Ecclesiastes' wisdom comes from someone identified as “Qoheleth.” It’s not certain whether this is a personal name, some sort of pseudonym, or the title of an office. Judging from the meaning of the related verb, it would seem that the word means “convener” or “assembler”—thus the common English translations “Teacher” or “Preacher.” The book’s more common name, Ecclesiastes, is an approximate translation into Greek of the Hebrew name. The book comprises an extended reflective essay employing autobiographical narrative, proverbs, parables, and allegories. An almost unrelenting skepticism characterizes the tone or outlook. The issues with which the author deals and the questions he raises are aimed at those who would claim any absolute values in this life, including possessions, fame, success, or pleasure. The book’s honest and blunt appraisal of the human condition provides a healthy corrective to the occasionally excessive self-assurance of other wisdom writers. Its radical skepticism is somewhat tempered by the resigned conclusions to rejoice in whatever gifts God may give. The author also admits that he tried everything ‘under the sun’ and still satisfaction eluded him because God put ‘timelessness’ into his soul. Jesus catches on to this aspect of life when he gives us the disturbing parable of the ‘Rich Fool.’
What was wrong with this man? Why is he called a fool? Maybe he was a hardworking man, or he was just lucky. The land gave a bumper harvest. The man decided to build larger storage for the crop so that he could live the rest of his life on Easy Street. Only he did not know that the rest of his life was less than twenty-four hours. Jesus uses him as an illustration of greed even though he took not one’s thing. He did not do something wrong. His greed lies in what he did not do.
Sir Fred Catherwood is quoted as saying that greed is “the belief that there is no life after death. We grab what we can, while we can, however, we can, and then hold on to it hard.” There is only one grave mistake that the man is making – at the spiritual level: not only that his stores are full of wealth, but it is also that his soul is full of material concerns. He falsely consoles his soul. He does not realize that, after all, the good
harvest was the gift of God and the fruit of the community's labor that helped him till, plant, weed, and harvest. He does not appreciate the fact that these gifts are to be used to know God deeply and share with his community. Therefore, God calls him a “Fool”. The rich man has not realized that he is in the image of God. Sadly, he draws his identity from his wealth. And such an identity is ephemeral – fleeting.
The real problem Jesus is dealing with in this parable is not wealth but greed. One of the problems or dangers of pursuing wealth at any cost is that there is the potential for greed to set in. The question that needs to be asked then is how do you know when greed has set in? Here are some questions to ask yourself. 1. Do you feel like you always have to get more? 2. Is the pursuit of things consuming you? 3. Do you use people, position, and the family you belong to for personal gain?
If you answer yes to these questions, then you might be infected with greed. The problem with greed is that it is deceptive, we have even clothed it today in a spiritual language where we don’t call it greed, we call it increase and every prayer people pray is all about increasing their territory, increasing their finances, and increasing their stuff. Again, Jesus is not against wealth; as he said, your life is not about the abundance of your possessions.
There is nothing wrong with having possessions but just make sure those possessions don’t have you. The real test of that is what happens if it all goes away. Would you still love God and serve him with the same fervor if it all went away? Would you be willing to lay it all down if God asked you to? If you can’t say yes to those questions, then that is a sign that your possessions have you and you have been deceived.
When you have the right attitude, your pursuit does not become all-encompassing, and you don’t lose sight of your relationship with God in the process. Or else the Book of Ecclesiastes we read today, points out: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless.” – Ecclesiastes 5:10
Fr Tom Kunnel, C.O.