Homily Thirty-first Sunday Year B

 

Reading 1: We heard two strong words in the first reading: Fear and love. The scriptures tell us that fear is the beginning of relationship with God and love is the end of that relationship. The fear of the Lord, spoken in scripture is not our human understanding of fear. We are not to fear the Lord because of his great power, but because of the awe and reverence we should have for him as God. Today’s word tells us that we are to express this awe of God by keeping his commandments.  In this way we will express our love of God for who he is.

 

Someone expressed our spiritual journey as one of choice. Why do I choose to do this? Initially, I choose to do something out of fear of punishment. A parent tells a child not to do something or else he will be spanked. The only reason the child obeys is out of fear of punishment. The second step is we choose to do something because of a promised reward. If you get good grades, I will take you to your favorite restaurant. The third step is we choose to do something because the law obliges me. I do this out of obligation. The fourth step is I choose to do something because I choose to do it freely. The final step is that I choose to do something out of love for God.

 

In the words of the first reading, “to love God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.”  In other words, I choose to respond to God not out of fear of punishment, not out of a promise of reward, not because I am obliged, but because I freely choose simply out of love for the One who loves me unconditionally.

 

Gospel: The Gospel reading picks up on the great Schema of the first reading. Every Jew was familiar with it, saying it several times during the day. “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone!” Jesus was aware of the many laws that were imposed on the Jewish peoples over the years besides the basic Ten Commandments. So when asked which was the first of all the commandments and laws, he simplified it to two. Love of God above all and love of neighbor because of love of God.

 

The scribe was impressed and affirmed what Jesus said. In response Jesus said to the scribe: “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” He knew the truth. Now, he needed to put into action what he affirmed in words.

 

Like the scribe we know the truth. We know God is love, that his love is unconditional and faithful. We know what God requires of us, to love him because he has first loved us and to love our neighbor as God has loved us. Like the scribe we too are not far from the Kingdom of God. But like the scribe knowing the truth and living in the truth may not always be the same.

 

The Great Schema reflects that to love God has to be more than something superficial, something that is mouthed, something that is hot and cold. It implies a total commitment to God. For me to be totally in love of God means that I have fallen in love and have chosen to make God the priority in my life. I want what he wants. I choose to say yes to him without fully understanding the consequences of my commitment. Jesus was in love with the Father, choosing to be obedient to him even to the death of the cross. Mary was in love with God and expressed her total trust of him with her Fiat: “Be it done to me according to your will.” Peter came to this crossroads in his walk with Jesus after the resurrection. Jesus asked Peter three times: “Do you love me more than anything?” Peter professed his love three times. Then Jesus said: “Follow me.”

 

The role and depth of my love of God is key to my happiness and fulfillment. This is the pearl of great price, the treasure hidden in the field that I am willing to sell all things for. This was the realization that transformed Therese of Liseux into a saint. “My vocation is to love and do all things out of love of God.” I don’t want to be not far from the kingdom of God. I want to be forever in the kingdom. My ticket into the kingdom is the death and resurrection of Jesus. He paid the price of the ticket. But I must stamp it with a life of love for God and others that is authentic and life-giving.

 

Reading 2: It is comforting to know that as we make our journey from human fear to fear of God, from doing things out of obligation to doing them out of love of God, Jesus, who saved us is interceding for us before the throne of the Father. It is comforting to hear the words from the Letter to the Hebrews: “Jesus is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them.” The only meaningful way to approach God through him is through love.  The more our love reflects his human love of the Father, the more the Father sees Jesus’ refection in us. It is love that sets me free to be fully alive in God. Be not far from the kingdom of eternal life, be in the kingdom through a choose of love. 

