Oct132024
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We Belong to Him.

Can you say that you have kept the Ten Commandments all your life? Can you say that a bad word never came out of your mouth? You never stretched the truth, and you were never jealous or envious. Can you say you have kept the commandments since your youth? Then, can we all agree that the rich man in the Gospel is extraordinary, a rare person who merits distinction? Yet, the Lord says it is easier for a “camel”— if a camel walks into your kitchen, its head will crash through the ceiling and look around in the upstairs bedroom—to pass through the eye of a needle. You can’t even get a fruit fly through the eye of a needle. Yet, it is still easier for a camel to waltz right through that tiny hole than for this extraordinary and rare person to enter heaven. Are you a little worried? I know the disciples appeared worried. So maybe we should talk about this.

Let’s say that I go out and buy a lottery scratch ticket, and I win a million dollars. Think of all the fishing trips I could take. Think of the fine dinners I could have with my friends. But none of that will happen because I would have to give the million dollars to my provincial. Of course, I know what will happen. I will get yelled at: “Give my that money and no more gabbling.” What happened? I belong.  I belong to a religious order called the Oblates of the Virgin Mary.

My father is ninety-two years old, and he still works. He has been a builder since he was eighteen years old. After all those years of working in labor, you would think he would be rich. If you ask him why he hasn’t put away his first million dollars in the bank after working for so many years, because he raised five boys and had to retire two dentists. Collages can rip down old buildings and put up new ones because my father put the kids through college. The reason my father has not reached his million-dollar milestone is because he belongs. He belongs to a family. When Jesus asks us to follow Him, it means that we belong to Him.

Let’s suppose the rich man in the Gospel sold everything and followed Christ. He would have gotten in a boat to cross the sea of Galilee, and behold, he would have seen Jesus walking on water. He would have then followed Jesus to the house of a synagogue leader and witnessed Jesus raising up a dead girl. After wiping away a few tears of joy, the rich man would have gone to an upper room and had his feet washed by the Son of God. Three days later, the rich man would have seen Jesus walk into the room on the day of the resurrection.  If he had followed the Lord, he would have been at the most talked about event in world history. Over the next two thousand years, there would not be a person born who would not know his name.

A few days before I celebrated my first Mass, I went to St. Catherine of Siena church and did a practice run with the pastor. When we were done, he told me he had been a priest for over thirty years. He told me that during the years, there were a lot of difficult moments: transfers, financial issues, bills, tragedies, and funerals of very good people. So he gave me this advice: “Never forget who you are with. If you are with Christ, you will you will always be happy.” I think we all know from our experience as Christians that he is right.

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