Learning Something from Injustice, Less we Accuse God
Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21.
The cry against injustices can be heard all around us. The rich and poor alike complain about being recipients of injustices. Today’s readings interestingly do not spare God from the criticism of being unjust. When one goes to God, as the gospel parable of today puts it, and there was no justice according to the desire of the man asking for it, God finds himself in the dock, having to defend himself from human conception of justice. Even beyond the narrative of the gospel of today, many human beings accuse God of being born in a wrong country, into a wrong family or lacking the requisite natural endowments for comfortable earthly living/existence. How does one exonerate God from the accusation of injustice, especially with Jesus’ statement, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Is Jesus not God?
The expression “Vanity of vanities” attempts an answer to the injustices perpetrated by God, at least, as human beings understand it. Our first reading, this Sunday, makes it clear that injustices exist on earth and human beings experience it. “Vanity of vanities” is an argument put forward by the first reading to underscore the futility of human endeavors upon earth. Among the said futilities include “All things are vanity! Here is one who has labored with wisdom and knowledge and skill, and yet to another who has not labored over it, he must leave property” (Ecclesiastes 2:21); and, “All his days sorrow and grief are his occupation; even at night his mind is not at rest” (Ecclesiastes 2:23). The anxiety that accompanies earth living and the struggle to make ends meet are considered efforts in futility; hence, “vanity of vanities!”
The parable of Jesus, in the gospel of today, seems to corroborate the same conclusion as that of the first reading because the man who had a bumper harvest was prevented from relishing the produce of his hard work by death, just as anxieties invade the hearts of human beings working hard and prevent them from sleep. While in the gospel, it is death that is the reward for neglecting God and concentrating on wealth; in the first reading, it is the lack of sleep that haunts the vainglorious! But is it really useless to work hard or is it not the error of turning human efforts and achievements into gods that is the problem?
The tone of the first reading leaves no room for redemption from the irrelevance of the human enterprise. Our first reading does not mention God or the need for God in human ventures. Life experiences are presented in their starkness. However, one needs to arrive at chapter 12 of Ecclesiastes to realize the rude awakening of today’s first reading – life is meaningless without God. Here, exactly, is the Christian wisdom – the pre-eminence of God in human life. Ecclesiastes 12:1, 7 admonish us to “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, ‘I have no pleasure in them’ . . . and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it”. Prior to chapter 12, one may think exclusively of secular opinion of the meaning of life – mundane wisdom. In other words, death is an arbitrator of the meaning of life because the human mind that has no time and place for God wakens up to its powerlessness before death, because “God is all, man is nothing”.
It is at this point that one may appreciate the meaning of Jesus’ statement “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” because the only success Jesus cares about is the ability to make heaven, and he is in no way going to accept the importance accorded to material wealth by the young man looking for the damnation of his soul in the guise of justice between himself and his brother. Jesus’ concluding argument point to the direction of the meaning of life: “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).
One may think that the man in the parable is the sole target of Jesus’ teaching: far from it! When we pay attention to our second reading, then, it becomes apparent that the man seeking for Jesus’ arbitration and justice is yourself and myself. In the gospel parable, it is the love for riches more than the kingdom of heaven that brought death to the rich man. As for you and me, Paul enumerates the causes of our death and the reasons why we die: “Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry. Stop lying to one another” (Colossians 3:5). You see, you and I may not be rich, but our attachment to sex, drugs, power, greed and lies lead to our death. Instead of seeking the kingdom of God and its righteousness, we crave for sin and pleasure. We plan and execute iniquities, imagining that God does not see. We are quick to seek the justice of God on our behalf, forgetting our own injustices against other people. What is more, we even pray to God that we may not be caught in our schemings!
The other side of our gospel’s parable is the human injustice against God. The God who created us to his image and likeness does not receive our unalloyed obedience and loyalty, but we blame him for being unjust to us. The man seeking justice, in the parable, intends to thwart the priority and option for the kingdom of God, by his attachment to the kingdom of the earth. Little wonder Jesus says to him and to us today: “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions” (Luke 12:15). Our focus must remain on God, if indeed, we are Christians. In fact, our focus on God is the orientation of Paul’s advice in our second reading: “If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1-3).
Our inclinations, the desires of our hearts, and all that keep us awake at night reveal to us whether we are on the side of God or the world. Our consciences, if still alive, speak to us about what is right and wrong to do. Yes, life itself is a school where we learn lessons about justice and injustices, less we accuse God of the ills we bring upon ourselves by our infidelities! It is worth remembering, though, to “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions” (Luke 12:15).
Assignment for the Week:
Think of the dominant vice of your life, and practice the contrary virtue this week.