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It was the summer of 1987. The Cold War had reached its climax. Would the world end in a nuclear war?

Maybe. Maybe not.

Do you remember, in particular, the bold speech of President Ronald Regan, who sternly pointed his finger at the Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, commanding him, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

That is, the Berlin Wall, which divided East and West Germany.

Reagan’s famous quote reminded the world just how much walls divide us. After all, that’s their purpose – to separate people, to keep them out.

Think of how often walls are still used to separate nations, communities, and families…

Now I’m not seeking to enter into a political discussion — I’ll let the news shows do that.

But what I am suggesting is that our ability as people to erect physical walls points to a deeper tendency within all of us.

We’re all guilty of putting up emotional walls, barriers in our minds and hearts meant to keep people out, to prevent them from ever hurting us.

These walls can be found in marriages, families, friendships, and even in our relationship with God. Wherever two people exist, there is the potential for a wall.

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Think about some of the more painful experiences we’ve had in life.

Some of us have been bullied or experienced the sting of prejudice. Others have been abandoned, lost a loved one, suffered a broken heart, or experienced the wrenching pain of divorce.

These experiences wound us. They hurt! As a result, we put walls up to protect ourselves from ever being hurt again.

We can even put up temporary walls against people we love. How many of us have given someone the “silent treatment” or held a grudge?

These, too, are meant to create distance, to keep people out.

And while protective, such walls come at a cost – they impede us from entering into nurturing, life-giving relationships…

Unfortunately, this is nothing new. Human beings have done this since the time of Adam and Eve.

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In our first reading from the book of Genesis, God creates Adam, the first human being. But God knows that Adam is not meant to live alone, so God creates different animals to keep him company (Genesis 2:18).

But this is not enough.

Adam will only be complete if he enters into a relationship with another person. So God creates Eve. (Genesis 2:21-22)

We know the story from here – Adam and Eve live in harmony until the fall, that moment when they both eat from the tree of knowledge.

And when God asks them why they did it, Adam is the first to respond, throwing Eve under the bus, saying, “She made me do it!” (Genesis 3:12).

And so we find the first argument, and consequently, the first wall put up between two people. And this wall was erected inside a marriage.

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Let’s fast forward to the Gospel, where we find the effects of these walls. The scribes and Pharisees question Jesus about the possibility of divorce.

“Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?” they ask. (Mark 10:2).

That is, is it lawful to erect a permanent, legal and emotional wall between two people who were once intimate?

Jesus simply responds, Moses permitted divorce because of the “hardness of your hearts.” But from the beginning, it was not so. (Mark 10:5)

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Let’s be clear. Jesus is not out to condemn us. He doesn’t condemn people who are struggling in their marriage, or even those who’ve ended in divorce.

What Jesus condemns is a hardened heart– a heart that is closed off to love and forgiveness, a heart that is entirely surrounded by walls.

Such a heart may even be closed to the love and mercy of God.

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What walls have I put up against my spouse, my children, my parents, or others whom I’ve loved?

How do I block people out?

Am I nursing a grudge, hiding behind the fear of rejection, or unwilling to forgive someone who’s hurt me?

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And, more importantly, am I open to tearing these walls down?

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Remember Regan’s famous line from West Berlin, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

Regan understood that real peace was only possible in a world without walls.

Clearly, we are still far from that ideal.

But the lesson still rings true for us. Peace is only possible in the world and in our hearts, if we tear down the physical – and perhaps more importantly – the  emotional walls that divide us.

What walls separate me from others? Will we tear them down?

We will only be happier, freer, if we do.

 

***

Who’s seen the Disney movie, Frozen?

It’s about a young girl named Elsa who has the power to turn things into ice. She loved her magical powers until she accidentally hit her sister, Ana, nearly killing her.

Distraught over the accident, Elsa runs away and builds herself a castle of ice, where she remains hidden for many, many years.

Meanwhile, Elsa’s village of Arendelle remains in an eternal winter, waiting for her to come home.

In the end, Elsa learns that, if she is ever going to be happy, then she must let her fear and her shame go. In a moment of inspiration, she bursts out of her castle of ice and sings her famous song, “Let it go!”

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In the Gospel, Jesus speaks of discipleship in very radical terms, telling us to pluck out our eyes and cut off our hands and feet if they cause us to sin.

Yikes!

Clearly, Jesus is exaggerating. But serious teachings often require serious words. What he is saying is that we must let go of any person, any thought, or any action that leads us to sin.

Otherwise, we may miss our opportunity to enter the kingdom of God…

To sin literally means, “to trip, to fall, to stumble.” The question becomes, then, what causes us to stumble in our relationship with God? What freezes our hearts and isolates us from others?

