“Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” [Gospel – 28th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B]
What must I do to inherit eternal life? The young man’s question is one we all ask in different ways at different times in our lives .. And just as that young man sought out the Lord to ask Jesus what his calling was, to ask Jesus what the meaning and purpose of his life was, you and I continue to seek out from God the meaning and purpose of our lives.
This young man had the best his world could offer — all kinds of wealth and security — Yet he came to Jesus because he lacked one thing – the kind of lasting peace and happiness which money could not buy him.
He had lost track of what his possessions are for. So too can we. So too can we.
You see, our daily life in this modern world revolves around security and wealth, much like his world did for that young man. We work long hours to earn money. We spend restless nights calculating how we can increase it. We go through anxious moments as we plan how best to spend it. And we use that money to buy stuff, thinking that the more stuff we have, the higher our salary is, the bigger our house is, the more toys we have to play with, then the happier we will be. the more at peace we will be.
One of the great ironies of life is that the long hours we work to get us that stuff that we think will help us be at peace, those same long hours draw us away from things that truly will bring us the lasting peace and happiness we are searching for.
Which begs the question – what are our possessions for?
We can get the beginning of an answer from the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. One of the meditations presents 3 statements to ponder. The first is …..
“I believe that I was created to share my life and love with God and other people, forever.” And I suspect that if we think about it, we would likely all agree with that first statement, since many of us have a sense that what gives our life meaning and purpose is when we share our life, share our love with other people, And share it God, hopefully eternally.
The second statement is this: “I believe that God created all other things to help me achieve this goal.” All the other things: the sunrise and sunset, the ocean and the sky, dogs and cats and pizza and beer, cars, jobs, clothes, cell phones, the internet, music, movies, all these things were created to help us in our purpose of sharing our life and our love with God and other people.
So, the third statement of the meditation continues by saying “I believe, therefore, that I should use the other things God created to the extent that they help me attain my goal, and I should abstain from them to the extent that they hinder me.”
What a great meditation! But this is where it begins to get challenging. The possessions of the rich young man in today’s Gospel hindered him from fulfilling his true purpose, but he wasn’t willing to let them go. God has given you and I the wonderful gifts of creation to help us fulfill our purpose of sharing in God’s life and love, but when they get in the way then it’s time to let them go.
It is time to free yourself from the tyranny of things, of tyranny of thinking that your wealth or possessions will bring you peace. God asks you to let go of those attachments – to let go of letting yourself be driven by the relentless pursuit of material goods
God asks you instead to be mindful of the needs around you. The need your children have of having you around more, of being present to them in carefree timelessness. The need your family has of sharing time and events with you. The need your community has for your help in supporting them, by the giving of your talents. The need we all have of sharing our love more generously with others. The need God has of you, to spend more time with God. Not for God’s sake – but for yours.
Jesus put forward a challenge to the young man in today’s Gospel. Jesus puts forward this same challenge to you this Thanksgiving. Perhaps in the quiet moments after our turkey dinners we can ponder those same three statements that St. Ignatius proposed we reflect on. And in doing so, discover what is it that you or I would rather cling to than let go of, in order to find true peace, and happiness In order to discover the meaning and purpose of our lives.
What created things are you using in a way that hinders your relationship with Christ? Can you let them go for the sake of eternal life, and accompany Jesus on the journey of faith or, like that young man, are you destined to walk sadly away.
The choice is yours.