It is not often that the three Readings on a Sunday emphasize the same theme, but this weekend is one in which our focus is drawn to the fundamentals of our purpose in life. Each person at some point in life seeks to understand the “why” of their own existence. The drudgery and toil that comes with life – be it an ancient nomadic life in the wilderness or the luxuries of modern living – eventually demand a reckoning of purpose.
The author of the book of Ecclesiastes knows this well as he muses on the “vanity of life.” The daily toil that characterizes the working life, and the desperation of those who live in abject poverty, is a reminder to us of the need to find a deeper meaning of life.
St. Paul, in his Letter to the Colossians, challenges us to set aside the mundane and frivolous pursuits in life and to remain focused on eternal life. He sets before us the ideal of the spirit-filled life, where the ordinary gives way to the extraordinary.
Jesus, while refusing to mediate a dispute among brothers who are fighting over their inheritance, tells a parable about a farmer who, having a bountiful crop chooses to build bigger barns than to act with charity. Instead of enjoying his new found wealth, the man’s life is required of him, leaving his heirs to haggle over his windfall.
It is very difficult to not walk in the world. Yes, there are Christian sects, such as those we call the Amish, who try and live as separate from the world as possible, but that is not normative for most Christians throughout history. Indeed European history has largely been shaped by Catholics and other Christian sects, who often made the power struggles of the world their primary focus.
The fundamental challenge for the contemporary Post-Modern Catholic and Christian is to negotiate the world in such a way so as not to be obsessed with it. The struggle is a real one. Yes, we need to work for the basics in life, prepare for retirement, raise a family, own a home, have a car, and insure against the catastrophic. The desire to shift responsibility for many of the pressures of life onto governmental or other social programs might alleviate some of these problems, but with the world and our own power and security at the heart of our thinking, new and perhaps even more insidious issues will emerge. It is not likely that we will then use the freedom from these daily struggles to turn our focus to the things of Heaven. There will emerge conflicting desires and perceived and real needs that will become priorities.
The ubiquity of the Internet, various forms of social media, and the ease of communication have already lead to all sorts of new expressions of immorality, impurity, and the proliferation of greed. We find new ways of advancing the quality of life through technology and scientific innovation, only to turn them into opportunities for others to take advantage, and to act willfully against the common good.
In a world torn apart by “isms” our solution seems to be the elimination of distinction, true diversity, and the genuine self. St. Paul challenges us to set aside the forces of sin that are at the root of these ills. The world is providing its own solutions, but these, too, are grounded in the world, and not borne of the love of one another as grounded in Jesus Christ.
There is an irony here, perhaps. The world seeks the ideals of the Kingdom of God, but seeks its own myopic way to achieve them. By attempting to eliminate distinction, the world only highlights the distinctions leading to deepening divisions.
St. Paul calls us to set aside the sinful desires that cause us to objectify, abuse, and take advantage of others. When we are able to set aside our sense of self and self-possession, and authentically seek the Kingdom of God, then the distinctions that lead to division no longer exist.
Qoheleth understood that when we are solely focused on the daily struggles of life there is no thought of turning to the Lord and to seek him for his own sake. We look to the Lord more for what he can provide in our material world than for the deepening of our life with and for him.
Father Garry Koch is pastor of St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel.