28th Sunday in Ordinary time (Year B) 2012

   Twenty-eighth Sunday (Year B)    

(Wisdom 7:7-11; Hebrews 4:12-13; Mark 10:17-30)

My dear People of God, we heard in the second reading:

The word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart;

And, in our passage from the Gospel we learned something of what those words meant in real life with Jesus:

Jesus, looking at (the young man), loved him, and said, "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."   At that statement his face fell and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

Jesus then spoke of the Christian life in a manner somewhat alien to modern ears:

(The disciples) 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.’

Today many, aiming to make Christ and the Gospel popular, present the Christian life as something almost second nature to us, and the salvation offered by our Christian hope they portray as a reward to be almost automatically acquired after a life of even minimal devotion.  Moreover, their use of Gospel words such as ‘love’, ‘peace’ and ‘joy’, to express the nature of that reward, is usually so jejune,  being coloured with predominantly human -- both emotional and sentimental – overtones, that there would appear to be no possibility of conflict between our  human aspirations here below and those promised heavenly realities, apart, of course, from their heavenly abundance and eternal permanence.   For example, God loves us His children, and we of course, loving our children, give them all we can; we like to buy for them whatever they think they need or whatever they see that other children have and apparently enjoy; surely that is what love involves?  We likewise always seek to understand their childish failings and would never demand that they show more obedience or learn to practice self-discipline, for that might cause upset and disturb the ‘peace’ in our family relationships generally; and ‘peace’, of course, is a Gospel word for a most desirable heavenly reality.  In like manner, the ‘joy’ imagined by these promoters of popular Christianity adds -- they confidently assert -- to the richness of our personality here and now on earth, and thereby, inevitably, to the fullness of our preparation for heaven.  How in heaven (!) then, could self-forgetfulness, let alone self-denial and self-discipline, ever be imagined to promote mankind’s true fulfilment?

This popular presentation of the Gospel is seen to be an emasculated and inauthentic version, when, thanks to Mother Church’s use of her Scriptures in the liturgy, we listen again to Jesus’ own proclamation of the Gospel of salvation:

For human beings (salvation) is impossible, but not for God.  All things are possible for God. 

The rich young man had, according to the Law, lived a very good, and moreover, very rich and fulfilling life; but now he discovered that his appreciation of the word ‘good’ was too superficial and even somewhat blasphemous, for Jesus said:

            Why do you call me good?  No one is good but God alone.

Again the young man believed he had always loved God supremely, but Jesus went on to say:

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.

Those words pierced the young man so deeply that, we are told:

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

He went away because he had just been brought to realise how much he loved his earthly possessions: those earthly possessions ultimately meant more to him than his heavenly aspirations.  He went away sorrowful because he knew that he was turning away from the best option; for the call of Jesus to personal discipleship was, he realized -- while not a command -- certainly an offer, and an awesome opportunity.  He could not however, turn his back on his money and all the good things of life on earth that it afforded him: above all, perhaps, that prominence which brought him the esteem and admiration of others.

If you now recall how we began Mass you will remember that we said, Lord, you were sent to heal the contrite, and then we went on to add: You came to call sinners.  Many tend to think the contrite are people like us, who go to Church; while the sinners are those others to whom the Gospel is an unknown message to be preached in the streets of our cities, along the highways and byways of our countryside, and in the mission fields, be they in deepest Africa, or furthest Asia.  That, however, is a mistaken idea, because Jesus is continually calling all of us, contrite and sinners, to open our hearts and minds ever more and more to the healing power of His love.  The Word of God proclaimed at Mass,

(being) sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart,

is meant to pierce all mankind and, having penetrated through manifold layers of human sinfulness, self-satisfaction, and personal ignorance, to thereby enable each and every one of us to see the truth of our own condition more clearly, just as it did with the rich young man.  That young man had to be shown the depth of his attachment to money, not indeed to humiliate him, but that he might become able, first of all to appreciate and then to respond to, a yet higher vocation in life here on earth, namely, with Jesus, to learn of and love the Father above all else; and in Jesus, to attain to eternal life and glory before the Father in heaven:

Sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow Me.

