Commentary on Ecclesiastes 1:2,2:21-23; Colossians 3:1-5,9-11; Luke 12:13-21

Our attitude to material things is the subject of today’s readings. It is about the things that we really regard important in our lives. The readings also suggest that what we are is of far greater importance than what we have.

The Gospel begins by introducing a man who wants Jesus to act as a mediator in a property dispute:

Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.

It was quite common to bring such disputes to a rabbi to be solved. But Jesus has no interest whatever in dealing with this problem because it represents a point of view that is totally at variance with his own. Instead, Jesus gives a warning:

Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.

It is possible that the man making the request was actually one of Jesus’ followers. In which case, he needed to learn very quickly that such problems have nothing whatever to do with the following of Jesus—with being a Christian.

A different agenda
It was quite irrelevant for Jesus that the man should get a fair share of an inheritance, especially if the man can satisfy his daily needs without it. This, of course, is not the way ‘normal’ people think. They would be prepared to hire lawyers and go through expensive court proceedings in order to get money that they believed was due to them—whether they needed it or not. We have frequently seen families torn apart in bitter disputes over the allocation of money.

So many dream some day of being rich, to be able to buy all the things they would love to have, to be able to travel, to have no worries. There is a belief, which we see contradicted every single day, that once we have financial security, all our problems will be solved: housing, children’s education, cars and other desirable luxuries, retirement and old age. Wealth, it is believed, is a sign of ‘success’ though it is not quite clear where the ‘success’ really lies. It also brings respect and status. Some dream of being able to drive up in a luxury car to a big hotel or exclusive club, hand the keys over to a hotel attendant, sit down at an expensive dinner table and knowingly peruse the wine list, and while waiting for the dinner to be served, to make a few calls on the mobile phone, get nods of recognition from other successful people who can also afford to dine at this place—what a life!

Quite honestly, for many of us Christians these priorities often take precedence over our following of Christ. Sincere young people want to establish their careers first—and once set up, then maybe consider being a “good” Catholic.

Another approach
Today’s readings ask us to consider another approach altogether. It is important to emphasise that Jesus is not saying, “You must give up all these things and lead a life of bleak misery for my sake.” On the contrary, Jesus is offering a much more secure way to happiness and a life of real enjoyment rather than the way that most people insist on believing in, even though it is seen to fail again and again. Against the greed that obsesses many people, Jesus offers an opposite alternative to security and happiness—sharing.

How many can identify with the rich man in the parable that Jesus tells today? In his own eyes, this man had been really ‘successful’. He had just made a ‘killing’ not on the stock exchange, but in a particularly good harvest. It was so good he would have to pull down his barns and build even bigger ones. And then he could sit back and say to himself:

Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.

He had worked very hard all these years and this was what he deserved.

It is worth observing, however, that no other people are mentioned in the story. He himself was the absolute centre of everything—nothing else mattered, no one else mattered. The world and all its goods were there purely and simply for him to take hold of and keep for himself. And now there was nothing else to do but to enjoy it all.

But this was not to be the case:

God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’

“How much did he leave?” someone asked of a multi-billionaire who had just died. “Every cent,” was the answer. Or as Ecclesiastes today puts it:

Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher,
vanity of vanities! All is vanity…sometimes one who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave all to be enjoyed by another who did not toil for it.

All the laborious days one spent, the cares of office, the restless nights—none of it matters in the end.

Jesus continues:

So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.

Jesus is not opposed to being prosperous, if there is no inequality, but he suggests that true and enduring wealth lies elsewhere. The rich and the poor both share the same common fate—they die. But to whom much was given, much is expected.

A better alternative
We get some hints of a better alternative in the Second Reading, which is from the Letter to the Colossians:

…if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is…Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth…

Not very practical advice, I hear you saying. But Paul is not telling us to close our eyes to mundane realities and, hoping for the best, keep looking heavenwards. Rather he is urging us to identify our understanding of life, our values, with those of God, which have been communicated to us by the life and words of Jesus. Paul continues:

Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly…

By this he means a God-less, materialistic mentality. And then he goes on to list some “earthly” activities:

…sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry).

As well, Paul says:

Do not lie to one another…

Lying can take many forms as it includes every kind of deceit, pretending to be what we are not and denying the truth in ourselves and in the world around us.

In following Christ’s way, Paul tells us we should see that we have:

…stripped off the old self with its practices and…clothed [ourselves] with the new self…

Our “new self” should share the same vision of life and the same value system and the same goals as those that Jesus proposes. It involves:

…being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator.

This is a knowledge that is not found in university courses, but rather in a deep insight and understanding of what life is really about. In this, Jesus is the perfect model. To grow more and more like Jesus is to grow more and more into the image of God, by whom and for whom we were created.

In the kind of society that is the Kingdom, we do not need the security of an inheritance or winning the lottery. Our security comes from being part of a loving and caring community taking care of each member’s needs. But even in the Church, which is the visible sign of that Kingdom, this kind of society, with some exceptions, has not yet been put in place. We still tend to believe that, if we do not look after ‘No. 1’ (ourselves), no one else will.

The society that is the Kingdom involves a life of total immersion in and involvement with other people and our environment. The old divisions which are the curse of so much living must fall away:

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him.
(Rom 10:12)

Today Paul says there is no distinction between:

circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, enslaved and free…

As well, we could add, there is no room for distinction between Chinese, European, Filipino, Vietnamese or American as well. Rather:

…Christ is all and in all!

It is with Jesus that the security people long for lies. Real security is not in the future. Genuine security is in the here and now. And it is this security that is the real wealth we dream of. Material plenty by itself does not guarantee it. Real security is there for the asking, but most of us cannot see. We must pray like Bartimaeus:

My teacher, let me see… (Mark 10:51)