Tuesday, August 18, 2020 - 20th week of Ordinary Time - Gospel of Jesus Christ according to St. Matthew 19, 23-30 - Jesus Christ became poor, he who was rich, so that you might become rich through his poverty.

If we take the word of God hastily and literally, we can never understand it, so we must never interpret it as we conceive it but as it is given. Here the disciples of Jesus are so astonished at his words that they end up asking, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus is not saying here that the rich will never enter heaven, but that "a rich man will hardly enter the kingdom of heaven". So, when we learn to use riches wisely, the heavens are wide open, when riches are used to love God and others more. Where did these riches come from, didn't they come from the Lord? Wealth should not turn us away from God but rather be used as a means to seek Him.

Jesus illustrates how difficult it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven: it seems impossible, but remember that nothing is impossible for God. Often we hide our face by inventing many pretexts, such as: without money, without wealth, how can we help each other? It is impossible to serve God's faith and wealth. A choice has to be made.

Moreover, the disciples asked Jesus, Peter more specifically, about the sacrifice, and Jesus answered clearly, that whoever gives, will receive a hundredfold and inherit eternal life. He will not wait until he is in heaven to enjoy it, but it begins on earth. This seems to confirm that when there is no hindrance, which can be a person, a close relative or wealth, all of which must be forsaken, eternal life is readily available. Amen.