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Gospel Reflection 20061015

Hitting the Spiritual WallOctober 15, 2006
Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 10:17-30As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ´You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.´" He replied and said to him, "Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth." Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God." Peter began to say to him, "We have given up everything and followed you." Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."
Introductory Prayer: I come to you Jesus, my friend and my teacher, so that by listening to you I will discover you more, learn from you more and fully accept the demanding conditions of following you.
Petition: Help me, Lord, to accept generously the sacrifices that following you will demand of me today.
1. A Sincere Question. Jesus meets a man who wants to do whatever is necessary to obtain eternal life. How do we know this? When Jesus lists off the commandments for him as examples of what he must do to obtain eternal life, he replies that he has observed all of them since his youth. If he weren’t following all the commandments well at this point, he would already have his answer. He would just need to return home and follow the commandments. But he goes on, “Teacher, I have observed all of these since my youth.” This is true. Mark goes on to tell us that, “Jesus looking at him, loved him.” If the man weren’t telling the truth, Jesus would have said so, perhaps jogging his conscience and helping him to see where he still needed to improve in his following of the commandments. Jesus does this with us every day if we are sincere and ask ourselves daily if we are truly doing God’s will. He has no qualms in telling us where we are failing and helping us to do better.
2. A Sincere Life. Apparently this man is telling the truth. He has always made an earnest effort and has been successful in following all that his Jewish faith asks -- at least insofar as he understands God’s Law. Perhaps we wish we could also respond with a clear conscience, “I have kept all these.” Yet as human beings, we are weak. We can fall at any time. What God expects to see from us is not a life without sin, but that we seek repentance and a quick return to obedience when we do fall. A person who makes light of his sins against God, even in just little things, is destroying his conscience. In contrast, by taking responsibility for our sins, repenting and quickly getting up from our falls, we show our commitment to respect the moral demand of God’s commandments, and we prepare the ground to receive the grace of moral perfection that we cannot achieve by ourselves. 3. But He Can’t Step Up. The man is doing everything that his Jewish faith requires and still he wants to do more for God. He has never refused God anything. Jesus sees he is ready for the next step. He calls him to be an apostle. He calls him to give up everything else in his life and follow him. You would think that since he has never denied God anything, he would be able to say “yes” to this. But he cannot. It is too much. Although he doesn’t realize it, there are things he possesses that he loves more than God. He doesn’t trust God enough. Sometimes we progress in our spiritual life, giving everything that God asks for, until the day he asks for something we aren’t prepared to give. Our spiritual life stalls -- sometimes for years -- until we are willing to give what Jesus asks for. Christ calls all people to perfection, to place God above all things. He promises that if we give up our own selves to follow him, he will fill our lives with himself.
Dialogue with Christ: Dear Jesus, I have tried to follow you faithfully. You know that sometimes it has been a struggle. Sometimes I have sacrificed generously for you. Sometimes I have given what you have asked for even when it was difficult for me. Those were the most beautiful moments of our relationship and I love to think back on them. Once again today, you will ask me for something. Perhaps you have asked me for it before and I didn’t want to give it. Perhaps I have been holding out for years and that is why my spiritual life is lukewarm. Help me to leave my comfort zone. Help me to give up the other loves that come before you. Help me to be as generous today as you hope I will be.
Resolution: What is the moment in which I usually fail God on a Sunday? I will make sure to be faithful in that moment today.


REFLECTION:

None of us will ever be good enough to “earn” our place in heaven. Only God is that good. Our weakened human nature can never be perfect through its own efforts, and perfection is the only thing that deserves to be in the presence of our perfect God. By cooperating with God’s will and his grace, we can fulfill the basic requirements, but we need God’s help even to do that. Our wounded nature especially requires God’s help to love Him and obey Him. How often during the day do we think to ask God’s support for this purpose? In the end, eternal life is God’s gift to his beloved children who try to love Him and obey Him.

