If Our Lord taught us to store our treasure in Heaven where rust and moth do not corrupt (see Matthew 6:19-21), James in today’s First Reading makes a call to conversion for the rich by describing the darker side of the coin: the consequences of putting treasures over people and not storing up the treasure that really matters, the “treasure” described in today’s Gospel of love and concern for others. For those who put wealth first, all their fine clothes and things will decay and vanish, and their real “retirement” account will be the outcry of all the people they’d wronged in the path to earthly wealth, an outcry that will be heard by the Lord.
The social doctrine of the Church describes the importance of everyone receiving what they need to live and grow as the universal destination of goods: “‘…The earth, by reason of its fruitfulness and its capacity to satisfy human needs, is God’s first gift for the sustenance of human life’ (Centesimus Annus, 31). The human person cannot do without the material goods that correspond to his primary needs and constitute the basic conditions for his existence; these goods are absolutely indispensable if he is to feed himself, grow, communicate, associate with others, and attain the highest purposes to which he is called. The universal right to use the goods of the earth is based on the principle of the universal destination of goods. Each person must have access to the level of well-being necessary for his full development…” (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, 171-172).
Let’s do an audit today of our time, treasure, and talent, and see how we can invest them not only for our spiritual growth, but for the growth and well-being of others as well.
Readings: James 5:1–6; Psalm 49:14–20; Mark 9:41–50.