Listen

  "As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging." Mk 10:46 

A older friend, struggling with his hearing and beginning to feel very isolated, told me he would have preferred to lose the use of his eyes than his ears. Embarrassed to ask people to repeat themselves, he found himself not participating in conversations and shying away from communal gatherings. Though he has hearing aids, he still often feels alone in a group and ignored by people with whom he often had enjoyable conversations.

Whether one is struggling with blindness or deafness is not the point of today's Gospel. The isolation and loneliness that accompanies the loss of any our faculties is painful, unnerving and confusing, especially in a society that often looked at physical infirmities as punishment for sin, and it is this to which Jesus addresses himself. The Lord wants us to feel and be an integral part of his body, the church. Anything that inhibits or limits this participation is his concern, and should be ours.

Today, listen to someone you normally avoid.

What have you been privileged to see or hear that opened your heart to the Gospel?

Fear

 "Those who followed were afraid." Mk 10:32

Assuming they would be faithful to Lord as he marched on Jerusalem, James and John boldly ask the Lord for a place at his right hand, and we wonder what they were thinking! Jesus is clear about the sorrowful and painful journey that awaits him, but James and John seem able to think only of his triumph. Denial, as they say, is not just a river in Egypt.

The soldier or the Christian who does feel fear is too often reckless. Committed to the idea that their cause is just, they believe the Lord will rescue them from every hazard and restore them to their rightful place among the elect. Because they judge fear to be a weakness, they lack caution and preparedness for the war that awaits them.

Living a simple gospel life that does not seek power over others can feel like war. With so many others urging us to buy and possess things that we do not really need to want, we sometimes believe that having a new Ipad or Smartphone will make us powerful and give us status in our community. More dangerously, it gets is the way of Christ's reminder to his disciples that he has come, "not to be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many." Mk 10:45

Today, don't buy anything you don't need.

Whose life of service to others most impresses you with its gospel power?

Complaining to God

  "Peter began to say to Jesus, 'We have given up everything and followed you.'" Mk 10:28

It is natural to complain from time to time about the treatment we receive from God, and it is good to express this in prayer. Unless we learn how to speak of our disappointment to God as if to a good friend, and to search more deeply within ourselves and our relationships for a fuller understanding and acceptance of our own faults and gifts, we will never really know the depths of God's love.

Today's gospel finds Peter complaining to Jesus about everything he and the apostles have had to give up to follow him, and though Peter doesn't get the words out, we suspect that he is wondering what reward he and the disciples will receive for their efforts. When Jesus assures Peter that all who let go of home, friends, family, and culture, will receive a hundred times as much, Peter seems satisfied. However, it will take time for Peter (and us) to understand that the hundredfold Jesus promises is not what he expects. In letting go into the arms of God, we receive the gift of the church, Christ's body, a community of billions of people to accompany us through life. Indeed, the hundredfold is more than we could ever imagine!

Today, try not to complain. Be grateful for those who walk with you in faith.

How do you manage your unmet expectations of God?

The Danger of Wealth

 "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the Kingdom of God." Mk 10:23

When social standing, wealth and power lead to blindness of spirit, they become impediments to knowing and loving God, and must be avoided or rejected. Only those, rich and poor alike, who see with the eyes of God and respond in justice to the poor deserve to be remembered, named and imitated. Every person, no matter how poor, has a dignity and importance in the reign of God. This is a great obstacle to many.

People of every generation, social class, race and culture need to remember that it is not our accomplishments or wealth that lead us to God, but our humility and love of all creation which save us. Jesus expresses this bluntly in today's Gospel. "It is easier for a camel to pass through [the] eye of [a] needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mk 10;24) When wealth blinds us to God's will and others' need, we are from the reign of God. Only a change of heart can help us.

Today, pray for anyone you may have dismissed because of their weakness, race or poverty.

How do you understand Jesus when he says that it is terribly hard for rich people to get into heaven?