Ostium Catholic

The young man's question is sincere. He has observed the commandments and he knows they are not the whole thing. What do I still lack? He is not performing piety or testing Jesus. He is asking from genuine dissatisfaction with what he has done so far, from the sense that something is still between him and the fullness.

Jesus names the specific thing - not a category, the particular attachment that stands between this particular man and the following. Sell. Give. Come. And the man goes away sad, because what Jesus named was accurate, and the man knew it was accurate, and he could not do it.

The sadness is the honest moment. He does not argue that Jesus is wrong. He does not redefine the terms to make himself compliant. He goes away sad, which means he heard the answer, understood it was right, and told the truth about the cost. That honesty is itself a kind of integrity, even in the failure to comply.

Ezekiel was asked to carry grief differently - to be a sign rather than to mourn in the customary way. The delight of your eyes, the desire of your soul - what you most love is the place where obedience is most costly. Ezekiel did not deny the loss. He carried it inside while his outward faithfulness continued. The groaning in silence is still groaning. God hears it.

For someone in the early decades of adult life, the rich young man question is almost universally applicable. What do you still lack? You may be living with real integrity by the standard you know. But what is the specific thing - in your specific life, not in someone else's spiritual autobiography - that stands between you and the full gift? Jesus will name it if you stay to ask.

Ask the question: what do I still lack? Then wait for the answer without shaping it in advance. If it sends you away sad, go - but keep the question with you. The young man carried the question when he left. That may have been the beginning of something.

Lord, I am asking what I still lack. Let me hear the specific answer, not the category. And if I go away sad first, let me come back when I am ready. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us. Amen.