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Jesus spoke in parables with amazing insights into human behaviour; many of them so convincing that they have become clichés of our language.  One short parable was about a merchant who collected pearls and finally found the perfect one.  He was so invested in his search that he sold everything else he had in order to buy it.  When a young rich man asked Jesus for his advice, Jesus drew on his own parable and suggested the young man sell all he had in order to obtain what he wanted most.  But Jesus gave the parable a twist and told him to sell all he had and give to the poor and “come follow me.”

I once heard a “fire and brimstone” preacher, who believed in the literal interpretation of the Bible, say about the parable of the rich man and the eye of the needle, that Jesus was just exaggerating.  No literal interpretation there.  Of course, all parables require personal interpretation.  That is the point of a parable.

Today’s first reading is set at the time of Amos and the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah.  Periods of peace were interrupted by periods of war among the various peoples in the surrounding lands.  Between wars there were various levels of economic prosperity.  It is always so, even now.  When Jesus said to Judas, “The poor you will always have with you” he could have said, “as well as the rich”.  What is really hard to process is the “correct” Christian way to relate to material ownership and how to evaluate what is important in life.

I had a friend who quite tragically but slowly became such a hoarder surrounded by so much stuff that eventually there was no longer any room left for people to get close to her.  She died alone.  I have also read and tried to put into practice Marie Kondo’s book, “the life changing magic of tidying up” (no caps in the title).  It was actually quite helpful but not a total solution to the question of what attitude to take towards personal prosperity.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit”.  We try to understand this, but we know that the poor are not necessarily happy.  Why else would we be asked to give to them?  In my own personal search for “pearls of wisdom”, I recently found one that I am trying out and will share with you.  In Maeve Binchy’s quite humorous little self-help manual, “Aches and Pains”, there is a section called, “How to Be Hilarious About Making a Will”.  In it she recommends we make a will every year.  She started at age 21.  List what you own and value and decide who you want to bequeath it to, not if, but when, you die.  I am trying it out. 

Agnes Beirne