Pastor's Letter 20220731 - 31 July 2022 - Making Life Meaningful

[Father Michael]

July 31^st, 2022

18^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

A Message from Father †Michael

Today’s Theme:  “Making Life Meaningful”

Reflections on Today’s Scripture

Qoheleth*, the ancient philosopher and author, seems to have shared T. S. Eliot’s world view: “The world ends…not with a bang, but with a whimper.”  As evident in today’s First Reading, the author conceived that, when all is said and done, the whole of life is a heap of absurdity and ambiguity (Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:21-23.)  He suggests that all material “things” are inherently lacking, and, in the end, death will “snuff out” even the brightest of life’s moments with utter certainty and finality.  All of life, in every aspect, is futile, if viewed apart from God.

*Hebrew, for Ecclesiastes

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In today’s Second Reading (Colossians: 3-1-5, 9-11,) †Paul understands and experiences life as a participation in glory and a sure promise of even greater joy in the future—caused by his recognition of God in the person of the incarnate Christ.  By the grace of Jesus’ cross, and in the “Man-for-others,” believers have come to a new awareness of human life.  Christian life is to be understood as the “consequence” of salvation—directing our daily existence.  Throughout our lives, our growth in knowledge will result in the renewal or “re-creation” of believers.

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Jesus, and His “entourage” en route to Jerusalem, could be compared to one of the “walking” academies of ancient Greece (i.e. Aristotle, Plato, etc.)  Along the way He educated His disciples in the costs of discipleship and the demands of the Kingdom.  Today’s Gospel represents a portion of His apostolic formation, specifically concerned with the appropriate attitude one should hold toward possessions and preparedness for the coming reign of God (Luke 12:13-21.)  The heart of Jesus’ exhortation was that we should avoid greed and understand that possessions, even great ones, are no guarantors of eternal life.  Life does not consist in material possessions; a person will be valued not for what he/she has, but for what they are and can become.  Life is to be seen as “on loan” from God, that could be “called in” at any moment.  

“Wealth—not a Possession, but Enjoyment

It’s not how many possessions we have, but how we enjoy the ones we have, that matters.  Many people have lost their capacity for enjoyment, especially those in affluent countries.  They feel the need to accumulate “more and more” expensive “gadgets.”  They sometimes find it impossible to enjoy the “simple things,” the way a child can.  

It’s not the amount of money, but our capacity for enjoyment of what we have that makes us rich.  Seeking wealth, while having no capacity for enjoyment, is to be like a blind person who collects videos!  We can become “possessed” by things.  Many are so busy adding to their possessions that they have no time to enjoy life.

Prison inmates are among those who have discovered how little one can have and still “get by,” and what extraordinary spiritual freedom and peace that can bring.  Alexander Solzhenitsyn, author of “Gulag Archipelago,” writes: “People don’t know what they are striving for.  They exhaust themselves in the senseless pursuit of material things, and die without realizing their spiritual greatness.”  

“People,” said the Little Prince, “rush about in express trains, but they do not know what they are looking for.  They raise ten thousand roses in the same garden, and they are not [aware how that for which they search] could be found in a single rose!”  When we distinguish between our needs and our wants, we will be surprised to realize how little is enough.

If ask ourselves, “What is the purpose of life?” we might llikely conclude it’s surely not about accumulating possessions—which, in any case, will have to be “left behind.”  Earthly things can never satisfy the human heart.  Only eternal things can bring us the happiness that we seek.  What makes us rich in the sight of God is not what we own, or even, what we’ve done, but what we are.

Heavenly Glory

While out for an evening walk, a man emerged from an area where the streets wire lit by bright lamps, and came into an open, dark place.  It was only then he discovered that the sky was full of stars.  He thought to himself, “How easily and effectively the earthly lights can extinguish the heavenly ones.” 

Another story is told about an American Banker who stood on a pier of a coastal Mexican village, where a small boat with one fisherman aboard, docked.  Inside the boat were a few, large tuna.  The banker complimented the fisherman on his catch, and then asked him, “How long were you out?”

“Oh, an hour or two,” came the reply.  “Why didn’t you stay out longer, and catch more fish?”  “I’ve enough here to meet the immediate needs of my family,” the man said.  

“But what do you do with the rest of your time,” the banker inquired.

“I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta in the afternoon, and then stroll into the village in the evening to sip a little wine, strum my guitar and chat with friends.” 

The banker wasn’t impressed.  “You should spend more time fishing.  Then, with the proceeds, you could buy a bigger boat; then several more, until you had a fleet of them.  After that, you could open your own processing factory and cannery.  Of course, you would need to leave this village and move to Mexico City, or Los Angeles, and eventually to New York, from where you could run your expanding business.”

“How long would all this take,” the fisherman wondered.  “Maybe about 20-years,” said the Banker.

“And what then?” the fisherman wondered.  “When the time is right, you could take your company public and make millions!”  

“Then what?” asked the fisherman.  “Then you could retire to a small coastal town, where you could sleep late, fish a little, play with your children, take a siesta in the afternoon, and stroll into the village in the evening to have some fun with your friends.” 

“What do you think I’m doing, right now?” asked the fisherman….

Let us pray:  “Lord, help us to seek the things that make us rich in Your sight, and grant that the glitter of this world may not dim our hopes of heavenly glory.”

May God Richly Bless You!

To view a recording of today's Holy Mass, click here:  https://youtu.be/d7DrJ1IyvcoWhat Shall I Render?.docx

 

Edited July 31, 2022 by Father Michael