A Homily on Luke 12:13–21 : The Rich Fool and the Free Monk (20-10-25)

Once a monk walked along a forest path on his way to a little village. He met a man running, out of breath and anxious. The man asked, “Have you seen a precious stone around here? I heard there is one that will make anyone rich.” The monk smiled and opened his small bag. Inside was a shining gem. “Is this what you are looking for?” he asked. The man’s eyes lit up. “Yes. Please give it to me,” he cried. The monk handed the gem without thinking. The man ran away full of joy.  Two days later he came back. He gave the gem to the monk and said, “Father, I do not want this alone.  “Please, Father, give me something more precious than this stone. Give me what made you so free that you could give it away.”

Jesus tells a story like this in today’s Gospel. A rich man had more grain than his storehouses could hold. He planned to build bigger barns and then rest. He forgot one simple thing. God asked for his soul that very night. The man had everything for life on earth but nothing for life with God.

There is one small word in this Gospel that hits the heart. The word is soul. God does not ask about our houses or bank accounts. He asks about our soul. The rich man thought only of food and barns. He did not think of God. He thought that keeping more would make life safe. But life is not safe when the soul is empty.

Saint Augustine said, “Our heart is restless until it rests in God.” That is the same truth. We chase things to fill a hole inside us. Money, comfort, praise, good food—all these things try to fill the place in the heart that only God can fill. We may not need a big barn, but we make small barns in our minds and homes. We close ourselves off. We keep our time, our love, and our anger like locked things. We do not share. We do not pray. We become poor in the only thing that matters.

Look at Job in the Old Testament. He had much. He lost much. Yet when everything was taken away, he called God blessed. He did not cling to his cattle or his riches. His treasure was in God. That is a strong lesson for us. If trouble comes, will we lose our faith or keep it?

Saint John of the Cross tells us something similar in plain words. He said that to truly have everything, we must be ready to want nothing for ourselves. This sounds hard, but it is simple. It means we stop making idols of comfort and money. We start making room for God. We begin to share more and guard less.

In family life this Gospel speaks plainly. Parents fight over land and lock rooms in the house. Children grow thinking that love is a thing to own. In prayer, we watch time like a clock and do not give our heart. In the Church, we seek praise and forget service. The rich fool in the story was not bad because he worked hard. He was lost because he stored for himself and forgot God and people.

If today Jesus asks you, what are you storing, what will you say? Are you storing fear, anger, and jealousy? Or are you storing forgiveness, time for prayer, love for others? The barns of this world will rust and fall. But a heart that loves God will never be empty.

 Lord, make my soul rich in You so that I may give away what truly matters. Amen.

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