Sunday, Aug. 3, is the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mass readings: Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23; Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21.

The Gospel is a warning against greed and an instruction on income and wealth given by Jesus.

Jesus says,

“Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

He goes on to tell a parable that strives to provide a proper perspective on wealth.

Notice that it is the land, not the man, that yields the increased harvest. Whatever we have has come from God and what God has given.

The parable continues by explaining how the man is burdened by his wealth. He thinks of bigger barns but does not consider the stomachs of the needy and poor to be a proper place to store the excess grain.

As we shall see, the man’s wealth will utterly fail him before the night is out: “But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’”

The parable concludes,

“Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich in what matters to God.”

What matters is that we be rich in justice, mercy, love, holiness and truth; that we be generous sharers of the bounty he bestows.

St. Paul says, “Command the wealthy to be rich in good deeds, generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age” (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

We can store up riches in heaven; we can invest them in eternity. We can “send ahead” by bestowing upon the poor and the needy. This can include our family members, for charity begins at home, but it does not end there. Our generosity should extend.