Word to the Wise
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 - Tuesday in the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
[Sir 35:1-12 and Mark 10:28-31]Give to the Most High as he has given to you, generously, according to your means. For the Lord is one who always repays, and he will give back to you sevenfold. But offer no bribes, these he does not accept! Trust not in the sacrifice of the fruits of extortion. For he is a God of justice, who knows no favorites. [Sirach] Peter began to say to Jesus, "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 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." [Mark]
With the celebration of the feast of Pentecost, the liturgical season of Easter ends and the calendar returns to "Ordinary Time" where it left off at Ash Wednesday - the Book of Sirach and the Gospel According to Mark! Like many conversations, it's hard to pick up the strand when there has been an interruption. The expression, "Now where were we.....?" could describe it. Peter's exclamation: "We have given up everything and followed you!" refers to the encounter of Jesus with a rich man who asks, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" After learning that the man had kept the commandments, Jesus told him what was lacking - he had to sell all his belongings, give them to the poor and follow Jesus! The man's reaction was disappointment: "At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions."
In the case of the rich man, the obstacle to his following Jesus was his attachment to his possessions. But it could be attachment to pet prejudices or appetites that could be the obstacle. Two examples, one negative and one positive, come to my mind from the gospels. The first one is Naaman the Syrian, whose pride stood in the way of being cured of leprosy. [2 Kings 7:1-27]. Once he gave that up and followed the instructions of the prophet Elisha, he was cured. The more positive example is the one of the "widow's mite." [Mark 12:41-44]. Jesus comments on the poor widow's offering: "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all he had, her whole livelihood."
The Book of Sirach contributes to this in its admonition to give to the Lord without expectations and to do it "cheerfully." Can we identify any obstacles in our lives to our discipleship? Can we remove these entirely, or do we pick the easiest from our "surplus" and offer only that? It's something to think about! AMEN