Luke 12:13-21

Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23

Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17

Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11

Luke 12:13-21

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,

“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”

He replied to him,

“Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”

Then he said to the crowd,

“Take care to guard against all greed,

for though one may be rich,

one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

Then he told them a parable.

“There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest.

He asked himself, ‘What shall I do,

for I do not have space to store my harvest?’

And he said, ‘This is what I shall do:

I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones.

There I shall store all my grain and other goods

and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you,

you have so many good things stored up for many years,

rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’

But God said to him,

‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;

and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’

Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves

but are not rich in what matters to God.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, you give my life and existence profound meaning. I come from you and am returning to you. My life is a journey, and I am always walking either toward or away from your house. I am a member of your household and seek to store up treasure with you through merciful deeds of charity empowered by your divine grace.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Most Philosophical Book in the Bible: The First Reading is taken from the Book of Ecclesiastes. The book has been called the most philosophical book of the Bible. It feels like a thought experiment in which faith is bracketed and the world is pondered exclusively from the standpoint of human reason. The existence of God and God’s sovereignty over history and the world are not denied in the book. By bracketing faith, the book suggests that “all things are vanity”. And so, life, from a merely human point of view, appears to be meaningless if death is our ultimate destiny and if man has no hope for happiness that reaches beyond the grave (see Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, 1002). The grim reality is that man toils and leaves the world with nothing. The little he gains is destined to be left to another. Possessions and pleasure are fleeting and can’t be the ultimate meaning of life. If there is no afterlife and if the injustices in this world are not rectified in the next, then the best we can do, says Qoheleth, is to enjoy the good things in life as much as circumstances allow (Ecclesiastes 2:24; 3:12, 22; 8:15).

2. The Foolish Rich Man in the Gospel: This attitude of “rest, eat, drink, and be merry” is exemplified in the Gospel by the rich man in the parable. He had a bountiful harvest one year and didn’t have space in his barns to store it all. He decided to tear down his barns and build larger ones, and enjoy the rest of his life in leisure. God points out how foolish this attitude was: “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you.” Instead of storing up earthly treasure like the rich man, we need to store up heavenly treasure. The rich man didn’t need to build bigger barns to store the grain. He needed to contemplate the material needs of the people around him. Why not sell the excess grain and extra goods and give the money to the poor? Why not support a hospital or school with the extra money? Why not give the grain to the poor so that they can have bread? Why not act as a kinsman redeemer and pay off the debt of those in servitude? The rich man foolishly thinks the meaning of life is found in comfort and things rather than in loving sacrifice.

3. Seek What is Above: In the Letter to the Colossians, Paul contrasts seeking what is above with seeking what is earthly: “The seeking of ‘what is on earth’ – namely, wealth, physical pleasure, and pride – is at the root of all the sins that St. Paul describes as ‘earthly’: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, greed, lying” (Bergsma, Word of the Lord: Year C, 348). Putting on Christ’s life through Baptism means putting off their old sinful ways. “When calling Christians to be who they have been made to be in Christ, Paul can command them to ‘put on’ new life, virtues, even their ‘new self,’ and to ‘put off’ evil ways and their old self (Colossians 3:12; see Romans 13:12, 14; Ephesians 4:22, 25). This putting on/off will be complete on the last day, when all that they are is clothed and transformed to be like Christ. … When calling believers to Christian morality, therefore, Paul can call them to ‘crucify’ or ‘put to death’ their old selves and desires (Romans 8:13; Colossians 3:5) and to live and act in the new life that will be complete on the last day” (Prothro, The Apostle Paul and His Letters, 215). The solution, then, to the problem of the meaning of life, pondered in Ecclesiastes, is ultimately found in Christ. 

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, guide me as I use the things of this passing world. Help me to see myself as a steward of many good things and how I use them to alleviate the sufferings of others and help them flourish as children of God.

Living the Word of God: If I take a look at my possessions, would Jesus judge me as foolish or wise? Am I solely concentrated on building up earthly treasure? Or am I storing up heavenly treasure with the Father? Am I seeking what is on earth or what is above?