Jesus reaffirms the necessity of keeping God’s moral laws. He mentions in particular the laws addressing the commands to our treatment of neighbors and parents. Jesus, looking at the rich man, “loved him,” because he honored and obeyed God’s commandments. He did the basics which anyone can do, but felt in his heart that there must be more to do. Jesus tried to show him that a higher level of commitment to God is necessary, a level that involves a deeper attachment of love for God and neighbor, and a serious detachment from the things of this world. He needed to build up his treasury of virtuous deeds in heaven.

Wealth is a formidable obstacle to entering the kingdom. Wealth is also a relative thing. It refers to the actual ownership and possession of material things, but also includes our social circle of families and friends, our favorite activities. If we are unable to curb our desire for a “little more” of anything, then it is a wealth that interferes with our relationship to Jesus. Our commitment to the things and matters of this world keep us from making a total commitment to our God.

Few of the apostles whom Jesus called were truly impoverished. Matthew had income from his tax collecting; the fishermen among them had successful family businesses. But when Jesus issued his invitation to come and follow Him, they recognized that the wealth to be found with Jesus, and in His circle of love, is infinitely superior to anything else on earth. Unfortunately, the rich man was so attached to his wealth that he could not separate himself from it, even to follow Jesus. How many people do you know who are making this same erroneous choice?

Did Jesus really expect the man to impoverish himself? The Gospel says that Jesus told him to sell what he had and give to the poor. It does not say to give everything to the poor all at once. Jesus did have a practical bent to His human nature! His small organization had a treasury for their own basic needs, thanks to the goodness of those who made contributions to them. We know this because the gospels describe Judas as the keeper of this purse. Those who have been blessed with wealth are asked to share as much as possible with those who have need of it. The crucial part of this sharing of wealth is to do so with a joyful spirit, not a grudging one. Love is always joyful at helping another. There is no love, and therefore no merit, in doing charity for attention or because it is expected of us. Granted, there are occasions when we are expected to dig into our pockets and have little choice about the giving, but we can learn to do it with an “attitude of gratitude” at being able to give.

Test yourself:
How many possessions do you have? (This could take all night! Concentrate on your favorites.)

If you had to move permanently to a small one room house, what items could you easily leave behind? What items would you insist on taking with you? Would they fit in the room?

What recreational activities do you enjoy most?
How dismayed would you be if asked to give them up?

How many close relationships do you have with family and friends?
How do they affect your relationship with Jesus: For the good? Cause difficulty?


“How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter into the kingdom of God!”

Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 15, 2006
Homily Code: S-19
First Reading: Wisdom 7,7-11Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 89,12-13.14-15.16-17Second Reading: Hebrews 4,12-13Gospel Reading: Mark 10,17-30 Gospel Reading: Mark 10,17-30The Gospel consists of two parts: the meeting of Jesus with the rich young man, and then the discussion which ensued between Jesus and the disciples. The rich young man is obviously sincere in his desire to enter into everlasting life. But his wealth stood between him and his ability to accept what Jesus proposed. Peter and the other disciples find it difficult to accept the rigor of Jesus' negative view of riches. But Jesus has the last word: with God, all things are possible.CommentThe wisdom for which Solomon prays, that is, the ability to judge wisely about practical matters, is taken up in the passage from Mark's Gospel. The rich young man did not have the practical wisdom to see that in comparison with eternal life worldly wealth was irrelevant. In interpreting the words of Jesus we should remember that the Jewish way of making a point in debate was to exaggerate. One can enter eternal life without being destitute. Still, the point made by Jesus (who is an authoritative source for those who believe if ever there was one), cannot be fobbed off as not demanding reflection. One can be too attached to money and the things money can buy without being rich as many people today understand that term. As the passage from Hebrews says, God is going to judge us by how (among other things) we made use of the material possessions we have in this life. How we use them or do not use them is matter for constant and serious examination.
Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 12, 2003
Homily Code: AS-5
Wis. 7:7-11Heb 4:12-12Mk 10:17-27
The story is told of a man named Yussif, the champion chocker. Yussif was a 350-pound wrestling champion in Europe a couple of generations ago. After he won the European championship, he sailed to America to wrestle our champ, whose name was Strangler Lewis--a little guy by comparison who weighed just a shade over 200 pounds.
Although he wasn't very big, Strangler had a simple plan for defeating his opponents, and it never failed to work. He would put his massive arm around the neck of his opponent and cut off the oxygen. Many an opponent had passed out in the ring with Strangler Lewis.
The problem when he fought Yussif the Choker was that Yussif didn't have a neck. His body went from his head to his massive shoulders. Lewis could never get his hold and it wasn't long that the choker flipped Lewis to the mat and pinned him. After winning the championship, the Choker demanded all five thousand dollars in gold. After he wrapped the championship belt around his vast waist, he stuffed the gold into the belt and boarded the next ship back to Europe . He was a success! He had captured America s glory and her gold!
He set sail on the SS Bourgogne. Halfway across the Atlantic , a storm struck and the ship began to sink. Yussif went over the side with his gold still strapped around his body. The added weight was too much for the Choker and he sank like an anvil before they could get him into a lifeboat. He was never seen again.
Maybe you think, "What a fool! He should have had a lot more sense than that!" But, the truth of the matter is, we all tend to grasp the things of this world and hold onto them even while we're sinking.
Success promises a view from the top. But, without god in the picture, success will drag you down just ass it did for Yussif.
How often do we put ourselves and our soul in danger for the wealth of this world. And after we get the wealth, most times, we find that isn't what we really wanted at all. We seem to fail to realize that wealth is not as important as peace of mind and that only comes from Jesus.
Consider this;
A man driving through a rural area full of busy oil fields stopped to give a lift to a pedestrian. As they drove through what had once been beautiful farm land, the driver couldn't help but notice the look of disdain on his passenger's face as he surveyed the fields cluttered with drilling rigs, pumps and storage tanks.
Guessing that his rider might be a farmer, the driver thought to cheer him up by asking about the quick riches achieved by speculators and local farmers. The rider acknowledged that, yes, many of the locals had become rich when oil was found on their land.
"Do you own a farm here?" asked the driver.
"Yeah." Was the laconic reply.
"Any oil wells on it?" the driver persisted.
"Yeah, three good'uns, and they say they'll make more than four hundred barrels a day."
The driver, somewhat puzzled at the man's lack of enthusiasm. Asked, "what are you going to do with all the money you'll be raking in?"
The farmer gazed for a moment across the cluttered field and replied, " I'm gonna buy me a farm that ain't got no oil on it.
Wealth isn't all it's cracked up to be, and sometimes it can even separate us from what's really important (home, family, friends, and perhaps our faith commitment).
This message come through clearly in today's scriptures: Wealth pales in comparison to wisdom. The gospel verses present the story of Jesus telling a wealthy man what he has to do to achieve eternal life. When the man learns that he will have to give his possessions to help the poor, he walks away in sadness. His attachment to wealth pulls him away from the kind of commitment Jesus demands.
The real issue here seems to be that of setting priorities. Like the farmer who realized that all he really wanted was a farm, we need to set our hearts on that which is truly valuable to us. Even if we are not wealthy, we can have attachments that pull at us. If what we really want is eternal life, we have to determine what might be tugging us in another direction. At that point, something has to give. Will we walk away sad?
Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 12, 2003
Homily Code: BB-125
(To see a Spanish translation of this homily, click here.)
Saint Mark tells us, in the Gospel Reading for this Holy Mass, that Jesus was setting out on a journey when a man ran up to him, knelt down and asked, “What must I do to reach eternal life?” Jesus’ answer was clear and left no doubts. The three Evangelists, Saint Mark, Saint Luke and Saint Matthew mention it. What Jesus answered is also important for us because he asks us to let go of all that is superfluous, all those things that will end up separating us from him.