Now, Jesus does not say the same words to everyone who turns to Him for salvation. The Word of God, which Mother Church proclaims here at Mass and throughout her liturgy and public ministry, can be of special significance for any and every one of us who hear it, at any stage in our life, ever seeking to open us up to ourselves anew, showing us how much His healing is still needed in our lives, and thereby enabling us to respond to a further call – more demanding, yes, but also more fulfilling -- from Jesus.

Jesus, remember, does not look bleakly at us with a cold eye and critical appreciation, for we have been called and guided to Him by the Father:

No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:44)

Therefore Jesus loves us, just as He loved the rich young man, as we heard:

Jesus looking at him, loved him.

Jesus loved him because He saw what He could make of that young man if he were to become His disciple, He saw the glory that young man might give to the Father.  And so, the Word of God penetrated to the core of his being for his greater blessing; if only he would accept that Word and the revelation of himself generated by it.

People of God, never turn away from God’s Word heard or read in the Scriptures and in the teaching of the Church: never turn away from it because it makes you feel uncomfortable, because Jesus does not seek or plan our ultimate discomfiture.  He loves us and wants only to help us glorify the Father together with, and in, Him; to lead us to the fullest realization of our divine potential.  To that end we must never forget what we heard in the second reading:

There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Like foolish children, we simply do not know either the truth about ourselves, or what is truly good for us.  All things are naked and open to the eyes of God, and His holy Word comes to us, at times, to cut us to the quick and thereby help us first to realize, and then hopefully to embrace, what is best for us; for:

(It) is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow;

it is, however, only piercingly sharp at those times when God wants, by that Word, to help us, as Scripture says:

            (to) discern the reflections and thoughts of (our own) hearts.

And this He does because, to all those who will lovingly accept His Word and humbly acknowledge what they have been led to recognize about themselves, the words of the prophet Malachi will apply, who declared in the name of the Lord:

To you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings. (4:2)

People of God, if you would truly appreciate the dignity of your calling as Catholic disciples of Jesus, then pray that you might be so privileged as to allow the Word of God to do its work in you.  Do not reject its sometimes piercing and penetrating smart, for ultimately it will bring the healing for which you long.  Remember the advice given us in the first reading from the book of Wisdom:

The spirit of wisdom came to me; (and) all good things came to me along with her: in her hands uncounted wealth. I chose to have her rather than light, because her radiance never ceases. (NRSV)

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

Twenty-seventh Sunday (Year B)            

    (Genesis 2:18-24; Hebrews 2:9-11; Mark 10:2-12)     

Our readings today are quite clearly and deliberately centred on the relationship between man and woman that we call marriage.  It is such a mysterious, yet natural, relationship -- involving deep passions which promise great joys but also occasion deep sorrows -- that it is understandable that there have been and still are many wrong ideas and false attitudes in its regard. However, by considering this difficult but fundamental relationship we can gain deeper insight into the nature of our Catholic faith, so let us proceed.

Jesus told the Jews that they had, so to speak, twisted Moses’ arm into his giving them an inauthentic attitude to both the divine purpose and the human experience of ‘marriage’; an attitude which, by making it easier to get out of arising difficulties, only served to prevent them from being able to appreciate and attain the true beauty and fulfilment of that relationship.

According to Protestant teaching the fullness of Christian doctrine is to be found in the Bible expressed in the written words contained there; and because the words are there to be seen and read by all, a devout Christian can appreciate the Scriptures as both the source of what is generally acceptable belief and practice and also as the quarry where he can discover his or her own variations.  Of course there are some difficult passages which might need explanation but, fundamentally, such difficulties do not affect the basic position which is, that what one can see and read in the Bible forms the basis of belief, and my serious belief is as good as anyone else’s because it is my personal and sincere response to what is written objectively in the Scriptures.

