The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, August 1st: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:21-23; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21)

SELFISHNESS AND GREED NOT JUST FOR KIDS

It was time for little Johnny’s check-up. As his mom brought him into the pediatrician’s empty waiting room, Johnny saw a splendid array of toys. He rushed over, looked around at the mind-boggling treasure which was all his, grabbed a shiny plastic dump truck and started vroom-vrooming across the carpet.

A few minutes later another young boy and his mom entered the room. This boy started playing with a pile of colorful blocks. Johnny watched him carefully.

Then twin girls came into the room. They picked up a stack of puzzles and carried them to a corner and began playing. Johnny’s eyes widened and his lower lip began to quiver. His personal empire was crumbling.

The door to the room opened once again. In walked a woman with two small children, a boy and a girl. They spied the box filled with Legos and started toward it. Suddenly, Johnny bolted across the room and practically threw himself on top of the box.

“They're mine! They’re mine!” he shrieked, “You can’t have them!”

Johnny’s mother quickly looked up from her People magazine. “Johnny!” she said, “Stop it right now. Please play nice.”

“But Mom!” Johnny wailed, “I want the Legos! Everybody’s taking my stuff! It’s not fair!”

Johnny’s mother went over and held his hand and began to reason with him. “Johnny, dear, don’t be so upset. These aren’t even your toys. And besides, we’ll be in to see the doctor in a few minutes. There’s not enough time to play with everything. Please stop being so selfish and greedy.”

Now, of course, this was little Johnny’s cue to throw one of him renowned temper tantrums, which he proceeded to do with gusto.

It’s amazing how irrational little kids can be sometimes. Even when the toys aren’t theirs, even when they’re only in the waiting room for a short while, they still grab and clutch and hoard and fight over every last Lego.

On second thought, maybe it’s not so amazing after all. Most adults do the same thing—only the toys are more expensive, the rationalizations more imaginative, and the tantrums more vindictive.

In this week’s gospel reading, Jesus gave the definitive teaching on modern America’s biggest stumbling blocks: materialism and greed.

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”

Isn’t that interesting? Even 2,000 years ago, siblings were at each other’s throats clawing and scratching for as much of dearly departed Dad’s estate as they could get.

Nowadays, this has become an all-too-common situation, and not just with the multi-million dollar estates left behind by ultra-wealthy people. There are brothers and sisters who will never speak to each other again because of the bitter fight that occurred when their parents left behind little more than a run-down two bedroom shack on the wrong side of the tracks in East Hooterville; a 1992 Chevy Impala with no transmission; and four paintings of Elvis on velvet. As usual, the lawyers were the big winners.

Jesus said, “Though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” He went on to tell the parable of a rich man who had so much wealth that he worked night and day just to build barns big enough to hold it all. He reasoned that one day he would finally have everything stored up and under control, and at that point he would be able to relax and enjoy himself. Using that well-known phrase, the rich man described this future time as his chance to “eat, drink, and be merry.”

But God said to this rich man, “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?”

Ouch. I don't know which is worse: being told that you’re about to witness your last sunset, or having God Almighty Himself call you a fool.

Jesus then concluded His lesson by explaining, “Thus it will be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matters to God.”

The key here is a familiar Old Testament concept: idolatry. Whenever we devote ourselves to something other than God, we are guilty of idolatry. In ancient times the idols were golden calves and stone pillars. In our day the idols have become flat screen TVs, BMWs, and large homes with manicured lawns.

In the last year or two, there has been a lot of media attention focused on the shameless greed of the likes of Bernie Madoff, Wall Street bankers, and AIG executives. But again, greed does not afflict only the ultra-wealthy. Don’t forget the greed of all the average, middle-class people who took out over-sized mortgages they had no chance of paying back, just so they could move into over-sized houses. Or those who purchased multiple real estate properties and planned to “flip” them for a quick buck. Or all the folks choking on credit card debt nowadays because their greed for material things outweighs their self-discipline.

Please don’t misunderstand. Jesus was not saying we must live in poverty. He was not saying hard work and financial success are evil. He was not saying we have no obligation to support our families. He was not saying He prefers the population to be destitute and starving rather than prosperous and healthy. Jesus was saying, however, that we will be in big trouble if the accumulation of material possessions becomes the primary focus in our lives.

In the sight of Heaven, the behavior of many American adults is identical to that of little Johnny in the waiting room. There are more toys than we can possibly enjoy, and any time now, the sound of a voice will bring it all to an end.

In Johnny’s case, the voice said sweetly, “The doctor will see you now.”

In our case, a booming voice will say, “The Lord will see you now!” We should make sure the voice does not add, “You fool!”

©2010