In the play Man of La Mancha Aldonza asks Sancho Panza why he is following Don Quixote. “What do you get out of it?” she questions. “You’ve gotten nothing.” Her question is a reminder that there is a human tendency to wonder “what’s in it for me?” St. Paul, explains the meaning of the cross not in terms of getting but in terms of giving. Jesus Christ did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself. Adam grasped after the apple seeking to get something he did not have. Jesus on the cross gave his all, gave his life, for us. A good yard stick we can use as followers of the crucified: are we emptying ourselves in loving service?
