Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost 2024

Mark 10:17-31

Rev. Neli Miranda

 

We live in an economic system that promotes, praises, and rewards the accumulation of wealth and material possessions.  The pursuit of wealth accumulation has resulted in global wealth becoming concentrated in a few hands, while around 700 million people struggle to survive on less than $2.15 per day, below the extreme poverty line[1].  In Guatemala, for instance, wealth is concentrated in a few families, while 16.2% of the population live in extreme poverty, a challenge predominantly prevalent in rural regions and indigenous communities. [2]

In Jesus’ time riches were also accumulated in a few hands, and most of the people lived in extreme poverty and misery.   According to estimations 9 out of 10 persons lived close to the subsistence level or below it (Häkkinen, 2016).[3]  The Roman Empire had plundered the people’s possessions and distributed them among the Imperial elites, Roman officials, and the Jewish elites who had colluded with them. For instance, the collaboration of the Sadducees and priestly families with the Romans led to the consolidation of vast land holdings by the elite, displacing many who were reduced to tenant farmers forced to surrender a significant portion of their produce to landlords. Also, the imposition of oppressive taxes by the Empire pushed ordinary families into poverty while tax collectors became exponentially rich. High interest on loans became a tool of exploitation, leading to the loss of lands and perpetual indebtedness. It is not surprising to read in the Gospels about the large, needy crowds who followed Jesus.  From this perspective, our reading of those who were wealthy in that time, leads us to think that most of these individuals had acquired their riches illegitimately. 

The preceding historical context helps us understand the passage in today’s Gospel. In Mark’s account, a wealthy man approaches Jesus. This man had many possessions and believed in his moral goodness, saying that he had faithfully kept all God’s commandments throughout his life. Nevertheless, he had a concern; so approaching Jesus, he knelt before him and inquired, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (10,17).

In response, Jesus recalls certain Commandments of the Law: “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother” (10,19). Two of the six Commandments Jesus cites pertain to stealing and defrauding. Jesus includes “You shall not defraud” in his account of the Commandments, although it is not part of the Ten Commandments in Exodus and Deuteronomy. How clever of Jesus!!  Is Jesus pinpointing a specific fault in the rich man? It seems that defrauding others may be the primary issue for this man. However, ignoring Jesus’ words and gloating in his morals, he declares, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth” (10,20).

Noticing the man’s lax observance of the Commandments, Jesus brings him to the next level of the Law and urges him towards positive actions: “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me” (10,21). Jesus evidences the man’s fault and calls him to bring his possessions to the center of the community, returning what rightfully belongs to the people: all that he has accumulated perhaps through legal but unethical means. Jesus guides him to acknowledge the unjust social structure that enables his accumulation of possessions while many needy endure suffering and need. However, this man is unwilling to renounce the material wealth the system has permitted him to accumulate. Mark says that when the man heard Jesus’ words, “He was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions” (10,22). He chooses to persist in a life of accumulation rather than listening to Jesus’ call. The economic system will continue to entangle him, and he will continue to live a life of existential anguish.

Brothers and sisters, the topic of wealth is a sensitive one, as evidenced by this man’s choice to continue attached to his possessions rather than listening to Jesus’ call. Jesus does not ask us, his disciples, to become poor but to recognize that what we accumulate does not belong to us but to those who are in need. What would it be like if all Christians in this country shared what they have accumulated with the communities living in poverty and extreme poverty?  Jesus calls us not to amass earthly possessions but treasures in heaven.

What are those things we accumulate, those we are unwilling to relinquish that could be placed at the center of the community to support others in their needs? Today, whom do we choose to follow: the economic system that promotes the accumulation of wealth and material possessions, or Jesus, who calls us to live in a just and equitable world? Only when we are willing to let go of our accumulations and share them with the needy, will we be ready to follow Jesus.

Amen.

 

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[1] United Nations. Peace, dignity and equality in a healthy planet.

[2] Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas – INE.  Cifras de pobreza en Guatemala.

[3] Häkkinen, S. (2016) Poverty in the first-century Galilee