Vanity!

All the readings of today’s liturgy points to how foolish we are if we continue to put more value on being prosperous. In Ecclesiastes1, the wise man Qoheleth, a King of Jerusalem proclaims, “Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” All things are futile, worthless, pointless. In the second reading, St. Paul exhorts us to “seek what is above, not of what is on earth”. 

In the Gospel reading (Luke 12:13-21), Jesus warns, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” He tells the crowd a parable of a rich man who was planning to build larger barns, but this man did not realize that he was about to die. 

Indeed, there is nothing more certain in this world than death. Instead of avoiding thinking about death, should we not prepare for it? When I travel 🧳 to a foreign country, I try to learn as much about it so I can pack well for my days there. I look up the weather, I want to know our itinerary so I can plan what to wear. I need to know what kind of plugs they have, currency, what I need to do to use my phone without problems. I bring something to weigh my luggage so it’s not overweight. 

Should we not study about what happens after we die, and how we can get there? Our time here on earth is just a wink of an eye compared to the unlimited time we have afterwards. It is really the utmost stupidity to spend most of our time here on earth acquiring things that rust, build things that termites destroy, and put our money where it can devalue. We need to be good stewards of the gifts God gives us, and realize that He wants us to use it also for laying up treasures in heaven. How? That is what we need to study and plan for, the same way we research and plan when we go on trips abroad, or out of town.