Those who do not labor and are not burdened are the ones who have others to do their work for them or refuse to do any (they are burdened in another way, but that’s another reflection). Those who labor and are burdened are the ones who are willing or forced to do the work. And these are the ones Jesus calls out to, the ones he invites to come to him to find rest.
But he doesn’t say, “Come to me and kick back and have a cold one, because I don’t ask any work of you.” On the contrary, he says, “Take my yoke upon you.” A yoke is not for rest; it’s for work! This wooden beam links two animals to enable them to pull a load together. Two can pull more than one, but they have to move together.
There are several implications to this invitation. One is that we are still being called to work, because work is good. Only through fulfilling our daily duties and tasks do we find meaning and purpose in life. It is not God’s will that we float downstream in this life, but that we engage our talents to serve Him and others.
Another implication is that it is HIS work we are called to do. It is HIS yoke we are invited to take on, not our own. We are all yoked to something. In Jesus’ time, the yoke most people labored under was the yoke of a complex system of laws and rules that had obscured God’s true Law of Love in many ways. In our time, many are under the yoke of working for pleasure, power, popularity, prestige, or prosperity (what I call the “5P’s”). The yoke of Christ moves us away from our own selfward yoke and into the freedom of focusing on him.
A third implication is that taking on this task is good for us; it will teach us what we need to know. “Learn from me,” Jesus says. Young oxen were often trained to plow by being partnered with stronger and more mature oxen; the younger ox simply had to follow in the same direction and keep pace with the more experienced one, who was pulling most of the weight. If we are doing his work with him, if we are next to him the whole time, yoked to him, then we will learn his way and the wisdom of his humility and we will find a kind of “rest” in that, even though we are still fulfilling the duties before us. Because what he calls us to do, he empowers us to do.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden light” – because Christ the Divine Carpenter fits the wooden yoke perfectly to our shoulders, teaches us to walk in step with him, and therefore fulfill His purpose for our life. It is still work, but under His yoke, our hearts can rest as they learn to beat with His.
Aquellos que no trabajan y no están cargados son los que tienen a otros que hacen su trabajo por ellos o se niegan a hacer cualquier trabajo. Los que trabajan y están cargados son los que están dispuestos o obligados a hacer el trabajo. Y estos son los que Jesús llama, los que invita a venir a él para encontrar descanso.
Pero él no dice: “Ven a mí para descansar y tomarte un refresco, porque no te pido que hagas ningún trabajo”. Por el contrario, dice: “Tomen mi yugo sobre ustedes.” Un yugo no es para descansar; ¡Es para trabajar! Esa pieza de madera vincula a dos animales para permitirles jalar juntos una carga. Dos pueden jalar más de uno, pero tienen que moverse de forma unida.
Hay varias implicaciones para esta invitación. Una es que todavía estamos siendo llamados al trabajo, porque el trabajo es bueno. Solo a través del cumplimiento de nuestros deberes y tareas diarias encontramos significado y propósito en la vida. No es la voluntad de Dios que flotemos río abajo en esta vida, sino que comprometemos nuestros talentos para servirle a él y a los demás.
Otra implicación es que estamos llamados a hacer SU trabajo. Es su yugo que estamos invitados a asumir, no el nuestro. Todos estamos unidos a algo. En la época de Jesús, el yugo que la mayoría de la gente trabajaba era el yugo de un complejo sistema de leyes y reglas que de muchas maneras había oscurecido la verdadera ley del amor de Dios. En nuestro tiempo, muchos están bajo el yugo de trabajar por el placer, poder, popularidad, prestigio o prosperidad. El yugo de Cristo nos aleja de nuestro propio yugo y hacia la libertad de centrarnos en él.
Una tercera implicación es que tomar esta tarea es buena para nosotros; Nos enseñará lo que necesitamos saber. “Aprende de mí”, dice Jesús. Los jóvenes bueyes a menudo fueron entrenados para arar al asociarse con bueyes más fuertes y maduros; El buey más joven simplemente tuvo que seguir en la misma dirección y seguir el ritmo de la más experimentada, que estaba sacando la mayor parte del peso. Si estamos haciendo su trabajo con él, si estamos a su lado todo el tiempo, al costado de él, entonces aprenderemos su camino y la sabiduría de su humildad y encontraremos una especie de “descanso” en eso, aunque todavía estamos cumpliendo los deberes que tenemos ante nosotros. Porque lo que él nos llama a hacer, nos da la fuerza para cumplir.
“Porque mi yugo es suave, y mi carga ligera”, porque Cristo, el carpintero divino, se ajusta perfectamente el yugo de madera a nuestros hombros, nos enseña a caminar con él y, por lo tanto, cumplir su propósito para nuestra vida. Todavía es trabajo, pero bajo su yugo, nuestros corazones pueden descansar mientras aprenden a latir con el suyo.
Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including Father Rob), and seven grandchildren. She is President of the local community of Secular Discalced Carmelites and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 30 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE, and as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio. Currently, she serves the Church by writing and speaking, and by collaborating with various parishes and to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is www.KathrynTherese.com
Feature Image Credit: Otto Gonzalez, https://unsplash.com/photos/LC36d0gmte8
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