18th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Originally delivered on August 2, 1992
Readings: Eccl 1:2; 2:21-23; Col 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21
In today’s liturgy, we’re given a standard from Jesus by which to live. While it’s easy to focus on sexual sins, Fr. Healy reminds us that greed, at the expense of our brothers and sisters, is perhaps overlooked as part the standard by which we should live. In the gospel itself, Jesus refuses to get involved as arbiter of a man’s dilemma. Rather, he puts it back on us to figure out when he says, “Avoid greed in all its forms. A man may be wealthy, but his possessions do not guarantee him life.” In other words, be dead to things and alive to God, passionate for His people without distinction among our brothers and sisters. We are called to include everyone in the family of God. Indeed, we must struggle within ourselves to determine if we are sharing our riches among our brothers and sisters.
Weekly Homilies 