiritual way of thinking. We can do this by putting “on the new self, created in God’s way in righteousness and holiness of truth.”

Does what you value guide you toward God’s kingdom? At times we bypass Paul’s advice. After all, ridding ourselves of our self-centeredness isn’t an easy thing to do. Yet as Paul notes, if we are to acquire a fresh spiritual way of thinking, we cannot be both pagan and Christian. Otherwise, we could find ourselves becoming less Christian in our way of thinking, judging, and acting since we live in a society that is saturated with non-Christian values.

To be truly Christian being with Christ must be our ultimate goal in life. “Have faith in me,” Jesus tells us. Like tourists on a vacation, we are often tempted to veer off course with countless daily distractions and temptations yet the direction for getting to lasting happiness is simple. That route is daily prayer. Be renewed in Christ each day through prayer and you are likely to remain on course in your pursuit of lasting happiness, namely the kingdom of heaven.

Soon we will share the Bread of Life and as we do, let’s ask for the grace never to forget the great truth that Jesus teaches in today’s gospel. May God give us the wisdom to live lives grounded in this food, the Bread of Life that endures beyond the fleeting and the perishable, and feeds us for our lifelong journey to the dwelling place of God.