Homily for the 18th Sunday of Ordinary Time, July 31, 2022. Gospel of St. Luke 12:13-21. Theme: Remedy for Greed? Love in Action!
Dale Schroeder was a simple man born and bred in Iowa. He grew up poor, never went to college, never married. He labored as a carpenter for almost 70 years, driving back and forth to work in his rusty Chevy pickup. His friends described him as a typical frugal Mid-Westerner, raised in the post-depression era: a blue-collar lunch-pail kind of guy who went to work every day and to church every Sunday. They also said he had a generous heart.
But they had no clue as to just how large his generous heart was!
To everyone’s great surprise, when Dale Schroeder passed away he left behind a $3 million fund that he had carefully saved throughout all his working years. He had intentionally ear-marked this money to enable poor small-town Iowa kids to go to college and have a life that he was never able to have. On the anniversary of his death, several years after he had passed, a group of 33 college graduates gathered to honor, celebrate and thank a man they had never met. But he was a man whose lack of greed had changed the very direction of their lives.
One of these “Dale’s Kids” (as they were called) was Kira Conrad, by then a practicing family therapist. She recalled how at her graduation party she was telling her guests that she would not be going to college. She had the grades and the desire, but just not the money. As God’s providence would have it, right after the party she got a phone call. It was Dale’s Scholarship Fund and Kira was given a full ride to college. Like each one of “Dale’s Kids”, she was told that the way to pay it back was to pay it forward: to imitate his self-forgetfulness and be generous with whatever God might bless her with in the future.
Dale Schroeder was the polar opposite of the foolish rich man in today’s Gospel. He was a living example of what we call the “Social Teachings of the Church”. This is the part of Catholic Faith that has to do with our dealings with others and the world around us. And they are every bit as important to our salvation as are the Doctrinal Teachings of the Church, such as the Resurrection or the Eucharist. The Social Teachings are based on the “riches that matter to God” that Jesus spoke about: things such as mercy, justice, generosity and truth. The Catholic Social Teaching regarding wealth can be summed up as follows:
First of all, we are simply the recipients of blessings from God, we are not their source nor their origin. Whatever talents and aptitudes we have in this life are due to the genetics that we’ve received. And quite often our wealth was actually earned by others and simply passed on to us. We can take no credit for either of these things for they came from God, either through our biology or our family history. We had nothing to do with either one. Even if we have worked hard to earn what we have, that too was a gift from God. So, this first social teaching of the Church reminds us to be humble. It keeps us in check and reminds us of just who we are, and what we are, and how we got to where we are.
The second Social Teaching on wealth flows naturally out of the first and it’s this: the gifts we have been given are not meant for ourselves alone. They have been given to be shared with others. Everything we have received in life is held in stewardship, placed into our hands by God with an obligation of social responsibility. Like “Dale’s Kids'', we are supposed to pay it forward and use what we have received to help others live a decent human life. This is one of the ways in which we grow rich in what matters to God.
But you know not many of us, indeed not most of us, are abundantly wealthy. However, sharing God’s blessings isn’t something reserved for just the rich. Nor is generosity dependent upon how much someone has in the bank. What counts in God’s eyes is not how much we give. What pleases him is the largeness of our hearts, the openness of our hands, and the motivation for our giving. And this is something everyone can do no matter what situation in life they find themselves in.
One way for us to do this is through the St. Vincent de Paul Society that has an active Vincentian Conference right here in our own parish. This weekend we are returning to an old parish custom of taking up a special collection for the Society in every month that has a 5th Sunday. A lot of charities ask for your money, but I want to assure you that every single penny you donate to the Vincentians goes to the needs of the poor they serve. And that's not something ever charity can honestly say. There are no salaries to pay. No supplies to buy. No overhead. It all goes directly - and rather quickly - to the many works of mercy they carry out.
Hopefully, you read the special St. Vincent de Paul Report that was sent out via Flocknotes earlier this month. If so, then you were able to learn how your financial support has made such a huge and vital difference in the lives of so many local people and their struggling families. Quite honestly, the charity relief of the Vincentians simply could not have been done without your generosity. They distribute the goods, but they do so in your name, on your behalf, because you are the ones who make it possible by your financial contributions.
Our parish St. Vincent de Paul treasury has run quite low because the post-Covid inflation era need has grown so very high. You’ll find white St. Vincent de Paul envelopes in the pews to make your donation or you can simply put the Society’s name in the memo line of your check. But, in addition to funds, I am also appealing to any of you who feel a tug deep within your heart to do more and give more than money to the poor. Ask God in prayer if he wishes you to give yourself to the poor by becoming a parish Vincentian. Come to one of our meetings to see first hand what we are about. This is no obligation to join.
By supporting us in our works of mercy for the needs of the poor, you will be paying it forward like Kira and the rest of “Dale’s Kids”. If, with a grateful and humble heart, you invest your money in the treasury of the Vincentians, you’ll surely be taking steps to do what Jesus said in today’s Gospel about growing rich in what matters to God.
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