EVIL OF GREED AND JEALOUSY

FRIDAY, SECOND WEEK OF LENT

Gen 37:3-4,12-13,17-28; Ps 105:16-21; Mt 21:33-43,45-46

Our rejection of God’s Plan

The two readings before us today have similar stories. They portray the evil of human greed and jealousy. These are cardinal vices that grow in our souls when left unattended with the light of the word of God. As we already know, every sin is rooted in our ignorance of the word of God, leading to ignorance of God. In the darkness caused by the absence of the light of the word of God, the evil one bloats our ego to make us think and see ourselves in a delusive manner. Greed and jealousy are two cardinal vices that ensconce the presence of evil and the power of darkness in our souls. Hence, whenever Saint Paul mentions greed in his letters, he describes it as worshiping another god. Greed is an evil tendency in a soul to sacrifice self and everything for the love and acquisition of a created good. It relativises God and everything to self and love for a creature. The vice of jealousy is related to greed because it is a feeling of hatred directed at another who possesses a good or quality we desire inordinately. As already stated, our ignorance of God is the foundation of these vices, for when God establishes his knowledge in us, we can understand God as our supreme Good for whom we must give up all created goods.

As in the case of the temptation of Eve, the darkness caused by our ignorance of God prevents us from understanding that God orders all things for our salvation. Hence, Saint Paul writes that everything works for the well-being of all who believe and love God. Referring back to the story of Dives and Lazarus we read yesterday, both were gifts of God to each other; their cooperation with the grace of God would have seen both in the bosom of Abraham as God planned. The story of Joseph and his brothers, the sons of Jacob, illustrates the verse and depth of God's plan for his people. His brothers were jealous of the many benefits he enjoyed without understanding that they were given to him to serve the purpose of their salvation. “Israel loved Joseph more than all his other sons, for he was the son of his old age, and he had a coat with long sleeves made for him. But his brothers, seeing how his father loved him more than all his other sons, came to hate him so much that they could not say a civil word to him.” His father's love was not the only gift from God; there were many other gifts: gift of dreams, interpretation of dreams, knowledge and wisdom, fear of the Lord, etc. Lacking God's knowledge, his brothers hated him and desired his death out of jealousy. “‘Here comes the man of dreams’ they said to one another. ‘Come on, let us kill him and throw him into some well; we can say that a wild beast devoured him. Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams.’” God, who gave him all these gifts for his good purpose and the salvation of Israel and his family, safeguarded him because he was God fearing.

We see the same greed and jealousy in the chief priests and the elders of the peoples, which caused their hatred for God and Jesus Christ, who came in the name of his Father for our salvation. The parable Jesus told them revealed their hearts’ intentions. For the sake of their comfortable political and religious positions and the material possessions accruing to them through sinful activities, they continuously plotted the death of the prophets and the Son of God. “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come on, let us kill him and take over his inheritance.’ So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.” In this case, they succeeded in killing the Son because it is part of God’s plan for our salvation. God’s plan covers everything necessary for our salvation, which we will gain only by repentance from sin, faith, and cooperation with his graces. If we remain in sin and reject and fight against his plan, it will still come to pass, but without our salvation, for none can thwart the divine plan. Let us repent of our greed and jealousy and embrace God’s word. The word of God is the stone with which we must construct our lives to make them endure forever.

Let us pray: Grant, we pray, almighty God, that, purifying us by the sacred practice of penance, you may lead us in sincerity of heart to attain the holy things to come. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.