I remember having read in college a story written by Leo Tolstoy, entitled “How Much Land Does a Man Need?”. It was a standard classic example of a short story (in 66 pages!) recommended for our reading.
The story tells of a peasant who enters into an agreement with the owner of a vast track of land. He can have all the land he can cover from sunrise to sunset for 1,000 rubles. Early the next day, the peasant immediately starts his trek as soon as the sun rises. By midday, he covers a sizeable amount of land and is about to return when he notices that the land ahead is so much greener and more fertile. He proceeds to cover also that part of the land. By midafternoon, he knows he needed to return. Seeing that he has gone too far, he musters all his remaining strength and runs as fast as he could. Before sundown, he succeeds to reach the spot where he started. As soon as the sun drops on the horizon, he too drops on the ground dead from total exhaustion. His servant digs the ground to bury him. Six feet from his head to his heels is all the land he needs.
Our readings revolve around the theme of material possessions. Jesus tells the parable of the man who rejoices at the super-abundance of his harvest and builds a bigger barn to secure his produce so he can eat, drink, and be merry for the rest of his life. But God says to him, “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?”
To be clear, there is nothing wrong with material possessions. They are God’s blessing; the Jews believe they are a sign of God’s favor. They are even necessary for the mission. The problem is when material goods begin to possess us. When we become attached to wealth and consider it as the absolute good.
Vanity of vanities is what Qoheleth (first reading) says of earthy goods. The word vain denotes “wind” or “vapor.” Like the wind, earthly goods, whether possession, fame or achievement, pass away. They come and go. Here today and gone tomorrow, all things in this world are transient. And because they do not last, they cannot constitute the ultimate happiness of man. Thus in today’s Gospel, Jesus concludes the parable by saying that the fate of the foolish rich farmer will befall on “all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matters to God.”
In the second reading, St. Paul exhorts us to put to death “greed which is an idolatry.” Man’s heart is boundless because it is made for God who is boundless. And so, when greed takes the place of God, it also becomes boundless and insatiable. Where there is greed there is never enough. “All the shine of a thousand spotlights; all the stars we steal from the night sky will never be enough, never be enough… Towers of gold are still too little. These hands could hold the world, but it’ll never be enough, never be enough… for me.” (from the movie, The Greatest Showman)
Greed is the root of all evil for from greed comes every evil desire, malice, immorality, injustice, corruption, dishonesty, etc. When we think of the wars and sufferings in the world today, it is not difficult to trace their origin in the insatiable greed of superpowers, who, not content with their present domain, claim and invade smaller and weaker nations. The present woes of Philippine politics are a consequence of dynasties deeply entrenched in all strata of public life, perpetuating themselves and fostering the culture of patronage and corruption.
Let us be attentive lest we become enslaved by greed for it spares no one. Greed corrupts everyone, including those who are regarded as spiritual leaders. Pope Francis once shared a valuable lesson from his grandmother who told him that the devil enters the heart of the priest through the pocket.
Instead, let us be on guard so we do not set our hearts on earthly goods that are transient. Instead let us ceaselessly seek the true treasure which consists in the “things above… where Christ is seated at God’s right hand.”
Finally, let us strive to grow in generosity which is the best antidote to greed. The rich man in the gospel is blessed with abundance, but he never thinks beyond himself. He thinks only of himself and lives only for himself. When God gives, he always gives more than we need so that from the abundance of his gift, we can share with others. “Freely you have received, freely give,” (Mt 10:8)