Memorial of St. Pius X, Pope

Today's Mass Readings

In today’s gospel, a young man approaches Jesus and asks what he must do to attain eternal life. Jesus first encourages him to keep the commandments. When the young man tells Jesus that he has kept these from his youth, Jesus challenges him further: “If you wish to be perfect, go and sell what you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in Heaven. Then come, follow me.” However, the young man is too attached to his possessions, and cannot bring himself to do what Jesus asks of him, and so he goes away sad.

We too are sad when we see the young man leave because we know that he has missed a great opportunity; one that will not come again. However, if we follow the young man further to see what might possibly happen with him, we will see that all may not be lost. In all likelihood, this young man never again spoke to Jesus in the flesh. But that does not mean that the young man never encountered Jesus again. Rather, we can be sure that Jesus would have come to this young man every day for the rest of his life, inviting him each day to make some small step closer to what Jesus wanted from him. On some days, this young man may have accepted some of what Jesus asked of him that day, while on other days he did not. Some steps forward and some steps back. But finally, maybe after ten or twenty years, Jesus may have grown this young man to the point where he was actually able to answer Jesus’ original invitation to him. Now his life looks not so much like a tragedy, but more like the trajectory that many of us follow, slowly and gradually growing in our following of the Lord. The important thing is that we try our best to respond to the Lord, and know that he will be patient with us as we gradually grow in holiness.

Reflection by Fr. Aquinas Keusenkothen, OSB