First Reading - Ecclesiastes 1:2,2:21-23
Second Reading - Colossians 3:1-5,9-11
Gospel - Luke 12:13-21
The Book of Ecclesiastes opens with a stark word: “Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” The writer looks at human toil — all the effort poured into building, achieving, and storing up wealth — and declares it ultimately empty. Why? Because when life ends, we leave all of it behind. Someone else inherits it, often without having worked for it. The Preacher is not condemning work or success, but warning us: if our hearts are set on these things alone, we will end up chasing the wind.
The Gospel parable makes this point even clearer. A man’s fields produce abundantly, and instead of asking how he might share this blessing or serve others, he thinks only of himself. “I will build bigger barns,” he says, “and then I will relax, eat, drink, and be merry.” But God calls him a fool — not because he was rich, but because he lived as if God did not exist and as if death would never come. He stored up treasure for himself but was not “rich toward God.”
This phrase — “rich toward God” — is the key. It shifts the focus from possession to relationship. What matters is not how much we have, but what we do with it. Not how secure we feel, but how open we are to the needs of others and to the voice of God. Being rich toward God means living generously, thankfully, and wisely — with our eyes set on eternity.
St. Paul, in the second reading, takes us even further. He urges the Colossians to “seek what is above, where Christ is.” He reminds them that their true life is hidden with Christ in God. Therefore, he says, they must put to death whatever belongs to their former way of life — greed, impurity, falsehood — and put on the new self, which is renewed in the image of the Creator. In Christ, there is a new kind of wealth: a life shaped not by what we own, but by who we are becoming.
So, what can we take away from these readings?
First, life is short. We do not control its length. We are stewards, not owners. This should humble us and stir us to live purposefully.
Second, our possessions are not evil in themselves, but they are dangerous if they lead us to forget God or ignore others. Accumulating wealth is not the problem; hoarding it without compassion is.
Third, our identity is not in what we have, but in Christ. When we “seek what is above,” we start to value things differently — relationships over riches, compassion over comfort, generosity over gain.
Let us then ask ourselves:
Am I rich toward God?
Do I live with eternity in mind?
Are my priorities shaped by the Gospel or by fear and self-interest?
May the Spirit help us loosen our grip on passing things and cling instead to what truly lasts: the love of God, the call to serve, and the joy of becoming more like Christ. For in Him, all our striving finds rest, and all our treasures find their true worth.
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