In our three readings this weekend,
we have an abundance of things to hear, take in, process,
understand than DECIDE how one will ACT to live
according to what…one believes.
What is the true meaning and
‘HOW’ am I going to carry that out in ‘MY’ life TODAY and every day forward?
From ‘WISDOM” we hear…”I prayed and prudence was given me
I pleaded, and the spirit of Wisdom…came to me.
Yet ALL good things together…came to me in her company
and countless riches…at her hands.”
When was the LAST time…we stopped to ask WISDOM…anything.
Maybe it would be a NEW practice to try
and call on her for help in both GOOD…and Difficult times?
St Paul’s letter to the Hebrews reminds us
“the Word of God is LIVING and EFFECTIVE
Sharper than any two-edged sword.”
NO creature is…concealed from him,
How are we to understand this message?
How do we interpret it for ourselves?
And in the…Gospel of MARK:
The GOOD Teacher WAS ASKED–
“WHAT must “I” do to inherit…eternal life?”
Have you…ASKED this same question?
I am NOT sure…I can do what the Father is asking…EITHER!
But “I” do know this…
‘IT IS’ my attempt to answer this question…
that determines
WHAT…“I” choose to BELIEVE.
My actions daily…will answer this question
for the FATHER.
It’s so much easier…
when there is a clearly…worded…“commandment.”
Even better…if there’s enough
“wiggle room”…to justify…A…way around it.
Don’t kill.
I’m fine with that…
provided “they” don’t start something.
Don’t bear false witness.
God means in court, right, and
not at lunch or in the locker room?
Don’t steal or defraud.
We keep all of our affairs legal and above board.
After all, we don’t want to get caught.
Honor your father and mother.
We manage to get along.
Holidays are usually pretty good.
Do not put other gods before the Lord.
‘I’ would never . . . !
Uh, define what you mean by “other gods.”
Yeah, ‘I’ keep the commandments.
“Kind of…”
Jesus challenges…the rich young man – and all of us –
to embrace…not just the legal letter of the commandments,
‘BUT’ the spirit of God’s love…at their center,
the ethical core of God’s vision
of justice and mercy in which
we find our identity as people of faith.
It’s not enough… to give to the poor;
God calls us to become poor…for the sake of others.
It’s not enough…’NOT’ … to kill;
God calls us to give and sustain life in whatever ways we can,
to be agents of peace…and the means for reconciliation.
“WE”…ARE to be AGENTS of Reconcilation to OTHERS.
It’s not enough…’NOT’…to defraud or steal;
God calls us to actively seek
justice for the victims of extreme greed for wealth
or material gain and prejudice
and to secure a way out of the cycle of poverty
for the poor and destitute.
‘NO’…, it’s not easy,
Jesus readily acknowledges.
May God’s grace, …’THAT WE ASK FOR”
enable us to “dismount” from our “camels”
and make our way through the needle’s eye
to the kingdom of God.
“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 . . . ”
Do we…want it NOW
‘OR’…is LATER…in Eternal Life…BETTER????
EACH of us…answers that…with our Lives.
The question in today’s Gospel
is ‘NOT’… whether money is good or bad;
the Gospel challenge…is our sense of responsibility
for using the many blessings God has given us
for the benefit of ALL,
our willingness…to commit of…our resources
to realize the kingdom of God…that we pray for.
The experience of this…mirrors
the chasm…that often exists…
between what we hope for…and
our willingness to give…what is necessary…to realize that hope.
Jesus demands more than just a contribution
from the rich…young man —
Jesus asks him…and ALL of us
Who would ‘BE’…
his followers…to put aside OUR own…wants and needs,
our possessions and status,
in order to create
places…of welcome and support
for those “displaced” by poverty, violence and prejudice.
Wealth should enable us…to live life…to the fullest —
but too often the prosperity…that should enable our journey
becomes more important…than the journey itself.
By God’s grace,…WHICH WE CAN ASK FOR…
may WE…NOT…become “possessed”
by our possessions
but embrace the vision of faith
to distinguish between
the things of our world
and the things of God.
WHERE…OUR…TREASURE…IS
THERE…OUR…HEART…WILL…BE…ALSO.
