Gospel of Mark, chapter 10:40

God created everyone for success and He did not create anyone for failure. But what do success and failure mean? For most people, as for James and John in today’s gospel story, success means to be head of the pack. Success is measured by comparing one’s achievements with one’s competitors. That is why James and John went to Jesus and asked, not that they be granted a place in his kingdom, but that they be allowed “to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory” (Mark 10:37). Jesus answered: “You do not know what you are asking,” and then proceeded to give them a new understanding of success.

For Jesus, success means fulfilling God’s will. Before we were created, divine providence already crafted a purpose for each of us. We do not come into the world to shape our own destiny; we come with a divine purpose. That is what the special calling of Mary, the mother of the Lord, is all about. Mary had a divine purpose; that of being the mother of God’s incarnate Son, and He prepared her fully to do His will. No other woman before or after Mary could have become the mother of God out of her own will or personal ambition. That is why Jesus tells James and John that: “it is not for me to choose who will sit at my right and my left. It is God who will grant these places to those for whom He has prepared them.”

Does this mean that God has determined, from the get-go, the outcome of our lives? No. God has a purpose for which He created you and me. But whether you and I attain this purpose or not depends on how we cooperate with God’s grace. To say that whatever people do in life is what God created them to do is determinism. God gives us free will to cooperate with divine grace. That is why, even though God predestined Mary to be the mother of our Savior, when the time came for her to accomplish His will, He sent an angel to seek her cooperation. She is the perfect example of success because she courageously said yes to God’s will. (Luke 1:38)

James and John, on the other hand, were like many New Age people today who feel that they can achieve anything by themselves. This way of seeing things encourages unbridled ambition, rivalry and unhealthy competition among people, which we call the rat race. The trouble with the rat race is that, even if you win, you are still a rat.

The gospel vision of success encourages mutual cooperation and the joy of realizing that we can all be successful because God has created every one of us for a different purpose.

God has enough dreams to go round; a different purpose for everyone; a different success story for everyone. Our ambition in life should be to do God’s will. This is the true meaning of success.

Fr. Hugh Duffy

* * * DO NOT MISS TOMORROW’S BLOG ON HUMILITY * * *