What Must I do to Inherit Eternal Life?

Gospel Reading: 28^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, October 13, 2024
Mark 10:17-30

I consider Father Julio (pastor to persons homeless in the city of São Paulo, Brazil) one of the most inspirational preachers of our time. His homilies bring depth and light to understanding the Scriptures and connecting biblical insights to our world today as few other preachers I have heard do. The following reflections blend my own questions and focus together with insights highlighted by Father Julio.

Artist: Heinrich Hoffman

The stage in this reading is set by the announcement that a man comes running up to Jesus and kneels  before him. Fr. Julio points out that in Mark the acts of “running up” and “kneeling before” Jesus connect this man with two other characters in this gospel: the man possessed by demons (Mark 5:6), and the leper (Mark 1:40). For Fr. Julio, the significance of this connection becomes clear at the end of this story when the narrative provides more insight into the identity of this man.

What comes next in the text is what sparked my attention, perhaps in a way that it never had before. Kneeling, the man asks Jesus: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” This question is one that has been central to Christians and other people of faith down through all the centuries, to the present. “What must I do to gain eternal life?” Now, what intrigues me in attending once again to this gospel reading is Jesus’ response. Note that first he names the commandments: do not kill; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother. And he stops there.

In the Christian church and family where I grew up, Jesus’ answer would not have been the correct answer to the question. I grew up being taught that obeying these commandments may be a demonstration and consequence of a true faith that leads to eternal life, but obeying the commandments was definitely not seen as the foundation for such hope. The correct answer was to believe that Jesus died for our sins and thus opened the way to eternal life. In fact I was taught that someone who failed to obey these commandments could, with a change of heart at the last moment, say the prayer of belief and be guaranteed eternal life. However, if we take Jesus at his word, obeying the commandments is in fact a sufficient answer.

However, notice also an omission in Jesus’ response. The law is actually summarized in two parts: “Love God” and “Love your Neighbor.” But Jesus’ response only highlights the second part, i.e., acts related to loving your neighbor. Fr. Julio emphasizes that concrete acts of loving our neighbor are in fact evidence of our love for God. If we say we love God but then act against, or disrespect, or turn our backs on the other, the lie is demonstrated in our action. We can claim to love God, but if our life doesn’t show that love, then we must ask whether there is true love there, or not!

But returning to the story. The inquirer assures Jesus that he has followed all the commandments and has done so since his youth. Hearing this, we are told that Jesus responds with love telling the man that he is lacking then only one thing: “Go,” he says, and “sell all you have and give to the poor.” And with this, Jesus promises, “you will have treasures in heaven.”

Again, in contrast to the “belief answer” so common in what I was taught and in the church today, this seems to be Jesus’ final response to the man’s question. Give of yourself to those around you, especially the most vulnerable, those in greatest need, and you will inherit what you seek. (I am reminded of another gospel passage where Jesus teaches that those who feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick, and visit those in prison will “inherit the Reign of God.” Matthew 25:31-46) However, to pick up on an image that appears later in this passage, this answer from Jesus is what broke the camel’s back. Hearing this, the man goes away sad. And here the narrator tells us something more about this man: “for he had many possessions.” How he gained his possessions we are not told. Did he inherit them? Did he gain them honestly? Did he gain them by cheating or exploiting his workers? The passage doesn’t provide this information. However, Jesus’ call to making a radical commitment to his fellow human beings was more than the man was willing to give, and although sad, he walks away.

Note that Jesus changes what is named as the “inheritance” for the man selling his possessions and giving to the poor. Jesus does not say that he will gain eternal life but rather that he will have “treasure in heaven.” Perhaps already perceiving the man’s social status and class Jesus offers him something that he has a personal attachment to: treasure.  But heavenly treasure is not enough to draw him away from his life as a rich man.

Here Fr. Julio points out the connection to the man possessed by demons and the leper. They both came to Jesus seeking healing. In contrast, this man came unaware of a need for healing but rather, accustomed to a life of privilege, he came inquiring about how to guarantee privileged status in the next life.

We are told that Jesus’ disciples, who witnessed this encounter, were amazed. Jesus uses this opportunity to tell them that while “all things are possible with God,” “how hard it is for those with wealth to enter God’s Reign!” “It is easier,” he explains, “for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the Reign of God.”