Peace be with you. This Sunday’s readings speak with striking clarity—and urgency—about the dangers of vanity and greed. Qoheleth, in our first reading from Ecclesiastes, cries out: “Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” A bold statement, yet one that captures the fragility and futility of grasping for things that cannot last. We toil, we strive, we store up—and still, in the end, we return to dust. Our minds are restless, our hearts anxious, and often, our labours are not even enjoyed by us, but passed to others.
Saint Francis of Assisi understood this truth intimately. Born into wealth, he renounced everything—not because riches were evil in themselves, but because they had blinded him to God’s presence in creation and in the poor. He once said, “What a man is in the sight of God, that’s all he is and nothing more.” That is a radical statement in a world obsessed with image, status, wealth and possessions.
In our Gospel, Jesus warns, “Take care to guard against all greed.” He speaks to a man who, like many of us, believes that justice lies in getting our fair share. But Jesus turns the conversation: the problem is not inheritance, or getting our fair share, but that somehow, securing more possessions than we need, means securing our life and well-being. We forget what the Lord said, that in seeking to secure our lives through illusory security and possessions, we lose it. The rich man in the parable builds bigger barns to secure his future, yet his life ends that very night. He is called a fool—not because he was wealthy, but because he did not become rich in what matters to God.
Saint Paul, in the second reading, reminds us that if we have been raised with Christ, our true treasure is not on earth, but in heaven. He names greed plainly as idolatry—a form of false worship. This challenges us to examine where we place our hope, our energy, our identity.
As Franciscans, we make a vow of poverty. We are called to live simply—not merely for poverty’s sake, but to be free. The vow is a gift to us, not a burden. It gives us the power to be free—Free to love, free to serve, free to rejoice in what God provides. This doesn’t mean we despise creation or abandon responsibility—it means we place our hopes and dreams in God, rather than in wealth, power, pleasure or the honours of this world.
So today, let us ask for the grace of courage, to let go of the fears which lead us to cling to material things. Let us number our days wisely and seek to be “rich in what matters to God” : compassion, mercy, generosity, humility, and above all, love.
May the Spirit of Saint Francis inspire us to live with open hands and uncluttered hearts, finding joy not in what we possess, but in the One who sustains us.
Most Holy Mother, free and pure, make our hearts like unto thine.
Amen.
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