Daily Readings - Sun Aug 03 2025
Ecclesiastes
2"Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."
21For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.22What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?23All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.
Colossians
1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Luke
13Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."14Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?"15Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."16And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.17He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'18"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.19And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry."'20"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'21"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."
Sermon
In today’s readings, we are invited to reflect on the true meaning of life and the dangers of allowing material wealth to dominate our hearts. The first reading from Ecclesiastes reminds us that all earthly pursuits, no matter how successful, are ultimately fleeting and unsatisfying without God. The author laments the futility of toil and the inevitability of leaving behind the fruits of our labor, pointing to the emptiness of a life focused solely on earthly gains. This sets the stage for the second reading from Colossians, where St. Paul urges us to seek what is above, where Christ is, and to live as new creations in him. He calls us to renounce the old self with its vices and to clothe ourselves in the new self, renewed in the image of our Creator. This teaching finds its echo in the Gospel, where Jesus warns against greed and the illusion of security through wealth. The parable of the rich fool, who builds larger barns to store his goods but loses his soul, serves as a stark reminder that life is not measured by what we possess but by our relationship with God.
The readings are deeply interconnected, each shedding light on the others. Ecclesiastes reveals the emptiness of life without God, while Colossians offers the solution: living in Christ and being transformed by his grace. The Gospel then underscores the consequences of ignoring this truth, as the rich fool’s obsession with wealth leads to spiritual poverty. Together, these readings call us to reevaluate our priorities and to recognize that true wealth lies in our relationship with God and our love for others.
As we apply these readings to our daily lives, let us ask ourselves: What am I pursuing? Is it the fleeting treasures of this world, or am I seeking the eternal riches of heaven? Let us not be fooled by the illusion that happiness comes from possessions or power. Instead, let us strive to live as children of God, clothed in humility, kindness, and compassion. May we remember that our lives are not our own but are hidden with Christ in God. When we live with this perspective, we will find true fulfillment and peace, for Christ is everything, and in him, we have all we need.