Saint Marks does not tell us much about this person but the three Evangelists coincide in saying that this was a rich man. Saint Luke says that he was an important man and Saint Matthew says that he was a young man. The attitude of this young man shows us how difficult it can be to give up riches. Nevertheless, those of us who have had more experience with life, because of the years that we have lived, know that if this young, rich and important man had left his riches and followed the call of the Lord, he would have come out winning. We have already heard in the Gospel Reading what Jesus said to him: whoever leaves home, parents, brothers and sisters, family or material goods behind will receive a hundredfold reward. And he also says that even though that person may have to go through persecutions in this life because of following the Lord, in the future life he or she will receive a greater reward: eternal life.
In these times in which we live, we know it is difficult for many people to understand the words of this Gospel Reading, much less follow them. We all know very well how difficult following Jesus and his teachings can be. This is because what he asks of us is that we make him the most important person in our lives. He asks us to place him above everything else, even those things and people that we consider to be most important for us. He asks us to leave everything behind, as he asked the young rich man in our Gospel Reading, giving up anything that will weigh us down as we try to follow him more closely.
The Lord wants us to have a good, comfortable life. What he does not approve of is inordinate wealth or wealth that is ill gained. That is why he asks us to be less reliant on material wealth and to know how to use that wealth we have well, enjoying it as we help others who are in need. We should be careful so as not to allow that our minds and our hearts become attached to the need to increase our wealth, to the inordinate desire to acquire more and more wealth every day. How can we follow the teachings of the Gospel Reading today if all that we think of is how to make more money, at whatever cost? We cannot follow God if our mind is working on another wavelength, if we are greedy and ambitions. Money does not bring happiness. And, many times, it places an impassable barrier between God and us.
The salary that we receive from our honest work is one of the gifts that God gives us. It is not something that is bad, if we know how to administer it and we do not turn money into an idol. Blessed is the person who has acquired the gift of knowing how to give up material things in order to follow Christ, as Jesus himself asks us to do in the Gospel Reading today. We should remember that after talking with the young rich man and seeing him walk away Jesus was saddened by how this young man preferred his riches to following him, as Jesus asked him to do. He asks this of us also. Following Jesus can be difficult because it means that we may have to do without some things and change our way of life. But it is not impossible with his help, because nothing is impossible for him.
28th Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 15, 2000
Homily Code: L-3
Football season is well underway and everyone has a prediction on which team is the greatest and who will make the Super Bowl. It's pretty difficult to get universal agreement on who's the best. When it comes to politics, it's even more difficult to get universal agreement on who is best. In fact, there aren't too many things we can all agree upon. One however is that all of us want to be happy. We want happiness for ourselves, our children and our country.
Our Constitution doesn't give us a right to happiness, but says we have a right to pursue it. Generations and cultures have provided so many different ways to achieve this. Psychologists now tell us that happiness is not in proportion to the wealth and leisure we enjoy but comes from a sense of accomplishment. And so we say, "Money can't buy happiness." Interesting enough, but the world didn't have to wait for psychologists to tell us this. Jesus taught this very truth some two thousand years ago.
Jesus showed us that true happiness comes from making others happy. He lived his life that way. He invited the young man in the gospel story today to do the same, when he told him to take his money and help the poor. Then he would experience great happiness, not only in the next life but now, here in this life. That is the great message of Jesus. He invites us to be happy NOW, not later in the kingdom of heaven. He wants us to experience this happiness in this life. The commandments given to us from God are not sacrifices or painful rules to endure but secrets to happiness. When I have so much respect for God, church, people, life, my body and the bodies of others. When I have such great respect for others property and their reputation, I don't experience sadness and restrictions on my freedom but a happiness that is freeing. What a wonderful blueprint for happiness, so simple, direct and given from God's heart.
Jesus wants us to be happy. His word is everlasting and true. St. Paul tells us today that God's word is living and effective . It is a word that speaks from the heart. Perhaps that is why we responded so beautifully after the first reading "Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy." It is that love that brings happiness.
Jesus knows us well. He knows we want to be happy, all of us. He also knows that it is not easy to live in love. He uses the example of a camel passing through the eye of a needle. I have often wondered about this story. There must have been more to it. At the outset of a village was usually a doorway that was narrow and not very tall. A camel could not enter unless it got down on its knees and crawled. How difficult. Perhaps the suggestion for us to get on our knees to worship the Lord today in this Eucharist and to ask the Lord for the strength to love as Jesus loves. To take Jesus into our bodies and souls and to rely on His grace. To call upon the wonderful God in our prayer to be ONE with us. It is in this spirit that we receive what we need to follow the Lord.
