I have a motorcycle currently sitting near my patio that I have not ridden much in about four years, aside from taking it around our neighborhood last summer to see if it still ran well. It’s a beautiful, black Harley-Davidson, which I acquired back in the fall of 2016.

During the first few years of having the bike, I rode it as often as I could, loving the feeling of freedom it gave me, often riding with no destination in mind or taking the longest possible route to my destination. Now, it just sits.

Being a parent can shift our perspectives and our priorities – although, sometimes, those changes take time. While my sons were five years old when I originally purchased the bike, it took several years for me to realize that I do, in fact, love my life, because I love being their father. And it’s largely because of them, along with my wife and soon-to-be newborn third son, that I have decided I no longer need that bike in my life.

I’m also not a huge fan of my own mortality, and a few close calls on that bike made me further appreciate putting a little more distance – or, perhaps, at least two more wheels, and the protection of a car – between myself and my own personal demise. At the same time, it is difficult for me to think about selling the bike and never riding again.

To truly love – whether it is to love one’s children, spouse, family, friends, neighbors, enemies, or the entirety of creation – is to sacrifice. Whether it be the sacrifice of more youthful indulgences, or the sacrifice of pride and feeling the need to be right, or the sacrifice of one’s time, efforts, comfort and privilege, the sacrifice is for the sake of love, for the sake of abundant life to all those we encounter, and all Creation.

In this week’s Gospel reading from Matthew 16, Jesus tells his disciples what is coming soon, “that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and on the third day be raised.” (Matthew 16:21b)

Later in the passage, Peter, who is likely reeling and grieving as he starts to contemplate what it really means to be the Messiah, rebukes Jesus before Jesus rebukes him. Jesus then says to his disciples: “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:24b-25)

As I said, I’m not a huge fan of my own mortality. I love this life, and I love all the people I feel fortunate enough to call family and friends. To literally lose it for the sake of Jesus is something I wrestle with often, not being sure if I could ever be a martyr if it meant I would never see my sons and wife again in this world. Yet I firmly believe that it is only the self-sacrificial, other-serving, enemy-forgiving love of God demonstrated in Jesus Christ that brings salvation to this world. Because, I also believe, on the other side of that self-giving love is resurrection and new life for all creation.

So, given my apprehension towards martyrdom (and perhaps your own, as well), what are some other ways we might lose our lives for the sake of abundance for all?

Prior to my starting at both the churches I currently serve, each congregation started collecting and recycling soft plastics as part of their Green Team efforts. These include the plastic bags stores often use to put your groceries in, some of the plastic wrap that comes in mailed packages, plastic bread bags, as well as some other forms. These plastics, which could have been so easily thrown away and ended up in our landfills or oceans, are now being sorted by dedicated volunteers and recycled. And it takes intentional effort on the part of those collecting the plastics and bringing them in to make this work. Those beloved saints are losing the part of their lives that was once quick and convenient in just disposing of those same plastics in the trash.

The same Green Teams at both churches also started collecting batteries for recycling. Again, this takes the laying down of one’s own life in the intentional home collection efforts, as well as in the sorting, taping and delivery of those batteries to the e-waste recycling center, all done by volunteers.

Caring for God’s creation also involves us practicing this self-giving love with our human neighbors. This might mean something as seemingly small as getting outside of our comfort zones, saying hello and introducing ourselves to those we pass on the sidewalks or those we encounter at our neighborhood gas stations. It might also involve something requiring more time, effort, and public proclamation – like joining in non-violent protests as we seek to advocate for those being persecuted, imprisoned and separated from their families by the powers of empire. Or, it might occur as we resist oppressive economic systems where a wealthy few benefit greatly from the labor-intensive work of the many and then manipulate the messages of why people are struggling economically to pit those same people against one another or to deny that things can and need to be done differently in order to care for our planet.

Lest we forget, the cross was an instrument of execution for the Roman Empire to communicate the very violent and public message of: if you go against the social, economic and political order of the empire, you will literally lose your life and in the most horrific and dehumanizing way possible. To pick up our crosses is not simply an act of self-sacrifice. It is an exercise of resistance against the ways of empire as we embrace the Kingdom of Heaven in this life.

Father Daniel Berrigan was an American Jesuit priest, anti-war activist, pacifist, playwright and author known for what some would call “radical” forms of resistance, including breaking into the draft board office in Catonsville, Maryland, during the Vietnam War, along with eight others, and burning draft records – for which he spent two years in prison.^[1] In September of 1980, Berrigan, along with seven others, walked into the headquarters of General Electric in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, which was manufacturing nuclear weapons at the time, poured blood over blueprints and hammered the nosecones of the bombs and missiles. “The Plowshares Eight,” as they identified themselves according to Isaiah 2:4, were known, were arrested, convicted and sentenced to ten years in prison.^[2]

I first became aware of Father Berrigan a few years back when a quote of his came across one of my social media feeds, which said: “If you follow Jesus, you’d better look good on wood.” The words echo those of Jesus to his disciples, 2,000 years ago and today. Following Christ comes with a significant cost in what Jesus is calling us to do. At the same time, in doing so, we will find life.

Such costs are also part of caring for creation, especially in times of ecological crisis. In 2016, Berta Cáceres – an indigenous woman from the Lenca community in Rio Blanco, Honduras – was brutally murdered while defending her community from the construction of the Agua Zarca hydroelectric dam. Her story is one of many in which those resisting the ways of corporate greed and exploitation were silenced in the name of profit. ^[3]

In true prophetic fashion, Cáceres once said: “Let us wake up! Let us wake up, humanity! We’re almost out of time. We must shake our conscience free of the rapacious capitalism, racism and patriarchy that will only assure our self-destruction.”^[4]

Whether the cost comes in giving up one’s life to protect a community from destruction caused by corporate greed, or joining in the acts of resistance against convenience and comfort – as I have witnessed locally with congregations switching to cloth napkins, or ordering coffee from sustainable and regenerative farms – my prayer is that we find hope in those life-giving sacrifices, just as we ultimately find hope in the fullest revelation of self-giving love demonstrated in Christ on the cross. 

Works Cited

Dear, J. (2021, May). About Daniel Berrian. Retrieved from Daniel Berrigan: Priest, Poet, Prophet & Peacemaker: https://danielberrigan.org/biography/

Editors, B. (2026, May 5). Daniel Berrigan: American priest and poet. Retrieved from Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Daniel-Berrigan

García, M. E. (2022, October 24). Honoring Latin American Environmental Defenders. Retrieved from National Wildlife Federation: https://blog.nwf.org/2021/10/honoring-latin-american-environmental-defenders/

Jost-Creegan, K. (2017, November 29). Women Earth Rights Defenders: Defying Earth Rights Abuses and Patriarchy. Retrieved from EarthRights International: https://earthrights.org/blog/women-earth-rights-defenders-defying-earth-rights-abuses-patriarchy/

^[1] Britannica Editors. “Daniel Berrigan.” Encyclopedia Britannica, May 5, 2026. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Daniel-Berrigan.

^[2] Dear, John. “About Daniel Berrigan.” Daniel Berrigan: Priest, Poet, Prophet & Peacemaker, May, 2021.

^[3] García, María Elena. “Honoring Latin American Environmental Defenders.” National Wildlife Federation. Oct. 24, 2022. https://blog.nwf.org/2021/10/honoring-latin-american-environmental-defenders/

^[4] Jost-Creegan, Kelsey. “Women Earth Rights Defenders: Defying Earth Rights Abuses and Patriarchy.” EarthRights International. Nov. 29, 2017.