READING 6
December 1st/November 18th, 2002 - Kislev 25, 5763
CHRISTIAN ORTHODOX READINGS
23rd Week after Pentecost. Tone 6
Matins: The Epistle to the Hebrews 1
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew 28:16-20
Divine Liturgy: The Epistle to the Ephesians 5:9-19
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 2:16-21 [26th Week]
Wednesday, December 4/November 21st, 2002:
Feast of the Entry into the Temple of our Most Holy Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary
CHRISTIAN ORTHODOX READINGS
Matins: The Holy Gospel of Saint Luke 1:39-49.56
Divine Liturgy: The Epistle to the Hebrews 9:1-7
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 10:38-42; 11:27:28
The Sunday portion of the Gospel according to Saint Luke recounts the story that Jesus told to his disciples as a parable. A wealthy man, "nouveau riche" [newly rich] kind, is contemplating the opportunity of retiring from his work and to store all his wealth because he has no more room for the fruits of his work. A barn should be convenient. He could pull down his barns and build greater ones and bestow all his goods there.
As everywhere in the world, especially in the Former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, he would add some place for the money in order not to trust a banker. Then he would peacefully relax and enjoy life eating, drinking and having a merry time. This short story of the Gospel is of course very up-to-date. We have everywhere people who may have earned quickly or in a slower way a lot of money or have played and gambled or won a huge amount of New Shekels at the Totto-Lotto and then retired on the sea-side, well without any barn. This is a major concern in Former Communist countries and also in Israel since some new wealthy people became at the same time "new Orthodox believers". Most of the time it allows them to redeem their souls and misconducts or bad actions by being prophylactically generous. This does not mean at all that they do believe in God or trust anybody or even have confidence in themselves.
But the wealthy barn-owner had other projects. He wanted to eat, drink, have fun and say at the same time to his soul: "Soul, you have much goods laid up for many years, take it easy [Luke 12:19]. It means that everything is planned, sketched out and he is certain of the future that he wants to figure out, not what God may have provided for him. In fact he shows that wealth - which can be really a sign of God's Providence - is, in this particular case, a total lack of economical forecast!
But God knows what a human being can imagine and He says to the man: "You fool, this night your soul will be required of you: then whose shall those things be, which you have provided?" [Luke 12:20]. Interesting remark: this man seems to be alone, without heir, wife, children and family except himself. This is also a pathetic aspect of a terrific loneliness that affects people. We don't know anything about him, but it seems, in consideration of God's words, that he would not call any lawyer or attorney...
These situations are frequent. I met many new former Soviet Orthodox believers who made a fortune setting up and down different companies and using, out of a pure faith, their marital status. They married nice women in Church and then divorced and remarried them as many times as was required in order to increase their money on separate accounts and in different countries. Nothing was legal. The fact marrying and divorcing according to their home rules did not affect them because they were convinced that they had bought their marital status from the Church once and forever.
If somebody lays his treasure for himself and manipulates his wealth for his own pleasure and maybe lust, then he is definitely poor and not "rich toward God" [Luke 12:21].
The situation is even different for laying aside one's goods in order to avoid bad times. There is a lack of anticipation, a day-to-day life, endurance, lack of consistency.
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