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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.

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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 indissolub-
ly linked, two ways in which God’s justice and mercy are manifested.

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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

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 co-
vetousness; 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.”

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Commentary:

13. This man is only interested in his own problems; he sees in Jesus only a tea-
cher 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 sal-
vation 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, techni-
cal solutions to problems which arise; to that end He has endowed us with intel-
ligence 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 posses-
sion 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 har-
den 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 pos-
sessions 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” (Paul VI, “Populorum Progressio”, 19).

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.