Being Wise or Foolish?

Today's liturgy readings, Ecclesiastes 1: 2; 2: 21-23, Col 3: 1-5, 9-11, Luke 12:  13-21, as well as the responsorial psalm, Psalm 90, all speak to us of what is important to God, what matters and what life here on earth is all about.

Ecclesiastes speaks about vanity. One person labors strenuously, applying all of one's energy and skills to productivity and, when he/she leaves this earth, leaves the results of that work to one who has not labored at all.  In the Gospel, a rich person is thinking of building larger barns to contain all of the possessions accumulated over the years--this person has been very productive and needs more storage space. This individual's plan is, then, to enjoy life, saying to oneself: Now you "...have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink and be merry."  God says to such a one:  "You fool, this night  your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom shall they belong?  Thus shall it be for all who who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich in the things that matter to God."

Am I storing up material things, renting more storage space for all that I have accumulated while neglecting the things of God, ignoring the needs of my neighbor for love and kindness, for understanding and compassionate caring, for honesty and forgiveness? Am I scrambling each day to store up things which the world says is important or am I growing "rich in the things that matter to God"?

The responsorial psalm of today's liturgy reminds me that I will return to dust and that I need to remember that, to God, "a thousand years...are like...a watch in the night." The psalmist reminds me that God makes "an end of [us] in [our] sleep; the next morning [we] are like the changing grass, which at dawn springs up anew, but by evening wilts and fades."  With the psalmist let us pray:  "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart....Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days."  May we share that joy and gladness with others.  May we make a difference in the lives of others today by the love we give to them, by our honesty and compassion. May we spend time with others today in a way that brings them joy, relieves their pain or suffering and glories God.

Consequences of Worshipping Idols

In today's first reading, Ezekiel 24:  15-23, the Lord prophesies to Ezekiel that his wife, "the delight of [his] eyes" will die and that he should not publicly mourn her death.   The people want to know what all this means to them and the prophet tells them that they, too, shall lose the delight of their eyes, the Temple in Jerusalem. They, also, are told not to mourn: "[Y]ou shall rot away because of your sins and groan one to another." 

The rationale for the destruction of Jerusalem is given in the response to today's responsorial verse, Dt. 32: 18-19, 20, 21:  "You have forgotten God who gave you birth." We are given a further  explanation in the verse itself:  "You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you.....When the Lord saw this, he was filled with loathing and anger toward his sons and daughters. 'I will hide my face from them,' he said, 'and see what will then become of them.  What a fickle race they are, sons with no loyalty in them! 'Since they have provoked me with their 'no-god' and angered me with their vain idols, I will provoke them with a 'no-people'; with a foolish nation I will anger them."

This passage, it seems to me,  applies to the world of today with its "no-gods" and "vain idols."  Many races, today, have become fickle, disloyal!  The questions I need to ask myself, however,  are:  Have I become fickle, that is, undependable, irresponsible concerning my relationship with God and my service to others?  Am I worshipping 'no-gods,' that is, am I putting my sole security in accumulating money beyond my means,  seeking pleasures above all, clinging to my own whims at the expense of others, seeking the gods of consumerism and materialism? Am I running from one relationship to another and another, being unfaithful to my marriage or religious vows?  Is success my god? Is being in control and having "power" my god?

I am called to love and be loving, as modeled by Jesus in the Gospels. Jesus was obedient to His Father unto death?  To whom am I obedient?  Whom am I serving: God in loving faithfulness and right relationships with my wife and children; God in faithfulness to my vocation in life?

The Ultimate Reason We Have Been Put on Earth

In today’s first reading, Ecclesiastes 1: 2-11, Qoheleth reminds us that “[a]ll things are vanity! What profit has [a person] from all the labor which [one] toils at under the sun? One generation passes and another comes….There is no remembrance of [the people] of old; nor of those to come will there be any remembrance among those who come after them.”  So what is life all about? And how vain is it for those who believe they are here on earth to make a name for themselves, to build “empires” with their pictures and names plastered all over them? Yet, we know that people spend a lifetime pursuing such honors and accolades. We also know that some peoples’ names are remembered for better or for worse: the “Herods,” the “Hitlers”, the “Napoleons,” the “Caesars,” the “Bushes,” the “Clintons,” the “Carters,” the “Obamas,” the “Mitchels,” the “Trumps,”  the “Dianas,” the “Bing Crosbys,” the “Martin Luther Kings,” of this world  and so on.  However, the majority of peoples will pass through this world without being remembered except by their immediate family and loved ones.  Some of these people will be remembered for the evil they promoted and others for the good they accomplished and the justice they pursued. For what and by whom will you and I be remembered?

“Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity” except the Way, the Truth, and the Life; except the faith journey of Ruth and Esther, Naomi and Judith,  Mary, Elizabeth and the Apostles, Paul and Barnabas, Aquila and Priscilla and so many other women and men who gave, and give,  their lives to proclaim the Kingdom and carry on the mission of Christ given to them and all of us by our Creator God. Yes, we all have one purpose given to us by the Lord God before we were born naturally through our biological births and spiritually in baptism and confirmation: to build the Kingdom of love, mercy and justice for all; to be reconcilers with God and one another.  Like Jesus, we are to live in this world as a passing reality. Like Jesus, we are to die and rise to new life here and in eternity, where, like Jesus, we will be glorified through the blood of Christ by the One who paid our ransom with His life. All else is vanity!