Whenever
there is a natural, or human disaster, it makes us think. In Feb
2018, in Parkland, Florida, there was the horrific school massacre,
where seventeen students were shot dead. One minute they were
just at school as normal, the next minute they were dead. Think
of any one of those teenagers who died. One moment they were just
getting on with their school day, then suddenly they were before God,
knowing what their whole life was about. That could be there for any
of us.
If
I was suddenly told, like in the Gospel, ‘This very night the
demand will be made for your soul,’ I wonder what would I focus on
for the rest of the day? Would I be worried about paying off
bills, or loans, or focusing on a new car I had just bought? I doubt
it. I’d imagine my focus would turn to the people I love and
also to wondering how I have lived my life so far.
At
the moment, many people in our society—including Christians—are
living as though there is no after-life, as though our life on earth
were everything. At funerals I often hear people talking about
the dead person as though that were it. Their existence is
over. If that were so, then we might as well grab all we can and
make our life as comfortable as possible, because we only have one
chance. But our faith tells us something completely
different. Perhaps the most important thing it tells us, is that
we will not find full happiness in this life, but in the next, if we
choose God. Complete happiness is not to be found in this
life. We will have moments of great happiness, and hopefully we
will find overall contentment, but that’s about as good as it gets.
When
Our Lady appeared to St. Bernadette in Lourdes 150 years ago, one of
the things she said to her was, ‘I cannot promise you happiness in
this life, but in the next.’ The point of that message and of
the teachings of Jesus, is to remind us not to ‘miss the bus’, so
to speak. It’s important that we don’t forget what our life
is really about. We are only on this earth for a short time. It
is a time of preparation for the world to come. Use it well.
In
Jesus’ time the problem of greed for money was just as much of a
problem as it is now and it will probably always be that way. When
this man said to Jesus, ‘Tell my brother to give me a share of our
inheritance,’ right away Jesus pointed out to the disciples the
danger of this desire. He said, ‘Watch out for this.’ ‘A
person’s life is not made secure by what he owns.’ The
problem is that our society tells us the opposite. We are all
the time being told that if we have enough of everything, we will be
happy, but that is not what the Lord teaches us. That’s not
where our happiness comes from.
There
is a priest called Benedict Groeschel who founded the Franciscan
Friars of the Renewal in the Bronx in New York. He is a great
preacher and he tells the story of a man he knew, an extremely
wealthy man. At a particular function this man spoke to Fr.
Groeschel, and he said, ‘You know Father, I have more money than I
could ever spend, or use and I would really like to be able to put it
to good use.’ Fr. Groeschel suggested that he could make a
donation to one of the orphanages they run, or something similar. But
by the end of the evening, the man had not agreed to part with one
cent. He was possessed by his wealth. He knew he had way
more than he could use, but he was still unable to part with it.
In
confession I have heard so many heart-breaking stories of families
divided over inheritance. It is so sad, because it is not
important. Naturally, it is not good when someone in a family is
left out of their fair share of what is coming to them, but sooner or
later we will leave it all behind anyway. ‘There is no hitch
on the hearse,’ as they say! Is it really worth causing such
division in a family for this? I suppose it is a sign again that
we believe we will find happiness if we have enough of everything
materially. Our spirit can never be content with just material things
and that is why there is always this deeper longing in us for
‘something,’ although we’re often not quite sure what that
something is.
God
has made us in such a way that we can only be fulfilled in
him. It’s interesting that the third most popular areas of
sales in bookstores is the spiritual, which is basically the search
for God. Everyone is searching, even if we are searching in the wrong
place.
Our
time here on earth is a time for love and service; to choose for God
or not; and this is a choice that each one of us has to make
individually. That is why each week we come to listen to the
Word of God and to receive Jesus in the Eucharist, so that we
remember what our life is about. The key is in making sure that
God is at the center. Otherwise we will forget what we are here
for.
‘This
very night the demand will be made for your soul;
and
this hoard of yours, whose will it be then?’
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