"Can we free ourselves from the need to judge others? Yes, by claiming for ourselves the truth that we are the Beloved Daughters and Sons of God. As long as we continue to live as if we are what we do, what we have, and what other people think about us, we will remain filled with judgments, opinions, evaluations, and condemnations. We will remain addicted to the need to put people and things in their 'right' place. To the degree that we embrace the truth that our identity is not rooted in our success, power, or popularity, we can let go of our need to judge. 'Do not judge and you will not be judged; because the judgments you give are the judgments you will get' (Matthew 7:1)." (Henri Nouwen)

How true this is! Is not the root of our judging others a fear of seeing our own sins and faults? We would rather point out the faults of others rather than admit and repent of our own failures. It is an attempt to justify ourselves. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We will all be judged by God. My judging others doesn't change or lessen the fact of my own judgment by God. To judge others harshly is to set the standard of God's judgment of me. To extend mercy rather than judgment to others is to hope for God's mercy on me. My judgment of others or their judgment of me will be nothing to the just judgment of God on me. Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner!

"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons (daughters) of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, "Aba, Father!' The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with  him." (Romans 8:14-17)

Are we living out of our true identity consciously? We are children of God by creation and by adoption. By creation we were made in his own image and likeness. By adoption we were filled with the Holy Spirit, sharing in God's divine life. So there is our human spirit given through creation and the Spirit of God given in Baptism. But there is another spirit at work, the evil one. The question Paul raises is which spirit are we following in the decisions we make? Our human spirit left alone may make good or wrong decisions. The evil spirit will always lead us away from God into sin. The Holy Spirit guides us to those decisions which lead us to grow in our relationship with God. The evil spirit seeks to take away our inheritance given to us in Baptism. The Holy Spirit protects our inheritance, of which he is the first pledge. Our human spirit united with the Holy Spirit is able to unite our human sufferings with those of Christ, so as to transformed them, enabling us to be glorified with Jesus in eternity. Which spirit are we following? Which spirit enhances our true identity?

"True friendships are lasting because true love is eternal. A friendship in which heart speaks to heart is a gift from God, and no gift that comes from God is temporary or occasional. All that comes from God participates in God’s eternal life. Love between people, when given by God, is stronger than death. In this sense, true friendships continue beyond the boundary of death. When you have loved deeply that love can grow even stronger after the death of the person you love. This is the core message of Jesus...Dare to love and be a real friend. The love you give and receive is a reality that will lead you closer and closer to God as well as to those whom God has given you to love." (Henri Nouwen)

This applies to every true friendship even the friendship between married couples. I have witnessed some beautiful marriages in which their initial friendship has grown to a deeper relationship with God and with one another. I have also seen marriages where there seems to be no or very little friendship between them. Not every friendship will last, but only those rooted in Christ, who is the beginning and end of true friendships. First is your friendship with Christ and then your friendship with another in Christ. Both will grow when the focus is the other and not self. 

At one point in his life, St. Paul asked the Lord three times to take away "the thorn in his side".  God's response was, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power shines forth more perfectly in weakness." Here is what St. Augustine said about this passage. I share this for your reflection.

"In the kind of affliction, then, which can bring either good or ill, we do not know what it is right to pray for; yet, because it is difficult, troublesome and against the grain for us, weak as we are, we do what every human would do, we pray that it may be taken away from us. We owe, however, at least this much in our duty to God: if he does not take it away, we must not imagine that we are being forgotten by him but because of our loving endurance of evil, must await greater blessings in its place. In this way, power shines forth more perfectly in weakness. These words are written to prevent us from having too great an opinion of ourselves if our prayer is granted, when we are impatient in asking for something that it would be better not to receive; and to prevent us from being dejected, and distrustful of God’s mercy toward us, if our prayer is not granted, when we ask for something that would bring us greater affliction, or completely ruin us through the corrupting influence of prosperity. In these cases we do not know what is right to ask for in prayer."

With Jesus we pray: "Father, take away this cup, yet not my will but yours be done."

