Overview:

Tuesday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time

A Reflection for Tuesday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, I say to you, it will be hard for one who is rich
to enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Again I say to you,
it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.”
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and said,
“Who then can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said,
“For men this is impossible,
but for God all things are possible.” (Mt 19:23-26)

Find today’s readings here.

We have been making room for a baby. It is our first. In fact, with any luck, by the time you read this it will already have arrived, and I’ll be basking in the relaxation of paternity leave. (This is how it works, right?) Even in preparation, plenty of changes have come with the transition from non-parent to parent. Some are emotional and plumb new depths for both love and anxiety. Others are social and involve changes to schedules and routines. But some of it just has to do with all our stuff. 

You can attend all the classes, read all the parenting books, but the baby has to go somewhere in this Brooklyn apartment when it arrives. The home office has transformed into a nursery and that has meant a few healthy bouts of purging our possessions. I have been tempted to look at my wife and claim that it might be easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than it is to find a place for all our new baby gear. 

Jesus is teaching about the dangers of wealth and possessions in today’s Gospel. No amount of context or equivocation changes that. Even the audience in the first century found this difficult. (Note how the Gospel details how “When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished.”) There is a temptation for many people, myself included, to hear today’s reading and assume that I am not the target audience. But it is a message that I need to hear. Even if I would not call myself rich, I am, by orders of magnitude, more comfortable (my apartment size notwithstanding) than much of the world’s population, and even more so than the first people who heard this teaching from Jesus. 

Maybe some day we will solve this problem by seeking out more square footage. But I am determined to stave off a move to the suburbs with all my heart, soul and mind. And getting a new place would distract from the fundamental truth that these various possessions and knick-knacks will not receive my time or attention with the arrival of our child. And it is better this way. 

So we have made some adjustments. My wife gave away a dresser that she painted herself when she first moved to New York. I have given away many of my books to make room for the children’s ones that we will read during bedtime. We both agreed that the wine fridge can stay, for now, since it can hold bottles of wine and milk alike. 

The nursery is coming together, it turns out. The rich entering the kingdom of God, a camel passing through the eye of a needle, and making room for a new family member; Jesus gives the same answer to all these conundrums: “For men this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

Zac Davis is an associate editor and the senior director for digital strategy for America. He also co-hosts the podcast, Jesuitical.