Is it a resistance to Jesus’ words, an unhealthy relationship, regrets, a particular temptation, regrets, or a deep-seeded habit?

Or, using the imagery from the Gospel, do our eyes cause us to sin? Do we ever look at people with judgmental or lustful eyes?

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“Pluck them out,” Jesus says. Get rid of the judgment. Get rid of the lust.

Just as we scrape our knees when we fall, sinning causes us scrape – or hurt – our relationship with God and with others.

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What makes this Gospel so challenging is not only the fact that Jesus urges us to remove sin from our own lives; he also warns us against causing others to sin.

In fact, Jesus is even sterner in this regard.

“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believes in me to sin,” he says,“it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

By “little ones,” Jesus is not simply referring to children. He’s also referring to those who are weak, on the periphery, or new to the faith.

Think of the young people in our parish, our candidates preparing for confirmation, or even someone struggling with grief.

We must make every effort to encourage them on their faith journeys, because our actions either build them up or tear them down. Rarely are actions neutral.

For example, a kind word, a prayer, an apology, or even a smile can offer an inspirational boost.

But gossip can ruin a person’s reputation.

It’s important to be aware of howour actions affect other people, as we will be held accountable for them in the end.

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Remember Queen Elsa from the movie Frozen. Just as her decision to isolate herself affected her entire village, so we are all connected as a human family. Our actions affect other people, either for better or for worse.

This is why Jesus urges us to be aware of our behavior. If anything causes us to sin – to stumble – then we must “let it go.”

Or, using his words, we must“pluck it out… cut it off.”

 And make every effort, instead, to support and build one another up. For whatever we do to one another, we do to Jesus.

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Perhaps the most difficult cross to bear is that of a parent losing a child.

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In the 2011 film, The Way, Martin Sheen plays the role of a father who loses his only child in a sudden accident.

His son was attempting to walk the Camino of Santiago, a thousand year old trail in northern Spain, but was killed unexpectedly in a violent storm.

Forced into a type of soul searching, this father decides to carry his son’s ashes on his back while walking the trail himself.

Along the way, he begins to question:

What is the meaning of my own life?

Will I see my son again?

***

In the Gospel, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem.

Like this father in the movie, The Way, Jesus is not only walking a physical path; he’s also on a spiritual journey, one that becomes increasingly difficult.

For months and miles, Jesus has carried the knowledge in his heart that, “the Son of man will be handed over to men and they will kill him” (Mark 9:31).

Imagine carrying this weight inside. Imagine being Jesus.

He could’ve become bitter. He could’ve retreated in fear and sought another path.

But he didn’t.

Day after day, Jesus heroically inches his way towards Jerusalem, knowing that betrayal and a cross await him.

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For this reason, Jesus turns away from teaching the crowds and curing the sick. His public ministry is coming to a close. It’s time to focus on his closest disciples, instead, sharing the details of his future with them.

He tells them plainly, “the Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise” (Mark 9:31).

This was shocking news to the disciples. They couldn’t imagine Jesus gone.

The truth is, they had very different plans for Jesus and for themselves. They expected to march into Jerusalem, crown Jesus king, and place themselves by his side.

As the Gospel tells us, “They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest” (Mark 9:34).

That is, who might have the highest seat of honor. 

The disciples weren’t thinking about the resurrection; they were thinking about earthly glory and power.

Little do they know, they themselves will be forced into a type of soul searching upon entering Jerusalem, asking themselves about the meaning of their own lives…and whether or not they will see Jesus again.

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Imagine how tough this journey must have been for Jesus. Even his closest friends don’t understand him.

All he can do is patiently teach them about his future – and by extension about their future – and pray that they will be converted on the way.

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How does Jesus bear it? Where does he find the strength for his journey, fully aware of what’s ahead?

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He loves his Father.

And he believes his Father will raise him from the dead.

For now, all Jesus must do is put one foot in front of the other, walking the path before him.

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Life inevitably comes with its share of burdens. And like Jesus, we all carry them.

Perhaps we struggle with anxiety, depression, poor self-image, or addiction.

Perhaps we struggle with making ends meet or being a single parent.

Or, like Sheen in the movie, The Way, perhaps we’re carrying the heaviest burden of them all – the loss of a child…

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Jesus prays for us, that his faith might become our own.

He journeyed through life with peace knowing that, in the end, “the Son of Man will rise” (Mark 9:31).

And so will we.

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This is the Good News of the Gospel. This is the promise of our Lord! 

The day is coming when we will enter the presence of God and be filled with every heavenly grace and blessing.

For now, all we must do is take the next step on our journey, however easy or difficult that may be, trusting the Risen Lord is with us.