Reflection for St. Vincent de Paul meeting, Monday, August 17, 2015
By Dcn Bob Bonomi
In today’s Gospel, we see an encounter between a young man and Jesus that leads to the young man having to make a choice: continue to live his life as he has, in pursuit of what he believes to be best for him, or radically change it to pursue the perfection offered by Jesus.
Isn’t that the story of our own lives? On the one hand, we try to live holy lives in accord with what we believe are the requirements of our faith: we pray, go to Mass, contribute to the upkeep of the Church and its mission – and of course, volunteer our time and talents to the St. Vincent de Paul Society and/or other ministries. But, on the other hand, we also live our lives pursuing the desires and demands that we believe will lead US to a happy life – a successful career; a nice home; a new car; travel and leisure opportunities – things that represent the “good life.”
The young man, although he had many possessions, by all appearances was living his faith. He observed all of the commandments and, in Mark’s version of the events, Jesus looked at him and “loved him” so we can tell that he was honestly practicing his faith. But merely practicing his faith wasn’t enough to lead to perfection because he allowed his possessions to have a priority in his life.
Jesus loves us, too. But we need to ask ourselves: are we, in our efforts to practice our faith, merely meeting the legal obligations of our faith? Or are we truly seeking to follow Jesus?
It is a hard choice, to give up everything that we have for Christ. And not all are asked that; Zacchaeus only offered half of what he owned and it was enough to please Jesus. But it is the attitude that God looks for – a contrite spirit, a sacrifice of the heart. If we truly want to follow Jesus, then that must be the priority of our life, to the potential sacrifice of all else.
Are we merely satisfied with where we are in the practice of our faith? Or are we prepared to radically change it in response to our encounter with Jesus?
By Dcn Bob Bonomi
In today’s Gospel, we see an encounter between a young man and Jesus that leads to the young man having to make a choice: continue to live his life as he has, in pursuit of what he believes to be best for him, or radically change it to pursue the perfection offered by Jesus.
Isn’t that the story of our own lives? On the one hand, we try to live holy lives in accord with what we believe are the requirements of our faith: we pray, go to Mass, contribute to the upkeep of the Church and its mission – and of course, volunteer our time and talents to the St. Vincent de Paul Society and/or other ministries. But, on the other hand, we also live our lives pursuing the desires and demands that we believe will lead US to a happy life – a successful career; a nice home; a new car; travel and leisure opportunities – things that represent the “good life.”
The young man, although he had many possessions, by all appearances was living his faith. He observed all of the commandments and, in Mark’s version of the events, Jesus looked at him and “loved him” so we can tell that he was honestly practicing his faith. But merely practicing his faith wasn’t enough to lead to perfection because he allowed his possessions to have a priority in his life.
Jesus loves us, too. But we need to ask ourselves: are we, in our efforts to practice our faith, merely meeting the legal obligations of our faith? Or are we truly seeking to follow Jesus?
It is a hard choice, to give up everything that we have for Christ. And not all are asked that; Zacchaeus only offered half of what he owned and it was enough to please Jesus. But it is the attitude that God looks for – a contrite spirit, a sacrifice of the heart. If we truly want to follow Jesus, then that must be the priority of our life, to the potential sacrifice of all else.
Are we merely satisfied with where we are in the practice of our faith? Or are we prepared to radically change it in response to our encounter with Jesus?
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