Our pursuit of happiness will find the Lord and we will experience a joy and happiness that lasts forever. There is a great story of a gentleman who watched a Daughter of Charity nursing the wounds of a leper in a Louisiana hospital. As he watched her change the bandages of the ulcerated legs he said, "Sister, I wouldn't do what you do for a million dollars." The Sister looked up and replied, "Neither would I." She does it to make the leper happy. And it is in that she finds happiness.
28th Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 15, 2000
Homily Code: QQ-1
These days we see an awful lot of programs that speak of possibilities in impossible situations, “Touched by an angel” and “Miracle” are just two of the programs in this genre. These programs’ premise is that no situation, however, bad, is beyond the possibility of being better. Sometimes the “better” is attributed to a set of angels hard at work or to some mysterious force at work in the universe. These shows always end on an upbeat note.
These shows are extremely popular because, I think, they touch a part of us that aches and longs for a promise of things being better, a promise of hope. In our world today we see an abundance of sadness with wars and rumors of wars, with terrorism done on behalf of some religious principle, with continents being wiped out with a disease like aids while drug companies make millions off the suffering, the children being abused and becoming abusers. The list could easily go on, a litany of pain, frustration and despair.
It is no wonder that cynicism seems to be the response preferred. Hope has become a most precious commodity. People want and need to look at the brokenness of their lives, the shattered dreams, the troubled marriages, the alienation, the losses, the poverty, the boredom and the death and see there the possibility of things being better ... different.
They want to know there can be more than just what they see in front of them. They, we, want to believe in a promise that speaks of wholeness, healing and life.
We look to God and the promises revealed in Scriptures for hope. The Scriptures for this Sunday invite us to have hope but the invitation is not without its consequences. The rich young man in the gospel, today, was invited to reflect on his life, to look at his values, priorities and see how how they measure up with Jesus. The young man boldly proclaims that he has faithfully followed the law. He says nothing else. In following the law he has done the minimum, the lowest common denominator. The law becomes the limit for him.
Jesus invites him to move beyond the limit, to adhere to not just the law but rather the spirit of the law. He is asking the young man for everything. This invitation and encounter proves to be too much for the young man. The challenge is indeed overwhelming, our frailties and weaknesses get the better of us, the situations we find ourselves in are impossible. If we look only with human eyes, it is impossible.
But we are invited to the wellsprings of wisdom, a wisdom that speaks of the truth “with God all things are possible”. The focus of this wisdom is not on us in our strengths or our weaknesses but rather on the God who can change all things.
When the sacred scriptures speak of wisdom, it does so with the understanding of wisdom being the knowledge of what is of value in our lives as well as the absolute trust in a “God of the impossible”.
The scriptures are replete with stories of God working wonders in situations that appeared to be dead-ended. From the barren womb of Sarah in the book of Genesis to the fruitful womb of the babe of Nazareth in St. Matthew’s Gospel, we are reminded to know what the limitations are and then to reach beyond those limitations because of the God who empowers us.
The person of Jesus is God’s wisdom enfleshed. We see in the gospel stories Jesus always inviting and challenging people to be more than what they thought they could be. His encounter with the woman caught in adultery, Zacheus and Matthew, the woman at the well, the man born blind, to mention just a few, remind us again and again that life can be different and better.
Jesus is the possibility of God, the possibility that levels the brick walls and the “no exits” of life and boldly proclaims that God wants more from all of us. His way out requires something from us. It requires, first of all, a humility of spirit that admits that we do not have all the answers and with us letting go of the arrogance and control we so desperately reach for. It requires us to trust in God who is bigger than our imaginations, a God “whose ways are not our ways”. It requires of us a willingness to let go of our preconceived notions, to walk boldly in faith when on an emotional level there is a gut-wrenching fear. It also requires us to count the cost of this wisdom, how it may change and alter us and our relationships. This wisdom demands faith.
Our faith is not so much a series of intellectual trusts that we subscribe to but rather a conviction that with God we can do the impossible, we can become more, no matter how costly or frightening our situation becomes or how frightening God’s invitation may be. We are invited in our faith to know that we are safe even though the particular situation does not speak of faith.
The first reading speaks of wisdom. It is a wisdom that is far more valuable than anything this world can offer. We are invited to reflect on our priorities, what is important, what is of value and what will last but also to know in those oft troubled hearts what St. Paul know in his letter to the Romans, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
The psalmist continues to speak of wisdom in our response. We ask to know the number of days to gain wisdom. Knowing how long our life is will help us to know what is important. St. Augustine once advised “To live each day as if it were your last.” In doing so, there would be many things we would put aside, situations and attitudes that we just wouldn’t have time for. St. Augustine’s advice helps us to see our lives in the context of the big picture.
The readings this weekend challenge all of us to reflect on our lives, our priorities and to consider the invitation that was made to the rich young man and made to each of us who bear the name Christian, to weigh carefully the consequences of that invitation and finally to place all our hope, all our trust and all our love in the one who invites us.
For this is wisdom: not what we can do but all that God can do in us.
Bonus Homily
28th Sunday in Ordinary TimeOctober 15, 2000
Homily Code: BB-2