 

Homily Thirtieth Sunday Year B

Reading 1: The prophet Jeremiah’s earlier words from the Lord to the Chosen People was repent and return to the Lord. If they did not repent, then they would be overcome by their enemies and sent into exile for seventy years. The people did not heed the word of the Lord and suffered the consequences of their rejection of the Covenant. In exile, they recognize that their chastisement was the result of their sins and the sins of their leaders against God.

 In our first reading, Jeremiah now gives the people in exile a word of hope. He tells them what was to come, how they are to respond and why was it to happen. What was to come? God would deliver them from exile and return them to the Promised Land, no matter how scattered, broken or scattered they were. As God led their ancestors from bondage in Egypt to the Promise Land, he will do the same for them. Why was it to happen? God is a father to his people. He has covenanted himself to them and them to him. The God who showed his power in chastisement is the God who will show his power in restoration. What seems impossible to them is possible to God. What should their response be? Shout with joy, exalt, proclaim and acknowledge what God has and was doing.

 

How can we apply this to us today? Jesus delivered us from the bondage of sin once for all ant that grace is present to us, when we fall again and again. We are called to repent and return to the Lord. Why would he so love us? We are his, we belong to him by virtue of creation, redemption and adoption. What shall our response be? We are called, not only to praise and give thanks, but make a firm decision to remain faithful to our heavenly Father.

 

These are the facts but what is the reality in our life? What has been our past history? What is our reality today?

 

Gospel: The background of our Gospel today is the spiritual blindness of the Apostles. Jesus revealed to them that he was the expected Messiah who would suffer a cruel death but rise again. Their response was summed up by Peter. This was not their understanding of the Messiah. They were thinking of their power and authority which they would exercise in the kingdom Jesus would restore. Last Sunday, Jesus shared that the Messiah has come to lay down his life, to serve not to be served.

 

In today’s reading, a man recognized his physical blindness, but he had spiritual insight. He believed that Jesus could heal him and would heal him. He professed Jesus as the Son of David, the Messiah. He remained resolute in spite of the negative reactions of the crowd. He trusted in the4 word of Jesus, “what do you want me to do for you?”  His faith, acceptance, openness and trust in Jesus opened him to the healing he desired. His spiritual insight led to his physical sight, which led to his physical and spiritual commitment to Jesus. He followed him. He became a disciple. He didn’t receive the gift of physical sight and just walked away. His encounter with Jesus would not allow him to be the same after as before. If it did, he would not be grateful. To be touched by Jesus means that one become more committed to him. To be more committed means we become more aware of other areas of spiritual blindness within for Jesus to heal.

 

What are our areas of spiritual blindness? Do we really believe that Jesus can free us? Do we call upon him with conviction and hope? Do we do what he asks us to do? Are we so trusting in him that nothing else matters?

 

Reading 2: The Son was called by the Father to be the Priest/Victim for our sake. He was called to embrace the cross, to give his life as an offering in reparation for our sins, so that we could live with God forever. What was Jesus’ response? Obedience even to death by crucifixion.  Why? He knew the Father’s love and he loved the Father and loved us. It was this bond of love that enable Jesus to embraced the role of victim for our sake. He is our justification and righteousness. Through his loving obedience he sets us an example.

Thirtieth Sunday Ordinary Gospel  B

They came to Jericho. 

· Jericho is located about fifteen miles northeast of Jerusalem, five miles west of the Jordan River, and six miles north of the Dead Sea. It is the last major city before climbing up to Jerusalem.

And as Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. 

· It was not uncommon in those days for beggars to be on the main roadways begging for help.

· Imagine yourself being Bartimaeus. Try to feel what he may have felt at the moment.

On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." 

· What is unusual about his statement? He is physically blind, but he has the spiritual insight to recognize Jesus as the son of David, the one promised to come. Imagine his faith expectancy.

· In your spiritual blindness cry out to Jesus from your heart. Imagine your faith expectancy.

And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. 

· How many times have others tried to prevent us from both recognizing Jesus and coming to him in our own journey?

But he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me." 

· How persistent have we been in crying out to Jesus in our times of our own spiritual blindness?

