The Gospel passage for this Sunday includes a very famous line: "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" (Mark 10:25). Our initial thought might be to think of a sewing needle and try to imagine a camel squeezing through that tiny hole, which would clearly imply that a wealthy person has no chance of entering the Kingdom of God. But in the culture of Jesus, the phrase "eye of a needle" had another meaning too. The phrase was used to describe a small door that opened in one of the large panes of a grand gate, like a city gate. Such gates would be opened in the morning and would stay open for the day to allow for the daily coming and going of the inhabitants and visitors. Then in the evening, the gates would be closed and locked for the night.
But the small door called the eye of a needle could still be opened as needed during the night hours, which kept the city safer than having to open up the gates after sundown. The eye of a needle door was narrow and short so as to make it easier to defend in case of an attack. Since camels tend to be taller than grown adults and would typically be carrying packages too, getting a camel through the eye of a needle was quite a task. The packages would need to be removed and the camel would need to almost crawl in order to pass. While having a camel enter this way was not easy, it was not impossible either. Returning to the Gospel passage for this Sunday, according to the analogy Jesus uses, entering the Kingdom of Heaven would not be impossible for a rich person, but it would certainly be tough. Only with God's grace would it be possible.
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