Continuing the formation of His disciples, Jesus next cleared up their minds and stoke up their hearts about the right attitude toward material possessions, and the real preparedness they should make sure of for the coming reign of God (Luke 12:13-21).
What one is, not one’s possessions
Asked to arbitrate the division of inheritance between two brothers, Jesus declined and made the point that such temporal questions should not be a central issue for His followers. They must be clear in their own minds what their real concern in life must be. Addressed by the revered title of “teacher,” like the rabbis ordinarily consulted for thorny cases of inheritance (Numbers 27:1-11; Deuteronomy 21:15ff), Jesus discerned that prudence lies in not allowing oneself to be embroiled in such matters. Instead, He put forward for reflection what may be the deeper issue usually accompanying such quarrel between brothers. Greed might well be the reason why a man did not want to share the inheritance with his brother, just as it could also be greed that drove to action the one seeking arbitration from Jesus.
“Take care to guard against all greed,” Jesus declared. To the point of greediness, people are much too concerned about getting rich by acquiring more money and property and about being secure from material needs. Possessions do not guarantee fullness of life or happiness or security. A person is not valued according to what the person has or owns, but according to what the person is or has become or can become. For Jesus’ followers, life does not and cannot consist of material wealth. And covetousness for them is out of place in anyone desirous of belonging to the eternal reign of God.
Taught by death
When it comes to the true value of earthly possessions, nothing can teach it better than death. Like a sentinel, death screens all material things and only eternal values pass through. A dead person has no pockets. Everything temporal must be left behind, as vividly illustrated by the parable of Jesus. The man with overflowing barns thought only of further securing his life and his future in this world. More and larger barns, he thought, then he could “rest, eat, drink, and be merry.” His life, festooned with “I” and “my,” was defined by the riches he commanded and wealth he planned to have more of. Evidently he had not included death in his calculations. And death could be a harsh teacher, separating him all of a sudden from all his possessions, which would belong to someone else, for nothing material is forever.
A “fool” the man is called, since he lived his life amid all his wealth as if “there is no God” (Psalm 14:1). He did some planning but forgot to accord to God what belongs to God, and consequently other people also had no real part in his life and plans. The only problem he saw was how to secure for himself his expanding possessions. He did not see beyond what he owned and did not realize how he can serve God with his riches and what he can be for others with his wealth. The man was a certified fool because he did not keep in mind that his own life was only a loan which could be demanded back from him any moment. Therefore, his foolishness’ ultimate disaster lies paradoxically in having to appear before God literally empty-handed. He thought only of storing up for himself, but ended up “not rich in what matters to God.” His lack of insight and foresight in life led him to waste the real gold he could have acquired as a man with overflowing barns.
Alálaong bagá, “what profit comes to a man from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which he has labored under the sun?” asks this Sunday’s first reading. Indeed what did all his riches profit our self-centered, greedy man of the parable? “Blessed is the rich person who is found blameless, and who does not go for gold” (Sirach 31:8). The disciples of Jesus must align their attitudes about things of this world with the true purpose of life. Greed is contrary to our freedom from material possessions, because slavery to riches blinds us to our final goal. To be rich in heaven with the riches on earth is the right way.
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