Stewards of creation

Monday,
October 21, 2019
29th Week in Ordinary Time
1st Reading:
Rom 4:20-25
Gospel: Luke 12:13-21
Someone in the crowd spoke to Jesus, “Master, tell my brother to share with me the family inheritance.” He replied, “My friend, who has appointed me as your judge or your attorney?” Then Jesus said to the people, “Be on your guard and avoid every kind of greed, for even though you have many possessions, it is not that which gives you life.”
And Jesus continued with this story, “There was a rich man and his land had produced a good harvest. He thought: ‘What shall I do? For I am short of room to store my harvest.’ So this is what he planned: ‘I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones to store all this grain, which is my wealth. Then I may say to myself: My friend, you have a lot of good things put by for many years. Rest, eat, drink and enjoy yourself.’ But God said to him: ‘You fool! This very night your life will be taken from you; tell me who shall get all you have put aside?’ This is the lot of the one who stores up riches instead of amassing for God.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
A story is told of a dog sauntering across a bridge carrying a chicken bone between its jaws. When the dog saw its own image on the water below the bridge, it barked ferociously out of envy. Down went the bone to the water under the bridge. Selfishness consumes a person with envy that in worst cases he even envies his own shadow. In the end he loses everything.
When one forgets that others too have rights over this world’s resources his immediate instinct when he sees something nice is to bark for it regardless of who owns it. If one is greedy about things he doesn’t own, what can we expect of him of the things already in his possession? He will hoard everything to secure his future. Unfortunately life is short. When it is over one leaves as he had entered this world – naked and alone.

Awareness of the shortness of life will reorient a person’s paradigm to the truth that he is only a steward of creation. As God’s stewards we don’t have absolute ownership over what we possess. We hold them in trust for God. As trustee, any manner of exploiting material possessions that is not in accordance with God’s purpose amounts to culpable misappropriation.

Today’s Gospel has this timely reminder to bring selfish persons back to reality: “You fool! This very night your life will be taken from you; tell me who shall get all you have put aside?” No honest answer can be far from this: Although everything a person possesses may not all go to the dogs, surely he will have to let go of these when he barks his last. -(Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.