Gospel Reflection for the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

July 31st – To have or to have not

We all know that as soon as we turn on our televisions and open our newspapers, there are plenty of advertisements trying to sell us things. How many ads for new phones, new cars, and more food do we see each day? At times it can feel as if we are living in a very material society. The newspapers and the shops are continually trying to attract our attention so that we will buy more and more things that we don’t actually need, but that they say we really want. But do we? Do we really need another of the latest and most up to date phones? Do we need to buy more food than our family can eat this week just because it is on ‘special offer’. When is enough enough?

The rich man in this Sunday’s gospel thinks that having more possessions and building bigger barns will make him happy and give him enough security so that he can ‘eat, drink and be merry’. However when his life is ‘demanded’ of him, his store of grain and other possessions prove not be as important and valuable he thought. He has put his trust and faith in the wrong place and in the wrong the things. His reality is everyone’s concern; to have enough so that we won’t have to worry about tomorrow. There is no harm in providing for ourselves and our families, but this gospel asks us to reflect on what we value most in life.

Where do we put our energies and what are our priorities? If we were honest with ourselves, we would admit that the pressures of everyday life tend to take up most of our time. We are all concerned about work, paying bills, our family, deadlines and calendars. Our lives tend to be so busy that our immediate goal is to get through one day at a time.

Perhaps this gospel is asking us to think about what we possess and what possesses us. Are we busy trying to maintain a life style rather than a create a quality of life for ourselves? This may mean that we buy and accumulate less and settle for fewer possessions. Rather than just ask what we do own and what belong to us, we could ask to whom we belong. We come from God and belong to God. Our true happiness, sense of meaning and true worth comes from our relationship with God. If we could really appreciate this fundamental truth and make more room in our lives for God and then we would gain everything – the fullness of life.

•  Michael Moore OMI