Qoheleth, the wise man of the Old Testament, sees through the emptiness of a life dedicated to earthly riches. Since the storing up of many possessions does not give lasting happiness, and since whatever we work hard to obtain will eventually go to someone else anyway, then “all things are vanity.” The first reading seems to conclude that we are in a hopeless situation: there is no advantage in either poverty or riches. It is all “vanity and a great misfortune.”
The Gospel, however, speaks of a kind of richness that we should strive for. Are we “rich in what matters to God”? This is a very good question to ponder. We certainly take time to consider our earthly riches. When it comes to our finances, we may go to a financial consultant or an accountant to get advice on how best to support our children’s education or meet our retirement goals. Every time we receive a paycheck we must allocate money for bills, day-to-day expenses, savings, charity, and recreation. While it is fitting that we strive to be good stewards, we easily grow more concerned about our temporary life on earth than about our eternal life in Heaven.
The culture we live in demands that we constantly seek more of everything. It does not tell us that we already have enough or that we should live simply. Today’s reading from St. Paul’s Letter to the Colossians tells us otherwise: “Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.” Paul urges us to “put to death” the parts of us that are earthly, including “the greed that is idolatry.” The world tells us to idolize the lives of celebrities and to imitate their lifestyle. The word of God gives us the antidote to this poisonous way of thinking, reminding us that we “have taken off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed, for knowledge, in the image of its Creator.”
Each one of us, by God’s infinite mercy and grace, is being renewed – transformed – in the image of our Creator. This process – the dying of the old self and rising of the new, the purification of the false self for the life of the true self – is our life’s journey. We do not know how long this process on earth will take. But if we deviate from it to fill ourselves with material possessions, we are very foolish. God says to the rich man in today’s parable, “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?” Anyone who assumes he or she can “eat, drink, and be merry” for many years to come is a fool! We can be more certain of death than of a prosperous earthly life. Our time here is limited, like the grains of sand in an hourglass; we simply do not know how many more days we have. This is why it is important for us to ask ourselves daily if we are rich in what matters to God.
Today’s Psalm also reminds us of our limited time on earth: “You turn man back to dust… You make an end of them in their sleep.” But the psalmist goes further than Qoheleth; he advises us to call on the guidance and wisdom of the Lord: “Teach us to number our days aright, / that we may gain wisdom of heart.” Our hearts will attain peace when we “number our days aright” and work towards storing up riches in Heaven.
The message of today’s Liturgy is simple, but it is not easy to put into practice. As soon as we feel that we need more than we have, or that we cannot be happy without some earthly thing, or that we are being cheated of our rightful inheritance, the temptation of greed sneaks up on us. Jesus gives us a blunt reminder of the basic truth: “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” If our life does not consist of possessions, then we should not be so consumed with gathering more of them. It is the poor in spirit who are truly rich, “for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:3).
When have I experienced the emptiness of a life engrossed in earthly riches? Why am I more concerned about this passing life than about my eternal life in Heaven? How often do I reflect on my life to see whether I am “rich in what matters to God”?
Excerpt from The Anawim Way, Volume 21, no. 6. More information about The Anawim Way may be found here.