It has never been like that in the Catholic Church … and remember, the Christian body of believers in Jesus has always been called Catholic;  indeed, before 1054 it had no other title whatsoever, being simply known as the Catholic Church.  And so it is today, to the extent that we always consider ourselves as Catholics, members of the Catholic Church, even though others in our Christian fraternity insist on referring to us as Roman Catholics.  We are not ashamed to be called Roman Catholics, for, understood aright, it is quite true; but we are most of all attached to that title which has always been ours, Catholic.

Now, Catholics are, and always have been -- first and foremost -- hearers of the Word of God, not readers of it:

How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?  And how shall they preach unless they are sent?  As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!"  But they have not all obeyed the gospel for Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our report?"  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:14-18)

It was ever so, even in the very founding structure of the Church: preachers, as you heard, had to be sent, and those originally sent by Jesus Himself were the Apostles proclaiming the ‘gospel of peace’; and as a consequence of that original Apostolic mission those Churches were called Apostolic Sees that had either received the Gospel from such an Apostle, or had developed a specially close and proven historical connection with one, that other centres of Christianity did not have.  Such Apostolic Sees – having heard and received the Gospel from Apostolic preachers -- were accepted as the criterion for catholicity.  Churches not thus founded on or by an Apostle were regarded as members of the Catholic Body only if they were in communion with those Sees properly called Apostolic; and it was supremely the Church at Rome -- recognized as founded upon the two supreme Apostles, Peter and Paul -- that was regarded as the God-willed witness to Catholic Truth and ultimate criterion for membership of the authentic Catholic Communion.

In that Catholic Communion our initial, original, Scriptures were the Jewish Scriptures in the Septuagint Greek translation which Mother Church subsequently termed the Old Testament, because she regarded them as God’s revealed word only as read and understood in the light of Jesus.  Those Jewish Scriptures, she believes, are an imperfect revelation only because they are preparatory: they are preparing the way for the coming of Jesus and can only be understood aright when interpreted in the light of His Person, His Good News, and His history.  Our New Testament Scriptures, on the other hand, are final; and apart from the fullness of Old and New Testaments together, there is no other divine revelation to be found or to be expected.

Nevertheless, they too need to be understood, interpreted aright, for, since they are a witness to the original Gospel proclamation made by Mother Church before anything was ever written down, they are always to be understood according to the Church’s Rule of Faith which gave them birth and which they were originally meant to express, extend, and preserve. 

Therefore, in our attitude to marriage, we Catholics cannot accept the Jewish approach condemned by Jesus, nor can we adopt a Protestant attitude which allows an individual to read the Scriptures and ultimately form his own opinion about ‘my belief’.  As Catholics we receive our Christian identity and life by our faithful response to the Church’s Rule of Faith, for, we are ‘hearers’ of the living Apostolic preaching not ‘readers’ of ancient and unchanging books: for those books, supremely venerable though they are for the divine truth contained in them, are only infallible as guides when understood in accordance with, and as expounded by, the living Rule of Church Faith.

Many today seem to assume for themselves the title ‘catholic’ while having but a minimal concern with faith.  They are not ‘hearers’ of the Church’s proclamation of the Word to which they have obediently committed themselves in a response of faith; neither they are ‘readers’ of the Word, who can, at times, be so devoted to what they read that they are willing to sacrifice all except that right to personally quarry their own beliefs from the Scriptures.  Rather, they are seekers of a message of pleasant and peaceful accommodation with the world around them, along with the additional spin-off of a certain measure of personal spiritual comfort.  They don’t want to hear the Gospel, they don’t even want to read the Gospel, they prefer a gospel they can ‘feel’. 