My dear Sisters and Brothers,
Whenever a deacon, priest, bishop or even the Pope talk openly and frankly about the just distribution of wealth, a wave of protests and false accusations usually follow. Pope John Paul II mentioned to the Native Americans and poor farmers in Mexico during one of his visits that “the Church defends, yes, the legitimate right to private property, but it teaches with the same clarity that private property always brings with it a social mortgage.” In other words those who have a greater share of the wealth have a responsibility to use that wealth for the betterment of the most needy. The Pope’s words summarize beautifully the teachings of Christ as well as the entire social doctrine of the Church. The Pope reminds us by these words that owning private property is not a crime nor is it contrary to the gospel and that the Church concedes that it is a legitimate need. But the Church also tells us that it is not an absolute necessity but that all ownership of property should be for the common good. Wealth is not bad, per se, if we know how to share it. But it can turn into the sin of injustice, into a powerful force for enslaving others, if it does not retain a social dimension.
The scene described today in the gospel leaves us, no doubt, with a profoundly worried feeling. The rich man encountered Jesus in a casual setting. It doesn’t seem that he planed the encounter ahead of time. He just ran up, at the last moment, and asked the question that was worrying him the most “Master, what needs to be done for me to reach eternal life?” At first we feel moved by the question. The degree of sincerity and trust that the rich man displays is impressive. He seems to be a good and honorable man. Why else would he ask this question? Jesus first gives the “textbook” answer - obey the commandments. The man says he does that already and has done so since he was very young. Then Christ looks lovingly at the man and says’ “you only have one thing left to do. Go, sell everything you have and give the proceeds to the poor. Then you will surely have gained a treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.” What had started as a happy event turned suddenly sad. The man goes away because he does not want to part with his riches. The gospel writer does not even give the man a name. He is just one more person who has failed to listen to the call of God, a potential saint, a could-have-been example of how to follow Jesus, had the man’s reaction been different.
What Jesus consistently tells us is that to be a good Christian it isn’t enough just to be a good and honorable person who merely observes the commandments of God. There is another dimension to Christianity that also needs to be observed. This dimension is the generosity to which Christ calls us. The gospel message is a challenge to take part in an especially difficult vocation that cannot be followed just by obeying the commandments. Christianity possesses a social dimension that is oftentimes ignored. When we limit our faith to simply meeting the minimum requirements we miss the whole point of the gospel. Today, as we go home after Mass, we should ask ourselves truthfully: ¿how did I earn the money I have and how am I using it? How did I obtain all of my belongings and my property and how am I using them? Dishonesty in how we earn our money is on the same level as wasting money while others who are more needy starve.
After the rich man leaves, Jesus uses what are probably some of the truest, yet harshest, words in the gospels: “How difficult it is for those who are rich to enter into the Kingdom of God.” He says these words without a trace of resentment. This is not a call to arms in a class war against the rich. It is merely a serious warning to all of us. We must think seriously about how we use the riches we obtain. If we follow Jesus’ thinking we must ask ourselves: when does money become evil? Why is it more difficult for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle that for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God? The inherent danger of wealth is simple to figure out. It can turn us into selfish people, insensitive to the pain of others. It can turn us into people who don’t care about the fate of the needy, who don’t care about social justice. Money is intrinsically evil when it is gained by oppressing others, when it is the fruit of injustice. If I live comfortably, if I have a hefty bank account because I have exploited those who work for me by paying them unfair wages, then I don’t have a right to the riches I have. This is not merely a case of following the commandments, although “Thou shalt not steal” enters into the question. It is a matter of living my life in such a way that I feel obligated to ensure that those who work for me are given an honest day’s wages for an honest day’s work. It’s not a question of my personal sanctification. It’s a question of giving to others what they deserve. But, how many of those caught in this situation are willing to recognize that the money they make may be the fruit of sin? Very few people have enough courage to recognize this and act accordingly to rectify the situation. The reaction of the rich man is oftentimes our own reaction. We prefer not to see the truth in Jesus’ words and we walk away. We may do so with sadness, we may do so complaining about the liberal extremists who wrongfully want to do away with our comfortable life, but we walk away.
The rich man walked away sadly because he cared more about his riches than about his soul. He wasn’t necessarily an evil person. He obeyed the commandments religiously. He wanted to enter into the Kingdom of God but he had become a slave of his own possessions. If we want to be truly free, as Christ wants us to be, we have to learn how to share and how to give. Today, with all sincerity, let us ask ourselves: Do I live in a spirit of generosity? Do I know how to share with others the material blessings that I have earned? Let promise ourselves that from now on we will live a life like those first followers of Christ, in spirit at least. They considered that wealth was to be earned for the good of all. Help those who need our help. Treat fairly those who work for us. If we can do these simple things we will be well on our way to attaining the Kingdom of God. The peace of mind and heart as we come closer to Jesus will be our true reward.
Sunday 28 (B-2006): Evangelizing Money

