We trap ourselves in material goods and the pursuit of wealth. We get caught in an obsession with possessions. The rich man in the parable represents this way, and Jesus uses him to show us our own addiction to possessions. And, Jesus calls us to let go by practicing a simple life.
L.J. shares the following reflection on Sunday's Gospel according to Luke:
The Learning Channel has a revealing show titled Hoarders.Whenever the show enters a hoarder’s house, we see it is full not only of stuff but also of filth and decay. The person who is hoarding often experiences extreme health issues, sometimes having nowhere to sleep. Their relationships collapse under the weight of all their possessions. The Mayo Clinic says, “Hoarding disorder is a persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions because of a perceived need to save them. A person with hoarding disorder experiences distress at the thought of getting rid of the items. Excessive accumulation of items, regardless of actual value, occurs.” Hoarders suffer from a possession obsession.
The phenomenon of hoarding represents our culture’s problems to the extreme. People incarcerate themselves in possessions. They cannot let go because they are so anxious, fearful, and wounded. The possessions can act as barriers to reality because reality is so painful. Possessions, here, are but an outward manifestation of all the interior clutter and possessiveness keeping the hoarder from love, healing, and spiritual connection.
The unnamed rich man in today’s parable suffers from one of the greatest illusions: wealth. He is buried under his money and possessions so much that he cannot see the needs of poor Lazarus at his own door. He represents all of us. An obsession with possessions and the money needed to buy these possessions can infect us all. And this obsession can blind us to reality, to the poor who are right in front of us, at our own doors. Our possessions do, truly, possess us.
St. Francis of Assisi shows us the path of liberation, for he lived without any possessions. He taught his brothers to do the same for they wanted to follow the poor Jesus. In his Rule for the friars, Francis said they were to live without anything of their own. He means for them to be happy and content in this seemingly very insecure life. Physically Francis and the brothers were utterly vulnerable. In truth, though, they lived a most secure existence, because each was anchored in God—so anchored that they were free from the possession obsession, which imprisons us and sets us against each other.
The following story reflects their free life as well as the trap of wealth and possessions: The bishop of the city of Assisi, to whom the man of God would frequently go for counsel, receiving him kindly, told him: “It seems to me that your life is very rough and hard, especially, in not possessing anything in this world.” To which the saint said: “Lord, if we had possessions, we would need arms for our protection. For disputes and lawsuits usually arise out of them, and, because of this, love of God and neighbor are greatly impeded. Therefore, we do not want to possess anything in this world.”
If we own material goods, we need to protect them through law and through arms. We move into gated communities. We get an alarm system. We pay for insurance. There is an inherent connection between weapons and possessions. Defending our things requires the means to defend them, things like weapons and security systems. For Francis, this implies we’re attached to our possessions.
But living without anything of one’s own is more than physical poverty. It is to be poor in ego. Francis knew the secret of Christianity: when ego diminishes, new life emerges. The more you possess things, people, the good things God does in you, and your reputation, the less you are centered in God. The less we possess, the more we are free. The more we possess, the less we are possessed by God. Whether physical things or mental things, the possession obsession leaves little room for God, love, and relationships.
Francis trains us in the practice of joyful poverty, for a simple life is freer and more open to God. To practice joyful poverty is to center our hearts on God and to simplify our lives. Basically, Francis counsels us not to be attached to things. So, take stock of your house. How much do you own? What can you throw away or give to charity? Ponder this essential question: what can you live without? In other words, do you absolutely need everything you own? For instance, do you wear every piece of clothing you own? Start simplifying your life in a simple manner. Tackle one room or even one closet at a time. Wealth and possessions blind us; they are a trap; they desensitize us to reality, to real people. Trusting our lives to God and loving the poor are the antidotes to such illusions.