Fr. Denny's Reflections

Upwards of 100,000 pilgrims from as far away as Spain and Persia passed through the temple of Jerusalem during Passover week. The operation of the temple depended on the donations received that week. They could total the equivalent of millions of dollars. Many wealthy pilgrims, especially those for whom it was the visit of a lifetime, made substantial contributions.

Institutions and organizations today recognize major contributors with “President’s Circle” or “Platinum Circle” donor levels.

During Passover week at the temple, priests were positioned with trumpets next to the collection boxes. When a sizeable contribution landed in the coffers, they blew their trumpets, drawing everyone’s attention to the generous donor. To be sure, the contribution of two coins by the poor widow in today’s gospel received no fanfare. No one noticed except Jesus.  Today’s first reading tells of another widow who used the last of her oil and flour to make a meal for Elijah, trusting in the prophet’s word that her flour jar would not go empty or her jug of oil run dry as a reward for her generosity. The gospel does not mention a similar reward for the poor widow who gave the last of her money, but I’m sure God took care of that in due time.

“Which is the first of all the commandments?” The Jewish scribe posing this question to Jesus, as with his fellow scribes, was highly educated in several languages to assist religious, business and government leaders in recordkeeping as well as domestic and international correspondence. They were the college professors of their day when it came to the understanding and interpretation of Jewish scriptures. Whereas the inquiries of the Pharisees and other scribes had clearly been intended to try to trip Jesus up, his seems to have been an honest attempt to learn from Jesus.  Perhaps he had been impressed with the way Jesus had handled previous challenges. He seems intrigued by the insight of Jesus’ answer connecting love of neighbor with a quote from Leviticus 19:18 with the commandment to love God with all one’s being from the text of today’s first reading in Deuteronomy 6:4-6. His affirmation of Jesus answer indicates an open mind to seeing the good in Jesus. It is possible that he eventually become a Christian.

Today’s second reading is a continuation of selections from the letter to the Hebrews which was written to guide people steeped in the Jewish faith such as that scribe to understand how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s revelation to the Jewish people. 

Being the major city on the route between Lake Galilee to the north and Jerusalem to the west, Jericho was a center for merchants and travelers. With voluminous springs from an oasis, Jericho was also a resort city where people of wealth and power from Jerusalem and as far away as Egypt had palatial villas.  As such, it afforded a decent income for Bartimaeus, the blind man in today’s gospel. Beggars would claim their spots, and Bartimaeus had a prize location near the western gate of the city where crowds would gather each morning to travel together for safety on the 17-mile journey to Jerusalem.  Listening to their conversations, Bartimaeus had undoubtedly heard much talk about Jesus’ miracles.  On hearing that Jesus was in the crowd one morning, Bartimaeus boldly shouted out to get his attention, not wanting to miss what could be his only opportunity for healing. His name in Hebrew means “son of value”.  People commonly considered physical ailments like blindness to be a divine punishment for sins.  As such, most people would not have seen much value in the blind beggar, but Jesus looked deeper than the physical appearance and saw value in Bartimaeus to which other people were blind.

The first reading from Isaiah depicts a figure identified as the Suffering Servant who completes God’s will, not in spite of but by means of his suffering. This was a significant lesson for the many Jewish people who believed sufferings to be a punishment for having offended God. Christians consider the Suffering Servant to prefigure Jesus and his redemptive suffering. 

In the gospel we find the brothers James and John try to bypass the other disciples to request positions of authority in the earthly kingdom they expected Jesus to establish. In Matthew’s gospel (20:20-21) it is their mother who takes her boys in tow and puts the question to Jesus. Their boldness may have resulted from considering themselves Jesus’ favorites as two of the three (along with Peter) selected to accompany Jesus on special occasions when the others were told to stay behind. Jesus doesn’t get upset with them, knowing that, once they truly understand the mission which will be entrusted to them, the good in them will win out over any selfish tendencies. Such is the hope for all of us that, whatever special favors we might request from God, we will in the end see even our sufferings in the light of faith in Jesus and offer them up along with his as part of the mission entrusted to us.

In today’s gospel Jesus tells a rich young man to go and sell everything he has, give the money to the poor, and then come back and follow him. Jesus never challenged Peter or the other disciples in this way. Peter kept his house, his boat and other possessions. Why did Jesus so challenge this man and nobody else? This text illustrates the difference between God’s general word for everyone to follow (i.e., to love God and love one’s neighbor) and God’s specific word for an individual. The riches and possessions on which the young man relied were, in his case, the primary obstacle in the way of his experiencing peace with God and within himself. It wasn’t the same for Peter, for whom the major obstacle may have been his impulsiveness responding to situations without sufficient reflection seeking counsel from the Holy Spirit. What objects, activities, or habits in your life constitute possible obstacles that impede you from experiencing total peace with God and within yourself?

The author of today’s first reading had prayed for the gift of prudence and received in addition the gift of wisdom. Prudence, being sensible as to the appropriate thing to do or say, is associated with wisdom, the ability to make good decisions. When prudence accompanies wisdom, a person can more clearly recognize and choose the will of God and, so doing, experience the peace with God and within oneself that the rich young man in the gospel was seeking.