| August 5, 2001 Ecclesiastes I :2; 2:21-23 + Colossians 3:1-5,9-11 + Luke 12:13-21 |
| Besides knowing poverty, joy, mercy, hospitality, and perseverance, disciples of Jesus are rich. It may seem to be a contradiction to the first of the qualities Jesus proposed for those who would follow him, but actually, it is the complementary consequence of poverty The consequence of Gospel Poverty is a richness and wealth in the values of the Kingdom of God The very poverty Jesus proposes makes one rich, free, and unencumbered by the wornes that best the man of this Gospel story who is so anxious about how he can hang onto and hoard all that he has collected. A disciple of Jesus is no fool. |
| The First Testament reading gives us, as usual, some direction if we understand what the writer means by “Vanity” The Hebrew word is used 38 times in the book, and it emphasizes futility or uselessness. He is concerned with life’s emptiness, and that is the clue to the gospel parable we hear this weekend on our Jerusalem Journey The life of the man in the parable 1s vain. It is empty In spite of the wealth he accumulates, his biggest concern is how to hang on to it and get more. He is a fool. |
| The disciple of Jesus learns from the master today that an ability to set worthy priorities is an essential quality In the end it is the greatest challenge to greed and to the kind of emptiness that drives so many into desperate lives of loneliness and sadness. The disciple possess and cultivates a way of relating to the things of this life that is independent and free. The disciple knows that they are the recipient of many gifts, none of which is their own possession. The disciple knows that everything belongs to God and is simply on loan for a very short time for the sake of completing the mission of Jesus. What we carry into the next life is what we have done with what we have been given. It is a quality of Wisdom that gives purpose, direction, meaning, and fullness to life. It is a way of using what we have not to get more, but to be more; more faithful, more generous, more like God, more concerned, and more responsible for one another’s needs. |
| The disciples Jesus forms are rich in wisdom, purpose, and usefulness. They have asked the question. “What shall I do with what I have?” again and again, and the answer is never build bigger barns. There is a purpose to their lives formed by the Gospel and the Life of Jesus Christ. Their days are useful for more than financial gain and security They never forget, deny, nor live as though they belong to this world. Always the pilgrim, they are on the way to Jerusalem, therefore, always the Steward who knows that all we have is to be left behind for the use of another and the glory of God. |
| Living with no Will that provides for others and recognizes no one except one’s immediate family; complaining about taxes when estate planning and Trusts can benefit others; having no priorities in life that will stand the test of the Gospel, no perspective that finds happiness in giving, sharing, and serving leaves one to be the fool, not the disciple. We who believe in the life to come, disciples of Jesus, look ahead, look beyond, look to Jerusalem. Not fooled by the “eat, drink, and be merry” attitude of present day hedonism, we set our values firmly on the foundation of the Gospel. We remember always, that even our life is but a loan from God that like every other loan will be recalled. |
| As we move along the path Luke has set for us, we take and make the time to be wise stewards, to recognize wherein lies our real wealth. We will stop complaining about how poor we are, how much we need, and how tough these times seem to be in the face of what we are asked and called to become. We will recognize how really rich we are, and use these bountiful gifts as disciples of Jesus learn from the master how to serve, how to give, and how to enter into eternal life. |