There are others today who  are shown to be of this persuasion by their habit – perhaps unconscious – of giving their attention, first of all, to weighing up, assessing, the person of the messenger and critically studying his style of presentation before attending to the message itself: they want first impressions to persuade them to like the person of the priest or find his presentation  interesting and attractive before they attend to his message; and only if those first requirements are fulfilled will they seriously consider giving both hearing and, perhaps, even a measure of  commitment to the message thus acceptably proclaimed and presented to them.

However, for us Christians and Catholics who are hearers -- people called by God through the proclamation of messengers sent by Him -- it is the message of God’s Good News that counts.  That is precisely the nature of our vocation: we hear the word of God, and we recognize it as the word of God, thanks to the Spirit of God given to the Church and working within all whom the Father calls to faith in His Son.  And if -- once having been reborn through faith in baptism -- we are to become mature children of God, we have to be able to recognize the message proclaimed by the Church as Jesus Himself addressing us through the words of her proclamation:  He is the Speaker to Whom we attend, His alone is the message to which we respond; all that we can require of the messenger is that he has the necessary authority to back up his message, for Jesus Himself always spoke with authority.  Such required authority, however, is not to be accorded him by listeners who like his personality or his presentation, but by the Church of Christ which, able to back-up his sincerity, guarantees the authenticity of his teaching: 

We are of God.  He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us.  By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

He who is of God hears the words of God; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.  (1 John 4:6; John 8:47)

To put things very simply and somewhat bluntly, it is a matter of distinguishing between the provisional packaging and the contents which abide.  If the packaging is attractive it helps, but the contents, God’s gracious gift, are alone what matters.

The attitude of wanting, demanding even, to be superficially pleased before considering the message or receiving the gift, can have most serious repercussions even to the message of faith itself.  Take the example of the Pharisees questioning Jesus in the Gospel:

The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, "Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" They were testing Him.  He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"  They replied, "Moses permitted a man to write a bill of divorce, and dismiss her."  But Jesus told them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment.”

Jesus, on the other hand, taught:

From the beginning of the creation, God 'made them male and female.  ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined 'to his wife and the two shall become one flesh'.  So they are no longer two but one flesh.

Then He went on to add the most solemn words of all:

Therefore what  God  has  joined  together,  no human being must      separate.

In our modern society, however, as the appearance of either spouse becomes less pleasing or attractive over the years, or when other difficulties inevitably surface in the course of their shared life, many -- who through selfishness and superficiality have never recognized any call to re-assert and confirm their original commitment, and who now no longer acknowledge any obligation to give as well as to receive -- abdicate their own, personal, responsibility for the permanence and beauty of the bond which they sealed before God Himself, and seek a totally pagan freedom for personal whim and pleasure, immediate advantage and seeming convenience.

The Chosen People -- a people formed and prepared by the grace of God over two thousand years to enter into and maintain a unique relationship with Him and thus to hear, recognize, and proclaim His Law of truth to all the nations -- had likewise turned out to be an unfaithful spouse, entering into illicit relationships with the gods of the surrounding nations.  Failing to hear and respond to the word of the One, Redeemer-God proclaimed by the prophets whom He had raised up from their midst, they ultimately, despite their being the Chosen People, rejected that proclamation because the Messenger – the very Son of God Himself -- did not come up to the expectations they had so sinfully indulged for so long.

Dear People of God, in Mother Church we have to become children of the truth:

Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.  (Mark 10:15)

As new-born babies, desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. (1 Peter 2:2-3):

As children of God, we have to long for God’s truth, we cannot pick and choose, even from such a quarry as the Scriptures, to form our own beliefs; we must embrace the Apostolic Faith offered to us by the continued proclamation and preaching of the living and universal Catholic Church. 

Mother Church, ever rejoicing in the divine truth of her Gospel message which is the word of God amongst us still, lives by the Word she proclaims, enabling us who are born of her proclamation to be born alive; let us therefore, endeavour -- in the power and beauty of that living truth -- to love the Lord at all times, to seek His blessing in all circumstances, and to praise and proclaim His glory before all peoples.