28th Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 14.10.2012

Wisdom 7:7-11/ Hebrew 4:12-13/ Mark 10:17-30


By and large, we human beings are quite predictable creatures and that is because we are creatures of habit.

From what we do, to what we say, to how we think, we can be habitually predictable and predictably habitual.

Which can be a good thing because that will put some stability and regularity into our lives.

Being creatures of habit, we will form a routine in our lives that is familiar and comfortable for ourselves.

So we will wake up at a particular time, and get up on a particular side of the bed; we will have a particular pattern of washing up and a particular way of having breakfast and a particular way of starting the day.

Not only are we creatures of habit when it comes to routine, we are also creatures of habit when it comes to sinning!

We have heard of people saying: I always commit the same sins! (At least I have heard of that before)

Well, if you always commit the same sins, then it may mean that you a habitual sinner, ie. you are a creature of habit.

Because if you commit new sins every day, then you would need serious spiritual help. 

Anyway, whether it is sin or other things, we have this habit of attachment.

Yes, we are attached to our habits because we have this habit of attachment.

We are attached to what is familiar. That’s why changing jobs can be a chaotic experience.

Just overnight and our working environment is so new to us and we have to start from scratch to prove our worth.

Shifting to a new house can be equally chaotic and even traumatic for the older people.

You lose your things, you lose your way, and if you don’t settle down quickly, you may even lose your mind.

Yes, we are all creatures of habit and our main habit is the habit of attachment.

We attach ourselves to what is familiar, to what is comfortable, to what is stable and secure.

To move out of these so-called “comfort zones” is to enter into a possible “danger” zone, where things can be chaotic and even traumatic.

In the gospel, we heard of a rich young man who was pretty comfortable in life.

He was also religiously habitual, as he faithfully kept the commandments, which he had kept from his earliest days.

So why did he want to go to Jesus and even knelt before Him and say, “Good Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

That rich young man was pretty comfortable and secure, materially as well as religiously.

He was already having a good life here on earth. But he also wanted to do something to secure eternal life. And he was sincere about it.

And that’s why Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him.

That rich young man was a sincere seeker and was humble enough to kneel before Jesus and ask what he should do to inherit eternal life.

Yet when Jesus told him what to do, his face fell.

And the reason was that, as much as the rich young man was willing to do more, yet he can’t do with less.

And with that, he went away sad. And we will not hear of him again in the gospel.

The rich young man had a habit – a habit of attachment. He was attached to his possessions, and in a sense, he was possessed by his attachment.

His habit is undeniably also our habit. We are attached to our possessions, and we become possessed by our attachments.

We may not possess great wealth, but it may be our health, our achievements, our promotions, our reputation, our enjoyment.

Yet the wisdom of life tells us that life is a journey of progressive poverty – we will, slowly but surely, lose our youth, our health, our memory, our eyesight, our hearing, and in the end we will lose everything.

There is a story of a rich landowner by the name of Carl, who often rode on his horse in his vast estate, so that he can admire his great wealth.

One day while riding around his estate, he saw Hans, an old poor tenant farmer, and he was unpacking his lunch and saying grace before meals.

So he called out to him, “How are you Hans? And what are you doing?”

Hans looked up and replied, “Oh, it’s you sir. So sorry that I didn’t see you. My sight is getting poor and my hearing is also not that good. Oh, I am giving thanks to God for my food.”

Carl looked that the lunch of coarse rice and vegetables and he didn’t thought much about what to be thankful for.

Then the old farmer said, “It’s strange that you should come by today, because I had a strange dream last night. In my dream all was bright and beautiful, and then I heard a voice telling me – The richest man in the valley will die tonight. I don’t know what it means, but since you came by I thought I’ll share this with you.”

Carl snorted and said, “Dreams are nonsense!” and he rode off. But when he got home, he could not forget those words – The richest man in the valley will die tonight.

He was obviously the richest man in the valley, so he called his doctor to his house that evening and told him about what Hans said.

The doctor gave Carl a thorough examination and then said, “Mr. Carl, you are as strong and healthy as the horse you were riding on. There is no way that you are going to die tonight. But for good measure, I’ll stay with you tonight in case you need my help.”

The night went on into morning and Carl had breakfast with the doctor and thanked him for staying over. He apologized for causing the doctor the inconvenience and for being upset over an old man’s dream.

Carl felt relieved. And then there was a knock on the door. A servant opened the door and the messenger said, “I am looking for the doctor. It’s about old Hans. He died last night in his sleep.”

So indeed, the richest man in the valley did die that night.

And the wisdom of God tells us that the richest man is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least.

We need to pray and ask God to help us change this habit of getting more, to that of letting go.

But it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for us to let go of the habit of our attachment to our possessions.

Yes, it is not easy, but it not impossible.

With the cross of Christ, everything is possible.

We only need the cross of Christ to inherit eternal life.