· Like him we cannot stop crying out from our inner need.

Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take courage; get up, he is calling you." He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. 

· When Jesus calls us out of our spiritual blind state, how quickly do we respond?

· Imagine the scene and yourself being Bartimaeus.

Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?" 

· Be still and listen to Jesus say the same thing to you.

The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see." 

· What do you want from Jesus? What is the spiritual blindness that you want to be freed from? What is that area of sin that keeps you away from him?

Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. 

· Do you believe that Jesus wants to do the same for you here and now? What is needed on your part?

· What is the process that we see in this story which is the way Jesus wants to work in our lives as well?

· How can you respond to Jesus this week that reflects the meaning of this passage?

 

Life is a precious gift that we can take for granted. It is here today and can be gone today. Life is given to us to be grateful to God for his creative love. But this gift of earthly life is a prelude to the gift of eternal life with God. As we don't deserve the gift of physical life, we definitely do not deserve the gift of eternal life. How well do we take care of our physical life? How well do we take care of the gift of eternal life, given to us in Baptism and nourished in the Eucharist? We will lose our physical life one day. Death is inevitable. But if we lose our shared life with God, then our death will be eternally alienated from God, the beginning and end of our happiness and fulfillment. Then our physical existence will have been for naught. Thank God for both gifts of life, but be more solicitous of the greater life.

"Being in the world without being of the world." These words summarize well the way Jesus speaks of the spiritual life. While being in this world for the time God has for us, we are called to focus on our relationship with God primarily. While being in the world with all its experiences, we try to see things through the perspective of God. We begin to realize that present things have limited value. We desire to focus on those things which have eternal value. We realize that in the end the only things that will matter is the love in which we chose to do what we did. To grow in the spiritual life is to grow in doing more out of true love. It is not a matter of what the other does or does not do, but what we do and how we do it.  Simply put, the spiritual life is being in love with and doing all out of love for God. This was the true way of all the saints. This is the only way to sanctity.

 

Homily Twenty-ninth Sunday Year B

Reading 1: Isaiah, centuries before Jesus, led by the Spirit, prophesied about the future Servant of God, who would suffer for others. This Servant of God would do so by giving his life as an offering for sin. Through his sufferings he will justify many and their guilt he shall bear. Thus, the will of God will be accomplished through him.

Without knowing the fuller implications of his prophetic message, Isaiah was preparing the Chosen People for God’s plan to redeem the world through his Son, Jesus. His very name Jesus, means one who saves his people from their sins. As the Messiah, the Christ, did the great work of salvation by freely embracing death on the cross at the hands of others in total obedience to the Father.

As God is beyond our comprehension and as all that God does is beyond our understanding, so his will to become man and give his life for our life is beyond our comprehension.  He chose to be our justification for our choice of sin, for our rejection of the gift of sharing in God’s divine life. God could have chosen other options, but he chose this great sign of his infinite love to restore us to his divine life.

Take a few moments to reflect of this great sign of love Christ shows us. It is for my sins that he gave his life so that I could live in him, free from the bondage of sin in eternity.

Gospel: Picking up the Suffering Servant theme in Isaiah, Jesus defines is own ministry and that of his disciples. It is ministry of contradiction, a ministry of service. It is an attitude which goes against the desires and expectations of what people experience and are taught. Power and authority over others is the way of life of the world we live in. The more power over others one exercises, the more important the person is in the eyes of others and more the person is emulated. So the world thinks.

Jesus talks about real power through an attitude and a life of service to others.  He is not just advocating any service but ultimate service, namely, giving one’s life for the other. We see this in a person like Mother Theresa of Calcutta. But we also see in the lives of many, unsung heroes, who placed others’ needs before their own. We see this in a person who donates a kidney, so that another can a possibility of a healthy life.