The attitude Jesus asks us to have towards money is one of the most difficult demands of the Gospel.
Yet, along with greater demands, like the forgiveness of our enemies, it is one of the hallmarks of authentic Christianity.
Is Jesus against money?

Of itself, money is neither morally good nor morally evil. Good and evil pertain to the thoughts, intentions and actions of the human person, not to things.
It follows that Jesus will commend any morally good thought, intention or action concerning money.
We need to remember, of course, that the measure of what is good and evil is not established by the human being, but by the law of God.
Therefore, all human use of money, be it coming into the possession of it, saving or spending it, will be good or evil to the degree that its use or non-use is in conformity with the law of God – which is summed up as the love of God above all things and persons, and the love of neighbor as our self.
It follows that money must be used to help us love God and to love our neighbor. Not to feed our greed or augment our contempt. Our use or non-use of money must be evangelized.

In the social context of the United States (as in many other, especially Western, countries), there can be a great temptation to say that money, like politics, has nothing to do with God.
It is a fact of life that politics in this country, and in many other places, is pretty much driven by the economy.
The thought process can then be that, since God and politics don’t mix, so the way I handle money, and the way society handles the economy, has nothing to do with God.
This is a great mistake.
God and humanity do not live in parallel universes. God is not a genie in a bottle, brought out by prayer and then returned when we get our request.
God and man inter-penetrate. God is present to each person and all persons, to all dimensions of private and public life.
Politics and the economy cannot do as they please.
While they are certainly autonomous activities, they remain, or should remain, activities of human beings for human beings, for the common good of humanity and thus for the glory of God.
Since the human being, as individual and as society, is destined for God, then clearly both politics and the economy must do their part to ensure that each human being and all human beings find their way to God.
And what is “their part”?
It is to ensure the just distribution of the goods of the earth among all the peoples of the earth.
Why? So that every human being has those material conditions in keeping with their human dignity and human rights which will enable them to pursue their higher destiny in God.
Politics and the economy must not take the place of God.
In other words neither power nor money must become ends in themselves.
Otherwise they will oppress the true dignity of the human being, not least the dignity of the oppressors themselves.
That is why Jesus takes the powerful and the rich to task: not because of the role politics or money has in itself (which can be morally good if properly exercised), but because of the abuse of power and money by the human heart.
It is also why the Church, despite the sins of her own sons and even leaders in the area of power and wealth, must speak out.
If politics or the economy is acting unjustly, either by violating human rights and dignity or by creating or worsening poverty, the Church must announce the principles which are being ignored and denounce the violation of rights.
Put differently, the Church is seeking to call politicians and the wealthy to their responsibility before God: to serve the common good of humanity, not to indulge their own vanity.

