February 28, 2022

Mark 10:17-27

As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, 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 shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” 

He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 

They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”

New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved. 

Invitation to Greater Freedom

I have heard many homilies and reflections on this Gospel story, most of which say or imply the rich man did not follow Jesus.  In fact, it just says “he went away sad for he had many possessions.” Anyone who has downsized knows it can be sad, nostalgic and a lot of work to let go of our possessions. But, it is not impossible. Sometimes following Jesus does require us to do hard things that make us sad, but we still follow. The choice is ours. I choose to believe this man went home, did what he needed to do and returned to follow Jesus, richer because he was free of the burden of many things and maybe freer interiorly because of the healing that occurred in letting go. 

I hear an invitation for us today to consider, “What do I need to be free of to more fully follow Jesus? How do I respond? The choice is mine.“ 

—Amy Hoover is a spiritual director and the Director of Adult Ministry at the Jesuit Spiritual Center at Milford.

Prayer 

Sharing the loaves and fishes,
You gave us an image of solidarity with the hungry, O Lord.
Sharing yourself in the bread and wine,
You called all to the table, O Lord.
Give me the hunger to be a part of the feeding
And the healing of this world.
Nourish me with your Grace,
So I may work with joy to serve your children.
Open my eyes and my heart
To recognize those in poverty
And increase my awareness
Of the structures and systems
That need to be changed
So we may all break bread together.
In your name we pray for the end of hunger. 

—Prayer from Education for Justice