October 10th 2021. TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME

GOSPEL: Mark 10:17-30

Translation of a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

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Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel.

 

GOSPEL                                    Mark 10:17-30

Jesus was setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him, ‘Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You must not kill; You must not commit adultery; You must not steal; You must not bring false witness; You must not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ And he said to him, ‘Master, I have kept all these from my earliest days.’ Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him, and he said, ‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth. Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ The disciples were astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he said to them, ‘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 a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ They were more astonished than ever. ‘In that case’ they said to one another ‘who can be saved?’ Jesus gazed at them. ‘For men’ he said ‘it is impossible, but not for God: because everything is possible for God.’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

 

SUMMARY OF HOMILY

1. In order to love, we must leave aside all else

A rich young man asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life, to possess life to the fullest. It is interesting that Jesus begins by pointing to the commandments, to the fact that obedience to God is the first requisite. This requires forgetting one’s own mindset and submitting to the plan of salvation of God. Jesus then lists the commandments that are directed towards right relationship with one’s neighbour. The young man replies that he has kept all of these. Why has the observance of these laws not brought life to this man? Because he has observed the word of God without entering into relationship with God. In fact, Jesus looks at the young man with love and invites him to give up everything else in order to have the right attachment to Jesus. If a man wishes to love a woman, then he must place that love above everything else in his life. If a father wishes to love his children, then he must put everything else in second place. Money and possessions cannot be made the priority if we are to love authentically. We are unhappy failures if we put money before love. Possessions lead to slavery if they are not placed in the service of love.

 

2. The “eye of a needle” was a gate you entered on your knees without merchandise

The disciples begin to worry and ask Jesus how any of us can enter into life, because each one of us has many material attachments. Jesus then says, “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God”. Some scholars believe that the “eye of an needle” was the smallest gate of a city that was closed last in the evening after all the other gates were closed. This permitted people who arrived at the last minute to enter, but camels could only fit through it on their knees, with all of their merchandise unloaded. To pass through this door, a camel had to be carrying nothing. We too must carry nothing on our backs if we wish to enter the Kingdom! In order to enter into any relationship in a genuine way, we must leave other things aside. The reason the rich young man has not had life is because he has only observed the commandments; he has refused to leave the other things aside. Let us underline this: if we are to enter into life with Christ, we must put him in first place.

 

3. The emphasis of this Gospel is not on what we give up but what we receive in return

It is a mistake, however, to think that this Gospel focusses on renunciation. In reply to Peter, Jesus emphasizes that the central issue is not what the disciple has given up but the huge blessings he receives in return. When we allow ourselves to enter into a relationship with God, we receive much more than we give. This shedding of everything for the sake of the sake of the Lord seems difficult but everything is possible with God. Once we are with God, once we place ourselves in his presence, then we are able to freely detach ourselves. In fact, this freedom is in contrast to the sadness of the young man. We all have the same fear as this man of renouncing something, but in God we find the strength. Like the camel, let us shed our load and enter the city, for God is good, God is beautiful.

 

ALTERNATIVE HOMILY . . . Jesus tells the rich young man that he can have life in the fullest sense if he keeps the commandments. The young man replies that he already keeps the commandments, thus showing that simple observance of rules has not given him life. This brings us to the crux of this Gospel: what kind of relationship must we have with God if that relationship is to bestow life in the fullest sense? Clearly, keeping commandments (as the young man has done) is not enough. The answer is provided by Jesus. Jesus looks at the young man with love and tells him to renounce his possessions and follow him. This is what Jesus wants from us: a relationship of love. If we love someone, then we do not say to them, “I love you to this extent only. There are certain things that I have that you cannot share. There are certain things to which I am attached, and I am not willing to give up these attachments for you”. The relationship with Jesus must be total if it is to be authentic. This is what Jesus is saying to the young man. The young man simply keeps the rules but is not attached to God. He is too attached to his possessions. If we do not serve God then we will serve something else. If we do not draw life from God then we will try to draw it from somewhere else. We are all attached to our physical well-being, our physical possessions, our esteem in the eyes of others. We try to draw life from these things and they are obstacles to our drawing life from God. Jesus looks at us with love and asks us to renounce all these lesser things, entering instead into a radical relationship of attachment to him.