May Jesus Christ be praised and may his holy Mother pray for
us.
I have two cousins that live in Australia. My cousin Tom is a few months younger than I
am. About twenty-five years ago, my
grandparents were flying from North Carolina to Australia to visit my cousins,
and a very special gift was being taken to Tom.
The gift was the flight jacket that my grandfather wore during his
service in the Second World War. I was
jealous. I was very jealous, and I
complained to my father. My father’s
response was simple, direct, and profound.
“Tom is getting a jacket. You
have had a grandfather.” The lesson was
clear. A relationship with a person is
far more precious than the possession of a thing.
Our readings today focus on true riches. In our reading from the book of Ecclesiastes,
we hear about the vanity of earthly possessions. The true meaning of life cannot be found in
possessions. In our reading from the
Gospel of Luke, the Lord Jesus tells a parable about a rich man with a bountiful
harvest. The harvest was so abundant
that the rich man decided to tear down his barns and build greater barns to
store the harvest. He was unaware that
the end of his life was approaching, and that he would leave the harvest
behind. The rich man had gathered his
earthly treasure only for himself. He
had not shared. He had chosen things
over relationships.
In our reading from the letter to the Colossians, Saint Paul
encourages us to seek what is above.
Saint Paul reminds us that our life is to be focused on Christ. Christ Jesus is our life, and our glory, and
our true treasure. Nothing can be more
important. Nothing can be more precious.
God invites us into a relationship with himself. We did not earn this invitation and we could
not earn this invitation. God invites us
to share in his very life, in the relationship of perfect love that is the Holy
Trinity. We share in the life of God,
first through our baptism, when God chose us and made us his adopted children
in Christ. We share in the life of God
when we join with Christ to worship the Father in the celebration of the Holy
Mass. We share in the life of God and
deepen our relationship with Him as we receive the gift of his life in the
Sacraments. God invites us to share in
his life. He invites us to a
relationship.
And God invites us to know the one who loves us. From the dawn of creation, God has revealed
himself to his people. As we listen to
the words of the Sacred Scriptures, and hear of the story of the love that God
has for us, we come to know the Lord of heaven and earth. We come to know the God who loves us. We come to know the Lord Jesus, who
considered each of our lives to be so precious, that he offered his life for
us. When we listen to the Scriptures and
when we listen to the voice of the Lord proclaimed in and through his Church,
then we come to know the God who loves us.
God invites us to share in his life. God invites us to know the one who loves
us. And God invites us to be part of the
work that he doing. Through our baptism,
and through our particular vocations, we share in the work of Christ to
proclaim the Good News, to bring healing, and to continue his work of salvation.
Our relationship with God is the true treasure. Amen.
Preached at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic
Church, Monroe, NC
