The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

October 13, 2024 – Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Mark 10:17-30

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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It’s helpful to know some of the biblical background (history, customs and culture) when reading the Bible, especially that which was present during the lifetime of Jesus. Take today’s gospel about the camel and the eye of the needle. I recall the difficulty that I had in understanding it as a youngster. I knew what camels were because my parents loved taking us to a nearby zoo. I knew about the eye of a needle because my mom taught me how to sew buttons on shirts.

Trying to imagine a camel going through such a small opening seemed not only impossible, but a strange way of describing something. It made no sense. That is, until I learned more about how in the time of Jesus pack camels struggled to pass through a narrow opening in the wall surrounding Jerusalem called the “needle.”

Suppose you are a traveller coming from Egypt to Jerusalem in 30 AD. You had all that you needed to survive that arduous trip strapped to the back of your camel. Also, you brought some trade goods to sell in the Holy City that were also on the back of your trusty camel. But the only way you and your camel could pass though the protective wall surrounding the city that day was to pass through the “needle” opening. So you had to take all your possessions off the back of the camel and then you could squeeze through. Just barely.  

As an image for showing that having too many possessions or wealth might be a hindrance to living the life Jesus described as holy in God’s world, Jesus taught that it was good to not be overly burdened with excessive wealth, or even the desire for it. He said it was like having that fully packed camel stuck outside that narrow opening into the Holy City. The camel and its owner could not enter unless …

Now most people I know are not overly burdened with too much stuff or wealth. But many might want more than they need, or at least would like to have much more. Their desire for greater wealth or possessions may consume them. They worry about their investments all through the day. They can check their holdings minute by minute on their smart phone. In a sense, they carry a heavy load.  

Jesus is saying that there are more important things in life than your wealth. Like your generosity toward those in real need. Like your attention to meeting the manifold needs of those around you or those suffering in so many ways close to you and around the world.     

David M. Thomas, PhD