TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
(Wisdom 7:
7-11; Hebrews 4: 12-13; Mark 10: 17-30)
Some of us
remember the television quiz show, "The Sixty-Four Thousand Dollar
Question." The host would ask the contestant questions whose correct
answers were worth different, increasing amounts of money. Of course, the
questions got harder and harder until the last, sixty-four thousand dollar
question. In the Gospel today, the rich man asks Jesus a question whose correct
answer is worth much more than sixty-four thousand.
The man
says to Jesus: "Good Teacher, what must I do to attain eternal life?"
He is an accomplished man. He has not only accumulated a lot of money but has
also followed the Law of God. However, he knows that something is missing in
his life. We too will have this disturbing sense that something is missing.
Sometimes we feel empty after having followed all the rules. We tell the truth.
We work assiduously. We take care of our parents. We give to the poor. However,
we wonder if all these acts are really worth the effort. We don't feel like
we're going to get the promised reward. We imagine that we are like dogs in the
circus just jumping through hoops.
Jesus
responds to the man in a surprising way. He asks why he calls him
"good." Didn't he know that only God is good? Jesus is not implying
that he is God. At this time in his life, Jesus looks at the Father with such awe
that he cannot identify himself with him. However, the man's question and
Jesus' answer makes us wonder: What do we have to do to make ourselves if not
good than at least better men or women?
Now we
recognize the need to repent not just once but many times. Each time we repent,
we will see ourselves closer to the Father. When we leave the fascination with immodest
behavior, we will become more like God. When we stop talking about our
achievements to listen to others, we will draw closer to God. Then something
almost impossible to describe happens to us. We discover that we have fallen in
love with God. We feel deep within us the desire for His goodness, His truth, His
beauty. Nothing less than God can satisfy us. This is the beginning of eternal
life.
To help us
reach our destiny, God has given us his word, the Scriptures. As the second
reading says, it is more penetrating than a two-edged sword. One edge accuses
us of sin - pride, lies, laziness. The other edge assures us of the love of God
that surpasses all understanding, all rationality. Meditating on the word of
God every day, we come to the conclusion that it is true. God loves me despite
my lack of virtue.
"Kiss
me, kiss me often " are the words of a particularly romantic song in
Spanish. They make us think of two young lovers. At first thought we do not
imagine that one of the lovers can be God. Then we realize how lovable, how
truthful, how beautiful God is. We are falling in love with him. We feel that
we do not lack anything. Everything will turn out fine. We want to be more and
more like Him. We have reached the beginning of eternal life.
