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| James J Tissot The Rich Young Ruler walks sadly away |
- Job 23:1-9, 16-17 and Psalm 22:1-15 •
- Amos 5:6-7, 10-15 and Psalm 90:12-17 •
- Hebrews 4:12-16 •
- Mark 10:17-31
Christianity has always been somewhat ambivalent about
poverty. On the one hand, from the earliest times the relief of poverty has
been seen as a sacred Christian duty, and it continues to be an indispensible
part of the Church’s work at home and abroad. On the other hand, poverty has
also been held out as a Christian ideal. St Francis, whose feast day is celebrated
in October, famously made ‘Lady Poverty’ his spiritual companion. Mother
Theresa of Calcutta -- one of the most compelling Christian icons of our time -- died in 1997; the sum
total of the worldly possessions she left behind came to two saris and a bucket.
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| St Francis weds Lady Poverty |
But if poverty is such a good thing, why are we trying to
relieve it? The Gospel for this Sunday makes this question more pressing. In a
striking (and original) image Jesus tells us that it is easier for a camel to
get through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of
heaven. Does that mean that prosperity is a bad thing? If this is the true,
then at a time when the world is longing for a return to economic growth, the
Christian message can’t expect much of hearing. We can try to fudge the issue
by making ‘rich’ mean just the phenomenally wealthy few. But that really won’t
work. By historical standards and in comparison with many other parts of the world
today, most of us count as ‘rich’. We are very far indeed from the breadline. So what are we to think?
It’s important to see that in this passage from Mark Jesus
is addressing a particular young man, someone with sincere spiritual longings. Jesus
didn’t criticize or condemn him, but ‘looking at him, loved him’. Yet when, out
of love, he points to the thing that stands in the way of these longings, the
young man is shocked and grieved. He thereby reveals that his wealth is a
serious spiritual obstacle for him. We need to examine ourselves from this
perspective also. If we take our faith in Jesus seriously, then we have to
admit that being as wealthy as we are, means running a big spiritual risk -- that the pursuit of worldly goods becomes everything. At
the same time, poverty can also be an obstacle to grace – something so grinding that the human spirit cannot rise above the level of mere survival. In reality, then, the two ideals can and should be brought together.
Jesus, the Epistle to the Hebrews declares, is one 'who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without
sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so
that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need'. Christians in the wealthy Western world are often spiritually encumbered
by their wealth. Their need is to get rid of that encumbrance. By freely giving it
away, they open themselves up again to the things of eternal life. In very same act, these gifts, if thoughtfully directed, can alleviate the needs of others. To free people from grinding poverty is open a door to their spiritual liberty.
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