With thankful hearts

Here is the text of the reflection I shared this weekend, some thoughts about truly appreciating all that we have received, and about the ability to appreciate all that we have.

The ultimate thanksgiving

The man in today’s gospel passage asks an interesting question: … what must I do to inherit eternal life? (Mk 10:17).  With these few words, this young man shows us that he is a man of faith, a man who has heard Jesus speaking, a man who is unsettled by the words he has heard.  By all accounts, he has done well for himself, and he has also tried to live a good life.  When Jesus tells him to follow the commandments, he readily answers: I have kept all these from my youth (Mk 10:20), but Jesus challenges him to go even further. 

Have you ever noticed how Jesus always challenges us to go further?  The commandments say thou shalt not murder (Ex 20:13) but Jesus challenges his disciples to go further: to respect life at all its stages, and to be concerned for the physical, psychological and spiritual good of all our brothers and sisters.  The commandments say thou shalt not commit adultery (Ex 20:14) but Jesus challenges us to go further: to respect the bond of marriage that exists between a woman and a man, and their vocation to be parents, to raise and educate children in the ways of faith.  The commandments say thou shalt not steal (Ex 20:15), but Jesus challenges us to also respect the right that others have to what is rightfully theirs.  The commandments say thou shalt not bear false witness (Ex 20:16) because people will only be able to trust us if we are worthy of their trust.

All the commandments are good, but Jesus challenges us, like the young man in the gospel to go further.  In the case of that young man, Jesus looking at him, loved him and said, ‘… go, sell what you own and give the money to the poor’ (Mk 10:21).  All those who have been immersed in the waters of baptism have already received the promise of eternal life, but it is not enough to have been baptized; we need to live our faith, to practice here on earth for the day when we will enter into heaven, our promised inheritance, where we will live for all eternity in the presence of our God.  Material possessions are good, but no one of us will be able to take tangible treasure with us when we leave this world.  Rather, the measure of our readiness to enter heaven will be based on the relationship we have cultivated with our God, and how we have used the talents we’ve been given in order to tell others about who God is.

The rewards for a relationship of prayer are understanding and wisdom, the gifts described in today’s first reading (Wis 7:7).  These are the true treasures which our hearts seek, and they are made all the more clear to us as we listen to the Word of God, a word that is living and active, shaper than any two edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, … able to judge the thoughts and intentions of our hearts (Heb 4:12).

True wisdom begins with the understanding that all earthly pleasures are temporary.  For the past number of weeks, Canadians have been watching political leaders as they criss-cross the country, each in search of a prize, but even the prize that they seek is but for a time.  The real question is how they will use the power that is entrusted to them in order to make a difference for the sake of all their fellow citizens.  In the same way, no amount of economic power or influence, no amount of physical beauty or health can outlast the true beauty of a soul that knows how to draw close to the poor, the outcast, those who are banished to the peripheries of existence, in order to help us all to realize that every person is precious, unique and loved.

What must we do to gain eternal life?  The answer begins with gratitude: thankfulness for all that we have received, for all the people who share our journey, for every experience that helps us to grow in our understanding of how deeply we are loved.  From this point of view, we will indeed be able to focus not on physical wealth but on the true wealth that Jesus offers, and the more we are grateful for what have received, the easier it will be for us to share our abundance with others.

Happy Thanksgiving!