But Jesus is not talking only about extraordinary acts of service but the day to day opportunities we have to imitate him in little ways of serving out of love, out of gratitude, out of response to him for what he has done for us. It is the little way of St. Therese of Liseux. She chose to do all things out of love for the other, no matter what it was.

To lord it over another is to be self-focus. To serve another is to be other focus. Service is an aspect of love, a manifestation of love. You can have service without love. Can you have love without service? Jesus is calling for an attitude of the heart and way of life that he himself patterned for us. Though he was the Son of God, though he was the Lord, he went out of his way for others. As Paul says in Philippians: “He emptied himself and was obedient even to the death of the cross.”

Reading 2: What is the focus of this reading? Though he was God, the Incarnate Word, Jesus, suffered in his humanity. Though he was sinless, he became sin by taking on our sins. He is our Mediator and intercessor. It is through him that we can approach the infinite God for mercy and the forgiveness of our sins.

We are taught two things in the reading. Because of who Jesus is and what he has done for our sake, we are to remain faithful to our acknowledgment of him as Lord and Savior and confidently go through him to the Father of mercies.

One of the things we may fail to do frequently in our journey towards holiness is to express our gratitude, primarily to God but also for others. Gratitude should be part of our daily lives as anything that is of value and important. It helps us to remember how much we are dependent on others for so much in our lives. One of the ways to ensure that we live a grateful life is at the end of the day before bed to take a few minutes before the Lord to recall the blessings we received during the day. Not only has God blessed us, especially in things we take for granted, but we have been blessed by God through others. Someone has aptly said: "Gratitude begets gratitude, just as love begets love."  God delights in a grateful heart.

"I am increasingly convinced that it is possible to live the wounds of the past not as gaping abysses that cannot be fulfilled and, therefore, keep threatening us as gateways to new life. The “healing wounds of Christ” encourages us to detach ourselves from the past and trust in the glory to which we are called." (Henri Nouwen)

The past is always with us. Unfortunately, we keep the past as a present reality and miss the grace of the present moment. Yes, we will never forget the pains or joys of the past. Yet, we are to learn from them and choose not to be controlled by them or allow them to determine us. Our wounds and pains of the past could be grace moments of the present to become a better person in the present. 

Paul helps us to  have the right attitude." Brothers, I for my part do not consider myself to have taken possession. Just one thing: forgetting what lies behind but straining forward to what lies ahead, I continue my pursuit toward the goal, the prize of God’s upward calling, in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14)  The wounds of the past can become stumbling blocks or stepping stones to the glory that lies ahead, eternal union with God.

 "Detachment is often understood as letting loose of what is attractive. But it sometimes also requires letting go of what is repulsive. You can indeed become attached to dark forces such as resentment and hatred. As long as you seek retaliation, you cling to your own past. Sometimes it seems as though you might lose yourself along with your revenge and hate—so you stand there with balled-up fists, closed to the other who wants to heal you." (Henri Nouwen)

How attached are we to those things which are not of God, the things that keep us in the bondage of sin? We hear the words of Jesus--to live is to die. And yet, we are afraid of letting go these learned behaviors. I have heard people say to me, "if I let these things go, what will be left of me?" Jesus gives the answer: new life. Still, we hold on to the known and the familiar, even though it is destructive. Fortunately, Jesus does not give up on us. He continues to invite us to trust him and to learn the mystery "to dies to self is to live a new life." It seems like a huge leap, but it begins with the first step of trust.

 Are we living confidently in the Lord? Is our confidence in the Lord or in our selves? To have confidence in the Lord and in his promises is to put our trust in him primarily. For who am I outside of relationship with God? Who but the Lord can provide what I most need to be fully alive and fully happy? I am weak. If I put my trust in myself outside of God, I will eventually fall. But if I put my trust in the Lord, though I go through difficult times, the Lord will not abandon me. 

The word of Jesus comes to mind. "And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the holy Spirit* to those who ask him?” (Lk 11:9-13)

I am confident that the Lord, who loves me, desires what is best for me. So he pours out his Spirit, who intercedes for me according to the will of the Father. God wills my eternal salvation and life with him. Thus, he will provide me with what is necessary for me to reach my destiny. My confidence is in him.

