What If You Couldn't Fail?

 

What would you do if failure didn't matter? What would you endeavor, dare, or try? What mission would you attempt, what venture would you risk; what great deed would you undertake?

Last week we read in (Mark 10: 35-45) a response from Jesus to James and John that was identical to his response to Bartimaeus: "What do you wish me to do for you?" However, the contrast in attitudes between Bartimaeus and the “Zebedee brothers” is striking. Bartimeus being made aware of Jesus presence cries out two times from the depth of his faith and humility, "Son of David, have pity on me," "Son of David, have pity on me.” While James and John, came to Jesus and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you…grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left."

So, how do we react when we hear these two appeals? How are they different; how are they very similar?

Would you, like Bartimaeus in our Gospel (Mark 10:46-52) have the courage to shout out for healing even though the people around you try to shush you into silence? I wonder, could it be that Bartimaeus was so used to failure and disappointment that he saw no reason not to try one more time? He, as opposed to James and John, were not part of Jesus’ inner circle… but was he?

Would we be able to silence the hushes of our false self and surrender to God as Bartimaeus did? What about James and John? They may have missed the point in that they felt that they were privileged to be part of Jesus’ inner circle. But how was their faith different from the blind man?

So often we hesitate to ask God’s help because whether great or small, our needs seem so hopelessly impossible or so ridiculously insignificant that we just don't even try. Yet the promise of the Gospel is that we are free... free to risk, to dare, to love, to live, to work, to dream, and yes… free to fail, because we have God's promise that there is no small gesture and there is no impossible deed, and that the God who raised Jesus from the dead will also bring all things – even our failed efforts – to a good end. And yes, we are all part of God’s inner circle.

So, if we’re going to risk anything that matters, not failing is not an option. Risk entails failure. Change entails failure. Creativity and innovation and experimentation all entail failure. And if we forget that, we will either never try anything that matters or end up sorely disappointed.

The First Will Be Last

 Throughout our lives, most of us have been told by our teachers that there is no such thing as a stupid question. Well, in Mark 10:35-45 James and John blow the lid off that myth. They really did ask a really dumb question at an even more inopportune time. Jesus had just finished telling the twelve for the third time, that his destiny as a servant messiah would result in his suffering, death, and ultimately, resurrection. Yet, immediately following this profound revelation, they asked Jesus if they could sit on his right and left side when he came to glory.

Talk about not getting it! What do you suppose the "Zebedee boys" had in mind? They wanted a piece of the “messianic action,” and sit on either side of Jesus’ throne. Needless to say they were still relating Jesus destiny to an earthly king and despite their time with Jesus during his ministry, James and John still didn't really know what it meant to follow Jesus to the end.

Jesus, as he tells James and John after their bold request, is a servant messiah, and to follow a servant messiah one must also become a servant: "whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:44-45).

In fairness to James and John, answering the call to "servant-hood" does not come easy. Aren't we much like them in many ways? We would much prefer to be known as a great "anything" but servant. Yet, we will realize by the grace of the Holy Spirit, that we are in God's presence when we are called to give of ourselves to serve the least of our brethren.

Jesus' ministry and destiny makes it clear that if we are to follow in his footsteps, then the bare basic of love's dedication are not enough. That love is going to want to be expressed in going above and beyond rudimentary religious "piety," in leaving the comfortable and familiar, and following a voice other than our own. St. Teresa of Calcutta rightly instructs us that for “love to be real, it must cost, it must hurt, it must empty us of self.” Being in love with God requires more than just checking the boxes. It requires a sincere and unconditional self-investment. Desiring God with our whole heart, mind, and soul means that I must also desire a relationship with my neighbor with that same degree of fervor. This is why following Christ can be difficult. It is less a matter of intellect and more a matter of heart and soul. (Weekly Bulletin, St. Benedict Church, October 10, 2021)

If I Were a Rich Man

What does it mean to have a personal union with God? For me and most Christians, personal union with God is primarily defined by our relationship with Jesus the incarnational divine Being whose very coming was intended  to enhance that intimate relationship. When we are free from those attachments that divert our attention from God, we are able to turn our lives over to him, and he comes alive to us through Christ. In essence, we get out of the way and let God’s love take us through the rest of our journey. 

We can accept what Jesus says at face value in that wealth can be hazardous to our spiritual health; however, Jesus is not suggesting that it’s impossible for a rich man to “enter” the kingdom of God. In our reading this week Mark 10:17-30 Jesus reinforces the metaphor of wealth as a spiritual liability to our gaining entry into God’s kingdom. But is he only talking about money and riches here? All too often we relate one’s being poor as an automatic “ticket to admission” to the kingdom. Yet, if we refuse to take responsibility for our own lives and well-being and passively accept our self-imposed fate as a “gift” in and of itself, we are missing the point. There are no merit badges for being rich or poor and co-dependent. Not taking responsibility for one’s own welfare…if one is able, is as much a distraction and a liability to entering God’s kingdom as being diverted from our union with God by coveting excess and abundance for abundance sake.

An important message in this reading is Jesus’ call for us to give up our “false selves,” as Thomas Keating calls it. Whether rich or poor, he asks us to set aside all the attachments, devices, security blankets and even spiritual practices that we devise as “props” so that we can stay in our comfort zones. As such, we hide behind an egotistical illusion of the false self. Simply stated, anything that gets in the way of our becoming closer to and being united with God is a stumbling block. Jesus makes it clear that people, places and things can be millstones, or "stumbling blocks" that can block us from our relationship with God.

Christian practice aims at our dismissing the false self by developing an awareness of God’s presence in our lives. Then as we can see our deep-rooted attachments and with God’s help, let them go as he takes them away and replaces them with Himself. (Keating, Open Mind Open Heart, p 72.)

I have always enjoyed Eugene Peterson’s citations in The Message on the false self or ego: Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for? "Don't be in such a hurry to go into business for yourself."