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From: Romans 4:20-25

The Example of Abraham (Continuation)

[20] No distrust made him (Abraham) waver concerning the promise of God,
but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, [21] fully convinced
that God was able to do what he had promised. [22] That is why his faith
was "reckoned to him as righteousness." [23] But the words, "it was
reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, [24] but for ours also.
It will be reckoned to us who believe in him that raised from the dead Jesus
our Lord, [25] who was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our
justification.

Commentary:

24-25. The faith of which St Paul is speaking includes among its basic
truths the redemptive Death of Christ and his Resurrection, two events
which are indissolubly linked, two ways in which God's justice and mercy
are manifested.

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

From: Luke 12:13-21

Parable of the Rich Fool

[13] One of the multitude said to Him (Jesus), "Teacher, bid my brother
divide the inheritance with me." [14] But He said to him, "Man, who
made Me a judge or divider over you?" [15] And He said to them, "Take
heed, and beware of all covetousness; for man's life does not consist
in the abundance of his possessions." [16] And He told them a parable,
saying, "The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully; [17] and he
thought to himself, `What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my
crops?' [18] And he said, `I will do this: I will store all my grain
and my goods. [19] And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample
goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry.'
[20] But God said to him, `Fool! This night your soul is required of
you; and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' [21] So is
he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."

Commentary:

13. This man is only interested in his own problems; he sees in Jesus
only a teacher with authority and prestige who can help sort out his
case (cf. Deuteronomy 21:17). He is a good example of those who
approach religious authorities not to seek advice on the way they
should go in their spiritual life, but rather to get them to solve
their material problems. Jesus vigorously rejects the man's
request--not because He is insensitive to the injustice which may have
been committed in this family, but because it is not part of His
redemptive mission to intervene in matters of this kind. By His word
and example the Master shows us that His work of salvation is not aimed
at solving the many social and family problems that arise in human
society; He has come to give us principles and moral standards which
should inspire our actions in temporal affairs, but not to give us
precise, technical solutions to problems which arise; to that end He
has endowed us with intelligence and freedom.

15-21. After His statement in verse 15, Jesus tells the parable of the
foolish rich man: what folly it is to put our trust in amassing
material goods to ensure we have a comfortable life on earth,
forgetting the goods of the spirit, which are what really ensure
us--through God's mercy--of eternal life.

This is how St. Athanasius explained these words of our Lord: "A person
who lives as if he were to die every day--given that our life is
uncertain by definition--will not sin, for good fear extinguishes most
of the disorder of our appetites; whereas he who thinks he has a long
life ahead of him will easily let himself be dominated by pleasures"
("Adversus Antigonum").

19. This man's stupidity consisted in making material possession his
only aim in life and his only insurance policy. It is lawful for a
person to want to own what he needs for living, but if possession of
material resources becomes an absolute, it spells the ultimate
destruction of the individual and of society. "Increased possession is
not the ultimate goal of nations nor of individuals. All growth is
ambivalent. It is essential if man is to develop as a man, but in a
way it imprisons man if he considers it the supreme good, and it
restricts his vision. Then we see hearts harden and minds close, and
men no longer gather together in friendship but out of self-interest,
which soon leads to strife and disunity. The exclusive pursuit of
possessions thus becomes an obstacle to individual fulfillment and to
man's true greatness. Both for nations and for individual, avarice is
the most evident form of underdevelopment" ([Pope] Paul VI, "Populorum
Progressio", 19).