Memorial of Saint Pius X, Pope
Today’s first reading, from Ezekiel, contains God’s words of judgment against the prince of Tyre. Using Ezekiel as his mouthpiece, God exposes the king’s hubris in setting himself up as a god, while in fact the king is just a mortal human being like you and me. Ezekiel prophesies that the king will meet death just like any other human being. The problem is that he has not lived in a way that has pleased God. We can speculate that he has not shown justice to those he governs.
The gospel reading, from Matthew, continues along similar lines. Jesus has just had an exchange with a rich young man who asks Jesus what he must do to have eternal life. When the man hears Jesus’ response he is saddened because he feels that he cannot do what Jesus recommends, which is to sell all he has and give it to the poor. In response to this, Jesus begins to speak of how hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. It strikes me that one reason that it so hard for the rich to enter the kingdom is that they feel themselves to be self sufficient. They think that they don’t need God. Those who are well off tend to rely on their own strength and resources rather than on God. Essentially, like the prince of Tyre, those who behave in this manner are setting themselves up as gods.
It seems to me that there is a strong temptation for many people today, especially those who are materially well-off, to feel self-sufficient to the point that they forget that they need God. Of course if we stop and think about it, we will realize how so very small and insignificant we are in relation to our creator. Furthermore, we must acknowledge that we need God’s help – not simply to remain alive but also to attain salvation through God’s grace. We cannot live happy, meaningful lives unless we acknowledge our need for other people. As human beings, we have a basic need to love and to be loved. This recognition of the importance of other people in our lives means that we must be willing to live our lives in solidarity with other people. Solidarity means that we must see what is good for us as interconnected with what is good for others.
The scriptures repeatedly teach us to show love towards our neighbor just as God has outpoured his love on us. Yet it is so easy to forget this, partly because our culture rewards self sufficiency and because we many not want to acknowledge God’s claim on us, a claim which if fully acknowledged could radically alter our lives.
Jesus seems to be telling us that the true value of our lives can only be appreciated when we think of ourselves as dependent, first of all on God and secondarily on other people. In the kingdom of God the last – those who humbly do God’s will have pride of place over the first – those who exalt themselves at the expense of others. Matthew presents the disciples as a positive example for us to follow. Despite their numerous faults, the disciples eventually persevere in their faith by the grace of God, and Jesus states that they will be rewarded for it. It is ultimately this humility and faithfulness to Jesus’ teachings which gives value to their lives. Let us pray that we too will grasp the truth in Jesus’ teaching that in the Kingdom of God, the first will be last and the last will be first.
-Joel Schickel