Father Paul C. Bebis

My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The message which our Lord and Savior gave us in His earthly life and was presented in the Holy Gospels is not only the message of the proclamation of salvation of the human race, but it is also the announcement of the forthcoming judgment of all mankind by the Great Judge of all. It is a voice of warning and a cry of all to hear, it is a call to reflection and repentance, it is the expectation of the crises to come on Judgement Day for all. In order to reach the people`s mind`s and hearts, our Lord used parables to transmit to all peoples His divine message, His message of salvation and the Kingdom of God. A well known biblical scholar who has made a superb study of the parables of our Lord states that "all the parables of Jesus compel His hearers to come to a decision about His person and mission. For they are all full of the secret of the Kingdom of Heaven, that is to say, the recognition of an eschatology that is in the process of realization." The Parable of the Rich Fool which we read today in our Divine Liturgy is an eschatological Parable. The word eschatological comes from the Greek Word "eschata" which means the end. When our Lord related this parable to the people, He expected them to apply it`s lesson and conclusion to their own situation since Jesus Christ spoke to them in the setting of his times and in the reality of the problems they may face. What Jesus wished His listeners to understand with this parable is that we are sometimes just as foolish as was this Rich Fool, when we know that the threat of death hangs over our heads and yet we heap and accumulate wealth, properties, and possessions without realizing that our end on this earth will be forthcoming. He tragically discovered that earthly possessions are not permanent but temporary and when he is about to die, all things are left behind. This parable is presented to us today as a moral lesson. According to the story which we read today from St. Luke, a rich man, indeed foolish, enlarges his barn to store his great harvest. Then, after accumulating all his wealth, he decides to take it easy, eat, drink, and have a good time without even realizing that his end is at hand and he will die the very same night. Our Lord emphasizes the foolishness of greed and selfishness and condemns our attachment to earthly possessions and wealth. The rich man is condemned for Christ said, "he lays up treasurers for himself, and is not rich toward God."