Wealth and the Kingdom

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 10:17-30.

As 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."

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Reflection

It was difficult for the Jews to comprehend that wealth can be an obstacle to the Kingdom. In their religious tradition, prosperity is a sign of divine favor. If a wealthy man is highly favored by God then why is it difficult for him to enter the Kingdom? Jesus, a sign of contradiction, overturns all this religious pre-conceptions and points out that not even wealth is an assurance of heaven.

The Kingdom of God afterall is God’s gift. No man can claim a right to it. No man can buy it for himself. No one buys himself into heaven. The only way to enter the Kingdom of God is to become God’s child in the image of the Son. To be in the image of the Son means to follow Jesus’ self-emptying, to follow Jesus’ lifestyle, to follow Jesus’ mission. This self-emptying, this dying to one’s self is impossible for us unless we allow God to teach us.

The Kingdom is gained only when we have divested ourselves of our wealth and the most precious thing we possess - the self. It is something difficult, something that goes against human instinct. Yet, we do not despair, because in our difficulty, Jesus looks at us with love in His eyes, and encourages us, to gain the wealth that is really beyond all wealth.  

Beautiful Tension

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 10:2-16.

The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,

"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" 

They were testing him.

He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?" 

They replied,

"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce

and dismiss her."

But Jesus told them,

"Because of the hardness of your hearts

he wrote you this commandment. 

But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. 

For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother

and be joined to his wife,

and the two shall become one flesh.

So they are no longer two but one flesh. 

Therefore what God has joined together,

no human being must separate." 

In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this. 

He said to them,

"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another

commits adultery against her;

and if she divorces her husband and marries another,

she commits adultery."

And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them,

but the disciples rebuked them.

When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,

"Let the children come to me;

do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to

such as these. 

Amen, I say to you,

whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child

will not enter it."

Then he embraced them and blessed them
placing his hands on them.

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Reflection

The Church has always upheld the dignity of Marriage as a divine institution that unites man and woman. The beautiful thing about marriage is that it is not just a choice made by both man and woman. Jesus pointed out that Divine Will deigned to unite man and woman in marriage: “... what God has joined.” This points out to us the unitive nature of God. He unites all things together.

Young people often ask what are the signs of doing God’s Will. God’s Will seeks to bring out unity and harmony in all things. Love unites the many into one. It makes something beautiful out of differences. It transforms contrast into complementarity. With man and woman made differently, God has designed their differences to make a beautiful whole.

God is not in discord but He exists in the beautiful tension of complementary unity. Especially in marriage, where the man and woman find themselves different more than the same, there God is working to bring out the complete face of His love. Human love must learn to live with beautiful tension in order to learn what divine love is all about.

A Wholeness of Unity and Integrity

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48.

At that time, John said to Jesus,
"Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name,
and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us."
Jesus replied, "Do not prevent him.
There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name
who can at the same time speak ill of me.
For whoever is not against us is for us.
Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ, 
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.

"Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,
it would be better for him if a great millstone
were put around his neck
and he were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life maimed
than with two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the unquenchable fire.
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled
than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.
Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye
than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,
where 'their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'"

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Reflection

A tribal mentality runs the risk of alienating others just because they are different from us. The disciples thought that they were an exclusive club of disciples empowered by Jesus. Jesus reminded them that the work of God is bigger than human associations. God works through all and in all, and transcends human boundaries. After all, the Spirit, like the wind, goes wherever it wills.

God works and saves humanity in its wholeness. He relates to each one of us regardless of color, gender, age, shape, or size. His working hand does not splinter into the diversity of humankind, but unites them in His Son. Though different, all of us are united in One Faith in Jesus. In the same way that the diverse is united in one, so must each member be singular in his own discipleship.

As individual Christians, we are called to unity not only with others but above all ourselves. Christian discipleship is a single-hearted act. Not one part of us should withheld our full communion in Jesus. We all belong to Christ, different though we are. We all belong to Christ, in all that we are.