(Twenty-eighth Sunday of the Year (B): This homily was given on October 12, 1997 at St. Pius X Church, Westerly, R.I. by Fr. Raymond Suriani. Read Mark 10: 17-27.)

"Salvation according to Joe Fundamentalist; salvation according to Joe Partly-Catholic; salvation according to Jesus Christ."

We just heard an excerpt from chapter 10 of the holy gospel according to St. Mark. But today I’d like to share with you two other versions of this very same story: one is taken from "the gospel according to Joe Fundamentalist," the other is taken the from "the gospel according to Joe Partly-Catholic." Here I must confess: I will be taking a few homiletic liberties with Mark 10. I trust that the Lord will not mind me doing this. If, perchance, he does mind, and I get struck by a bolt of lightening in a couple of seconds, please make sure that many Masses are said for the repose of my soul, because I no doubt will need them!

First, the version of this gospel text according to Joe Fundamentalist--it reads as follows: "As Jesus was setting out on a journey a man came running up, knelt down before him and asked, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to share in everlasting life?’ Jesus answered, ‘You must confess with your lips that I am Lord and believe in your heart that God raised me from the dead on Easter Sunday, then you will be saved! (Romans 10: 9) It’s that simple, my son. Then your name will forever be written in the Book of Life. And nothing that you do will ever change that fact. Once saved, always saved. As I once said, ‘He who believes in me has eternal life.’ (John 6: 47) And, as my good servant St. Paul once put it, ‘By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.’" (Ephesians 2: 8-9) Thank you, Joe Fundamentalist.

Now, the very same passage, as found in the gospel according to Joe Partly-Catholic: "As Jesus was setting out on a journey a man came running up, knelt down before him and asked, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to share in everlasting life?’ Jesus answered, ‘My son, you must be baptized, you must receive the sacraments, and you must go to Mass every Sunday--unless, of course, you’re on vacation or something else really important comes up. And you should always be a nice person. Above all else, you should be known as a nice guy. Do these things, and you will certainly go to heaven. In fact, you’ll get the red carpet treatment from good old St. Peter.’" Thank you, Joe Partly-Catholic.

Do you notice anything in common between Joe Fundamentalist’s version of Mark 10, and Joe Partly-Catholic’s version of the same text? You should. There is a very definite connection, even though neither Joe would want to admit it. Let’s face it, most Fundamentalists do not want to be associated with Catholics, especially Catholics who are lukewarm in their faith; and most Catholics, even partly-Catholic people like Joe, don’t see that they have much in common with Fundamentalists.

So what is the connection? Well, here’s a hint: It has something to do with the commandments. Neither Joe Fundamentalist nor Joe Partly-Catholic thinks that you need to observe God’s commandments in order to be saved. That’s the belief--the crucial belief--that they have in common. Now in all fairness to Joe Fundamentalist: he would probably say that you should observe the commandments after you make a personal commitment to Jesus as your Lord and Savior. But if you back him into a corner, he will be forced to admit to you that in his mind it’s not absolutely necessary. Once you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, Joe Fundamentalist would say that you will be saved, even if you commit sins like murder and adultery afterward and don’t repent. How many Catholics do you know who have left the Church for this type of "easy" gospel message? I’ve known many who have. Of course, this really is very similar to what lukewarm Catholics believe. Notice what Joe Partly-Catholic says in his version of Mark 10: You need to be baptized and you need to be a nice guy in order to get into heaven. I should mention here that "nice guy" in our society today usually means whatever a person wants it to mean. It has no objective content. For example, I’m sure that to somebody Jack the Ripper was a nice guy. I remember an old Italian priest telling me that years ago he attended the wake of a man who had been in the Mafia. The man had been a crook. But his mother said to the priest, "Father, my son Joey, he was such a nice boy. And those people--why they shot him right in the _____." (I won’t use the word. Suffice it to say, he wouldn’t have been able to sit down if he had lived!) But he was a nice guy as far as his mother was concerned! He was a real "peach" of a fellow.

In the real gospel text of Mark, we read, "As Jesus was setting out on a journey a man came running up, knelt down before him and asked, ‘Good teacher, what must I do to share in everlasting life?’ Jesus answered, . . . ‘You know the commandments.’ Then Jesus proceeds to list some of them. So obviously, for Jesus, keeping the commandments of God is not optional. If we want to go to heaven, it’s essential! This, of course, is why our Lord instituted the sacrament of Confession. He knows how weak we are. He knows how easy it is for us to break God’s law. And so, in his great mercy, he’s given us the remedy for our weakness in that sacrament. Do we take advantage of it as often as we should?

But notice that observing external laws is not sufficient. It’s necessary, but it’s not enough. Jesus read the heart of this young man and he saw the materialism that was present there. He saw how attached this boy was to the things of this world. And so he challenged him to change. Jesus said to him, in effect, "My friend, you also need to let go of your materialism, and make me the Lord of every part of your life." He didn’t do it. He was not willing to let go of this sinful attitude. Scripture says, "He went away sad, for he had many possessions." In essence, Jesus was challenging this young man to seek holiness. Some Catholics think that holiness is only for the Mother Teresas of this world. Wrong. Seeking holiness is for everyone. This story makes that quite clear.

You know, every time I read this account of the rich young man a question pops into my mind: Did he come back? Did he ever reconsider and come back to Jesus? A day later, a month later, a year later, perhaps? Scripture does not tell us the answer, but I pray that he did. And if he did, we can be absolutely certain of one thing: the Lord accepted him. Because the Lord always accepts those who return to him in true repentance and who make a firm resolution to keep his commandments and to live holy lives. And for that, we should all say, "Thank God!"