Homily Twenty-eighth Sunday Year B

 

Reading 1: How often do we pray for the gift of wisdom? The first reading’s focus is not natural wisdom but the gift of wisdom from the Holy Spirit. What is this wisdom? It is the gift that enables us to perceive things through God’s perspective. This gift of wisdom enables us to make the right judgment and choices in our daily life. On the other hand, when we are limited to ourselves and our human wisdom, our view is limited and blurred by the many circumstances, feelings, memories, experiences of our past. These color our perception.

 

But to see with the insight of God, to see as a situation is here and now, is to have the best information to make the right decision. Wisdom is the gift of God that he wants me to be open to and seek after. The psalmist says that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. To be able to see as God sees I must first approach God as he is with reverential awe, praise, glory and thanksgiving that is due to him.  The gift of wisdom comes to us to the extent there is a right relationship with God.

 

Pray for the gift of wisdom each day so that you can make the prudential decisions that will lead you to a closer relationship with God.

 

Gospel: What was the one thing lacking in the person in the gospel who came to Jesus, seeking eternal life? In another Gospel passage, Martha confronted Jesus about the fact that Mary, her sister, was not helping her with providing a meal for Jesus and his apostles. While Martha was busy with the kitchen chores, Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to his teachings.  Jesus’ response was that what Martha was doing was important, but Mary had chosen the better task.

 

What was lacking by the young man and what was chosen by Mary? Jesus, as the center of one’s life.  This is the wisdom of the first reading, to see what is essential and important from God’s perspective and prudentially choose it.

 

Keeping the Commandments can be a mere external obligation or it can flow from a relationship with God. The Israelites in the desert, though they were told the Commandments and entered into a covenant relationship with God, that relationship was not internal but external. The young man was doing the right thing, keeping the Commandments. But when challenged by Jesus to root this doing with being in a conscious, committed relationship with him as a disciple, he couldn’t. There was a block. He was more dependent on his possessions. He couldn’t be totally depended upon Jesus. He failed to realize that what is impossible to him was possible through the grace of God. Matthew, the tax collector, was an example.

 

The question that the Gospel proposes to us is are we seeking what is God’s plan for us, through the gift of wisdom? Have we chosen the better part? Is Jesus really the Lord of our lives? Are we following him totally or partially? When Jesus is the center of our lives other things do not have the same impact or importance. To be a disciple is not enough. That is only the first step. To fall in love with Jesus entails that nothing else is more important.  We step aside for the Other and in that process become more complete.

 

Reading 2: The word of God is given to guide us, to reveal to us, to nurture us, to correct and judge us. Jesus said: “I will not judge you, but my word will.”  Isaiah said that the word of God is like rain that comes down from the heavens. It will not return void. It will do the will of him who sent it. How have we listened to God’s word? We will have to give an account of our reception and response to the One who revealed his word to us. 

Many of us live in a state of fear and, at the same time, in a desire to be fully loved. We are afraid that if people really knew our past, our present struggles, our fears and weaknesses, they would reject us, not love us. At the same time there is a deeper, innate longing to be fully loved and accepted. One of our problems may be a lack of authentic self love.  We fail to remember that our being is more important than our doing. What we have done in the past does not determine who we are in the present moment.

The constant message of God in the scriptures is "Do not be afraid. I am with you. I love you." We can't fully comprehend or accept the truth of this reality. And yet, who fully knows us, if not God? He knows every thought, word and deed of our life. He knows our bondage. He has come to set us free. He accepts and loves us and invites us to learn how to do the same in relationship to him. Someone has said: "What a joy to be fully known and fully loved at the same time! It is the joy of belonging through Jesus to God and being fully safe and fully free." This grace is available to each of us to embrace so that we can become the person God sees us to be.

 TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY ORDINARY GOSPEL REFLECTIONS B

As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, 

· This action shows his respect and reverence for Jesus. He was not worshipping Jesus because, obviously, he saw Jesus as a good man and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 

· The man wanted to know what were Jesus’ thoughts on the necessary requirements to enter heaven.

Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 

· Why so you think Jesus answered this way?

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." 

· How well do we keep the same commandments?

· Since these basically deal with our relationship with others, where do we fail in those relationships vis a vis love?

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." 

· The young man seems to want more than a minimal commitment, so Jesus challenges him to become a disciple by totally depending on the Master and not on his own possessions.

· We may not be called to sell everything, but we are called to become dedicated disciples. How well have we responded to the call of discipleship?

At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. 

· What keeps us from following Jesus as a disciple?

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" 

· Is it wealth or its keeping it for ourselves that is at stake here?

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." 

· What does this say to you? Salvation comes not from works but from the grace and favor of God to which we respond.

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. 

· What is God asking of you as you reflect on this passage? How will you respond in a practical way?

We are the beneficiaries of two basic loves  in our lives. God loves us first, unconditionally and for ourselves. His love is what will bring us perfection and true happiness. We are loved secondly by others. But for the most this second love comes from people, like ourselves, who are broken. As our love is not perfect and is limited in many ways, so we may experience this second love. And sometimes, unfortunately, we see God's love through the lens of the broken loves of others. But God's consistent love is not blocked by our fears and hurts, our non trust and cautiousness towards him. For God knows that his perfect love is the only thing that will make a difference in our broken lives. His love is not theoretical but in the flesh. He shows it in action. Not only did he create us in his own image and likeness and sustains us in existence, but he took flesh to be one with us. He showed his love through his death on the cross for our salvation. He showed his love in action by adopting us as his sons and daughters, sharing in  his own divine life. He manifests his love in the daily graces he pours upon us to help us on our journey to him. As he waits for our response, he continues to love us, for he sees his reflection in us, even dimly.

"The fruit of the joy from the Spirit comes from within, regardless of what is going on around  one. On the other hand, happiness can be a blurred emotion, dependent on a given situation. Joyful people make a commitment to gratitude regardless of the circumstances. Happiness can come and go depending on circumstances and experiences. True joy endures, since it is rooted in a relationship with God." (Anonymous) 

Everyone of us have met people who were truly people of joy no matter their circumstance. We have also met people who may be happy today but down the next day. We sometimes envy the people whose joy is sustained, rather than learn and practice their secret. The source of their joy is not themselves or their circumstances. It is rooted in their relationship with Jesus. Their encounter with Jesus has changed their way of looking at things. He is their reason for existence and the source of their strength. But this encounter has to be sustained if the joy is to continue. As a person grows in relationship with Jesus, so they are able to remain joyful no matter the circumstance. But if Jesus is not the center of their lives, then the joy begins to wane. St. Paul was aware of this, so he wrote: "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, rejoice in the Lord." Or as the Psalm proclaims: "The joy of the Lord is my strength." Choose joy over happiness and your happiness will be joy-filled.

A peasant in the parish of Ars was engaged in the best kind of Eucharistic adoration as he spent hours and hours in the church with his gaze fixed on the tabernacle. When the holy Curé of Ars asked him what he was doing all this time in the church, he responded, “Nothing. I look at Him and He looks at me!”

 

Prayer is not so much words but attentive presence. Prayer is being with God for his sake. It is the reflection of the relationship that God initiated when he created us in his own image and likeness and shared with us his divine life. Sin, which is self-focus, blinded us to our true identity and true relationship with the Other. Jesus by his death and resurrection healed and restored us. While we contemplate the awesomeness of God in our limited way on earth, we hope to see God face to face in the perfect prayer of adoration and worship in eternity. In the words of St. Paul: “Now we see through a glass darkly. But then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know, even as I am known.” (1 Cor 13:12)