The one who possesses wealth can, as Jesus points out, himself become possessed by that wealth.
The heart of the young man in today’s Gospel was well intentioned, but his sad-faced reaction to the call of Jesus showed that his heart was actually more attached to his possessions than to the eternal life he claimed to be seeking.
Jesus had offered him the key to true wealth: use your material wealth to restore dignity and basic needs to the poor, that is, use your wealth to love your neighbor, and you will have true riches, true joy of heart.
The Book of Wisdom also makes it clear that riches may not only sadden the heart but also turn the head.
We need only read a newspaper to see examples of the apparent folly and even madness of the wealthy.
As one Psalm puts it so forcefully, “In his riches man lacks wisdom; he is like the beasts that are destroyed.”

So, what guidelines must I follow as a sincere Catholic when it comes to money?
It is impossible to get into detail here, both because there is no time and because each situation is so very different.
So let me draw some principles from the social doctrine of the Church, which will hopefully be of some use to you.

First, no matter how much money you have or don’t have, recognize honestly and willingly your own poverty before God. You were born naked. There are no pockets in a shroud. Don’t be a snob before God; riches or achievements do not impress him.
Second, pray for a sincere, inner detachment from all you possess. Detachment does not mean a mindless throwing away of your resources. It means holding your resources in open hands, not clutching what the Lord has given you, since he may very well wish to take it away. And who dare challenge him? Imagine what it would be like to have nothing, but only God. If you can imagine that, you are imagining eternity.
Third, ask God for a grateful heart for the things you possess. Do not be a Scrooge. Do not foolishly attribute to your own power the goods you have been able to obtain. Be thankful!
Also ask God for a wise heart to use them well in the fulfillment of your vocation in life: for example, if you are married, use them for the balanced comfort of your home and family now and in the future (pension, university education, etc.), for the balanced well-being of your kids, in the honest payment of taxes (a form of social solidarity, i.e. a true act of love towards the needy), in furthering your education so as to serve the community, etc..
Fourth, reflect seriously and prayerfully on your obligations towards the poor. “Goods, even when legitimately owned, always have a universal destination; any type of improper accumulation is immoral, because it openly contradicts the universal destination assigned to all goods by the Creator” (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, n. 328).
To refer to Pope St. Gregory the Great, “The rich man is only an administrator of what he possesses; giving what is required to the needy is a task that is to be performed with humility because the goods do not belong to the one who distributes them. He who retains riches only for himself is not innocent; giving to those in need means paying a debt” (ibid., n. 329). He wrote that at the end of the sixth century!

When we let our faith reach into our pockets and bank accounts in this way, it is a sure sign that it has become very real.
It opens up the treasures of our hearts, that is, our love, and it strengthens our hope to find only in Christ the promise of true, eternal wealth.
Who knows? Perhaps our reaction to all this is the same as that of the apostles, “this is impossible!”
But Jesus makes it clear that, if we do this with and for God, all things will be possible for us.
Christ does not require of us that we unthinkingly throw away the resources we legitimately need for our own modest well-being and for that of the people who immediately depend on us.
But, to use his own words, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness, and all these other things will be given to you as well.”
Let us transform our use of money with the righteousness of the Kingdom, that is, in loving service to God and our neighbor.
Then we ourselves will be transformed into the treasure of God’s heart.

Msgr. Peter Magee
Sunday, October 15th, 2006
Annunciation, DC: 5.30 pm Vigil & 11.30 am

posted by Mike Young @ 6:06 AM