What's in the way?. (2021-10-10, Sunday - 28)

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Homily –  Oct.  10, 2021  /  28^th Sunday (Year B)

● Wisdom 7:7-11 ●   Psalm 90 ●  Hebrews 4:12-13 ●  + Mark 10:17-30 ●

Title:  What ‘s in the way?

[__00_]      The headline here friends is that things or objects can get in the way, sometimes between ourselves and God, they can possess us. This is based on our gospel reflection of the rich young man who approaches Jesus and he's asked to detach himself from his possessions.

[__01_]     When I bought my first car, my first vehicle - the car itself became something of an idol – or a substitute for god –  for me. This was kind of ironic because it was not – visually or aesethetically speaking – a very nice looking car.

It was all scratched up, with old bumper stickers including one of the

Roman mythological god “Hercules” on the back.   If you owned a car with a Hercules bumper sticker and traded in at a Hudson County dealership, I may have bought your car.

                            

I could not bring myself to remove any of these markings as they gave the  car a certain character and history.  It also made the car fit in well in an urban neighborhood in Hudson County a short distance from NYC where I lived at the time. I had no garage or private off-street parking. I could only park on the street.

So, a  car that was less shiny and less new was perfect such a use.

It was not, to many people, nice looking. But it was my own “not-very-nice-looking” car.

[__02_]     In this case, there was at least one instance where not my very nice looking car became a source of sin, pride,  and temptation.

But, was I wiling at the time to trade in or "sell off" this personal asset so as to gain real treasure in heaven. Absolutely not!  I still had some growing up to do, some hearing of the Gospel  to do, some praying to do...and by the way, I am still a work in progress, I still have some growing up to do, some praying to do, and I am still a work in progress. You are a work in progress.

[__03_]     I am sharing this episode with you because it does highlight for me how an object of my own possession could come to possess me or lead me astray. 

In the Gospel, there is a man in who is being asked to sell his possessions to follow the Lord, but he is unable to do that because he is attached to his possessions.

[__04_]     I was very attached to that car, to my first car. As you might imagine, since it was my first car, I did not have a car before that. I rode my bicycle to the dealership several miles across town ... took my bicycle home in "pre-owned" car with the old bumper stickers.

I was absolutely determined to buy a car on my first day of shopping. This was, perhaps, error  and sin # 1. It was my absolute hastiness.  I did not really know what shopping around for a car meant, but I was not into that at all. I just wanted a car, and I wanted it right then and there.

And, I wanted something used - not too nice - that I could park on the street in a neighborhood full

of apartment buildngs and parallel parking. 

I was shown a car with 103,000 miles, 2 door compact Nissan and it was 5 years old...and the dealer wanted 6,000 for it. This was 25 years ago. That would be about 10,000 today for a small car that's 5 years old and with 103,000 miles.  (It was really 5,995 “sticker“ for the car in 1998)

Not knowing much better, being hasty, I talked him down to about 4,000 and signed on the dotted line.

I was pretty proud of myself. I had a car.  Then, when I got the car home, I realized that the car needed about 4,000 worth of work, so I had

to pay almost as much to fix the car as it was to buy it.

[__05_]     A few months later, I had to leave the car at my parents' house for about a week. They were appalled at the appearance of the car with the bumper stickers and it did not look very nice in their driveway.

One day, my father had to go out and move the car and he noticed some receipts that I had  absentmindely left  folded up in the car. That was the 4,000 in repairs.

He asked me about them - "did you really pay 4,000 to get this particular car repaired?"

I was stunned and really did not want to answer the question, feeling I was being interrogated.

I am ashamed to admit that I was tempted to lie... but did not actually lie to my father.

How could I lie to him?

My response was, "Dad, can we talk about this later?"

When was "later". Later was was about 10 or 15 years before I "came clean" and told him the whole story.

The car was an object in the way of living in a completely truthful, honest way toward my father.

What are the objects in the way for you, for me now ?  for you ?

What gets in the way of our relationship with Jesus, in the way of love of God and love of neighbor.

Sometimes we idolize things that are not things per se. For example, I can idolize praise. Praise can be very important to me, or perhaps being praised by one particular person is so important to me that if that one or particular person does not praise me, the praise from everybody else doesn't matter. Praise can be an idol. Secondly, punctuality can be an idol. It's good to be on time, but sometimes, I am so attached to being punctual and sometimes I'm my own worst enemy. I cause myself not to be punctual. Yet, I end up unhappy due to my attachment. Punctuality becomes an idol that cannot satisfy me, only God can satisfy.

 

[__06_]     Until 2 years ago, I had a really simple cell phone. It was almost an “analog rotary dial phone.” I noticed I could run that phone for 3 or 4 days without charging it. It had no features.

          I also could get neither video nor internet, nor email, nothing.  I could not take photos or video or record myself.

          I enjoyed that phone. All I could do was text and call.

I enjoyed that. Now, I have a smart phone.  I cannot seem to disconnect from my email and all the other so called “advantages” or perhaps they are disadvantages. I check my email in the sacristy sometimes.

When I am in church by myself, I will try to make a conscious effort not to answer my phone or even

look at my phone "inside the altar rail".   I will go out to the lobby or sacristy.   But, even this, I fear

is not really a sufficiently reverent behavior or response to the presence of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The phone can also be idol for me, a god for me.

What is the idol for you or the object for you? What is the item on your calendar or the entertainment

that you never ever want to miss?

It does not have to be anything big but even the little things can get in the way.

 

[__07_]     And, how do you feel when someone else calls you “out” or notices these idols? Or, you think they notice. Do you feel good?

          I do not feel good. I feel uncomfortable.  But that’s what the Gospel often arrives – as a comfort to the afflicted and affliction to the comfortable.

My father, noticing these 4,000 in receipts on the car was not trying to afflict me. He was just naturally asking a question.

But I experienced this as an “accusation”  or an affliction.

Because those repairs were a source of pride and vanity.

I was called to let them go.

I am called to let other material things go and to recognize that, right now, or very soon,  I could start shopping around for something else that might  get in the way between me and Jesus Christ. I might even want it, right away !

[__fin_]