Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sunday Scripture
My homily this week is very uncharacteristic of me. I am going straight to three points to think about. This is not only because we have very thought provoking stories of Solomon and the rich young man, but also because I want to enter into some depth about what these readings are teaching us.
a) This rich young man in today’s gospel had a gift. His gift was that he was aware of his innermost longing. He did not live an unreflected life. There is another man in today’s first reading from the book of Wisdom who had that same gift. Solomon’s longing was not wealth, power, or the kingdom, but rather, he yearned for divine wisdom. My dear friends, there is no human heart that is not created without its natural longing for God. Every soul gasps for God. Some people become aware and feed their soul with God’s breath, with God’s love and life. Others ignore it or live unawares of their dying soul. After all if we are not trained to pay attention to the soul how can we become aware of our need for God? Some people cannot explain why there is the gnawing emptiness inside them. So they keep TV constantly on, their radio is always playing, they are on their phones even in the bathroom, if not shopping there are constantly checking out things they don’t need at the mall, their biggest obsession is that latest score or gossip. Fortunately, there are enough breweries try to quench their undying thirst. I do not want to condemn the man in gospel for later failing to follow Christ. He was far ahead of most people in today’s society. He was aware of his innermost longing.
One thing is sure – each of us has a desire for God. That longing is what brings us to mass today. That longing is the reason for the time we spend in prayer. I would like us to focus on that longing. I am suggesting that we find time to explore our primal desire for God, to explore it, to nurture it and do deepen our desire for God. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” It is not enough to be good to gain eternal life. We must be willing to plunge deeper in the divine realm and today’s readings are an invitation to do so.
b) These days we have been focusing on the theme of radical discipleship. There is no better passage in the Bible that explains radical discipleship better than the story of the rich young man. He followed every commandment. He was a regular church goer, he made it to the sacraments, he give his money to the Church, he even gave some to charity, he was not promiscuous, a drunk, or waste food. He used the recycle bin and tried to live green. Now that describes most of us here. But, he did not want to be just good. He wanted to be radical. Two things stopped him – he did not know how to be radical and he did not know if his capacity for being radical was genuine. In other words, even though he was a good man there was a threshold for how far he was willing to go. His threshold was his wealth. When Christ asked him to cross that threshold, he withdrew. Christ was showing him how to be radical and what he must do to become a radical disciple. I would like to reflect on the same question. How can we begin our journey toward radical discipleship? (First of all, being radical means that I think, talk and act like Christ unconditionally). I know I have a will and capacity of be a radical disciples when I am willing cross the threshold of my limits in following Christ.
If we look deep into our lives we will realize that there is one demand of following Christ which is the threshold of our total commitment. For me right now that threshold is my family. Now that grandmother has died, my focus has shifted to my parents. I get paralyzed by fear that I will not be able to be there for them when they need me. I was telling my best friend the other day that I just have to trust in God radically that God will take care of me and my parents. If I do not become radically trusting in God in this area, I would leave this ministry and leave for India. Of course, once I cross that threshold, there will be newer thresholds that will challenge me to be even more radical. If you look in your lives can you identify your threshold of following Christ radically? For example, may be you have held resentment against somebody for years and years. Or you have more wealth than you need but insecurity keeps you from sharing it. Or you know that you just cannot overcome your prejudice. Or you know that you love God but easily compromise your spiritual life for flimsy reasons like sports, addictions, friends or entertainment. The bottom line is that at the end there is a demand – and one must say yes or no.
c) I would like to suggest opportunities that we have to deepen our spiritual longing. First, let us train our children to pay attention to the gift of faith. Beginning Oct 18 we will begin a Montessori style religious education program for children ages 3-6. Of all the things you teach your children I hope you will take the pains to train them grow in faith. For young people and adults, this November 14, I will lead a retreat on contemplative prayer. Together we will explore the spirituality of John of the cross - one of the greatest mystics of all time – and enter into the depths of our spiritual gifts. In February, I will lead a twenty-hour silent retreat to understand how as active people we can still be very contemplative in our life. Let us use all the opportunities that God brings our way to radically nurture the life of God within us.
Today, as we come to celebrate this Eucharist, I think we are like that young man in today’s gospel reading. We come because we desire God. And God gives us the divine self – not in some generic way but in a radical and personal way – body and blood. As we receive Christ in the very depths of our being, let us respond to that self-giving by nurturing the life of God within us. Let us cross the threshold of faith in following Christ. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph