Mark presents some challenging passages to us in today’s reading. He speaks of a rich man who asks Jesus how to inherit eternal life (Mk 10:17-22). As a response to his question, Jesus warns his listeners of the danger of riches (Mk 10:23-27).
“Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (10:17). It is a profound and meaningful question as it concerns the significance of human life. This man is a practicing Jew and wishes to have a life with God after his death. All of us ask similar questions in different stages of our lives: “What is the meaning of my life? What is my ultimate aim, and how do I attain it?” This man believed that observance of the law guaranteed him a place next to God. He was diligently observing the laws but still knew there was a vacuum somewhere and it needed to be filled. To his question, Jesus proposes a radical way to free him from all the bondages to have a single-minded attachment to God. This life is concretely realized in his solidarity with the poor. So, Jesus asks him to sell his property, give to the poor, and then follow him.
This proposal was hard for him to accept as he was a wealthy man. Given the options, he chose wealth and failed to understand the real source of all wealth and life i.e. God. He was condemned not because of his wealth but because of his belief that riches were a sign of God’s favor. His attachment to wealth was deeper and more important than his attachment to God. Our Church history tells the story of countless saints who were inspired by the words of Jesus and opted for a life of radical poverty. St. Francis of Assisi is such a saint whose feast, we celebrated a few days ago. He continues to challenge us to lead a simple life and to imitate Christ in everything we do.
Francis was the son of a wealthy merchant in Assisi, yet he wore a filthy tunic, a rope as a belt, and no shoes. While preaching, he often would dance, weep, make animal sounds, or play a musical instrument. Many people regarded him as mad, or dangerous and eventually, a living saint. His life became the message as sometimes, he walked around the streets of Assisi without speaking a single word. He took clothes from his Father’s store and gave them to the poor. When his father took him to the Bishop, he gave up the clothes he was wearing and was forced to wear the cloth the Bishop gave to cover his nakedness. In 1202 as a soldier he was in prison for a year when Assisi was defeated in the war against Perugia. He spent his time with the lepers, went through a conversion experience, and began to rebuild an abandoned church in his town. Eventually, he was instrumental in rebuilding the ruined Universal Church of his time.
Even in his own lifetime, his disciples were numbered in the thousands. They renovated churches, tended to lepers, performed manual labor for farmers and artisans, preached, and prayed. What Francis told his followers at his deathbed is relevant for all of us: “I have done what was mine to do. May Christ teach you what is yours!”
Our model of spiritual life is not the rich man of the gospel but Jesus and his countless disciples like Francis of Assisi. We should be transformed into beautiful spiritual figures to transform this world. Most often earthly riches occupy and preoccupy our minds and hearts. Now, let us start “investing” in the Kingdom of Heaven in order to inherit it at the end of our earthly life.
Rev. Dr. Mathew Charthakuzhiyil