First Reading
Wisdom 7:7-11
I prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. I preferred her to scepter and throne, and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her, nor did I liken any priceless gem to her; because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand, and before her, silver is to be accounted mire. Beyond health and comeliness I loved her, and I chose to have her rather than the light, because the splendor of her never yields to sleep. Yet all good things together came to me in her company, and countless riches at her hands.
Second Reading
Hebrews 4:12-13
Brothers and sisters: Indeed the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. No creature is concealed from him, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.
Gospel Cycle Cycle B
Mark 10:17-30
As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.” He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 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.” They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.” Peter began to say to him, “We have given up everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come.”
Does Jesus reject all wealthy people? That does not seem likely and the Gospel does no support such a view. Does Jesus ask everyone to follow Him? Yes, that seems to be His invitation to us. That “discipleship” makes various demands on various people.
If we start with the first reading, from the Book of Wisdom, we find a standard approach to material wealth: it does not compare at all with wisdom. This should immediately challenge each of us to ask a question: if I had to choose one or the other, either wealth or wisdom, which would I choose? We need to know ourselves well enough to be honest about our answers.
Then we can ask ourselves: if I had to choose between Jesus and wealth, which would I choose?
We do not have to presume, however, that wealth is opposed by itself to following Jesus. The whole concept of wise stewardship has arisen to try to describe people who truly follow Christ and use their wealth for the good of others.
So when we come to the Gospel, we must hear Jesus challenging the rich man to sell everything not as a demand, but as an invitation to follow Him more closely. This invitation must resound in our hearts as well. We must look truthfully at our own lives and ask if we are willing to give up everything in order to follow Jesus. Everything may not be asked of us, but we must be ready.
Surely Jesus, who had the reputation as a wine-bibber and a glutton (see Luke 7:34), is not a man who is insisting that everyone be austere and totally bereft of material goods. Rather, we have this invitation to follow Him. The second reading, from the Letter to the Hebrews, speaks clearly about the demands of the Word of God. It is this Word of God that invites us over and over to follow the Lord.
Our challenge is not giving up wealth and material goods, our challenge is to follow Jesus and come to know the living God.