September 21, 2025; Amos 8:4-7, Luke 16:1-13; 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
A very wealthy man knew that he was close to death, and so he begged a favor from God. He said, “God, you know that I have received a lot in this life, but I think I have used it well. I have been generous to my family, just with my employees. I even funded a homeless shelter in our area. So I beg you to grant me this one request: When I die, I want to bring something to heaven with me.” God said, “This is very unusual, but I will grant your request with one condition. Whatever you bring must fit in a single suitcase.” The man died and appeared at the gates of heaven, and St. Peter was there to greet him. St. Peter was excited. “You know, no one before you has ever been granted this kind of a favor from God. I can’t wait to see what you brought with you.” The man smiled and opened his suitcase. It was filled with bars of solid gold. St. Peter looked a bit confused and said, “You brought pavement?”
Gold is not that valuable in heaven. They use it to pave the streets. What is important to God is something beyond wealth. This is why Jesus speaks in today’s gospel about “true wealth.” True wealth is more than gold or possessions. Jesus challenges us to choose whether we are going to serve God’s true wealth or whether we are going to serve mammon. Mammon is an old biblical term for money.
So what is this true wealth that we should have in our lives? The prophet Amos in today’s first reading points us in the right direction. He criticizes the money makers, the businesspeople of his time, because their only concern is about the bottom line. They adjust every regulation, interpret every rule to create a bigger profit. They have no concern for the poor, for those struggling to survive. The only thing that matters to them is their financial success. Their god is mammon. Serving God, by contrast, is finding true wealth. It is using our wealth with others in mind, leveraging our profits for the good of all.
So there is nothing wrong with making money and saving it for college or retirement. It makes good sense to have a financial advisor who will help us invest in a way that our net worth will increase. But if we want to serve God, if we want true wealth, we must ask: What part of my wealth am I investing in others? What part of my money do I use, not just for myself and the people who are closest to me, but for those who are hungry and homeless? How much of what I have do I give away to make our society better educated, more beautiful, and more just?
Giving away some of what we have will certainly reduce our financial portfolio. But it will also show who is our master and that we understand what true wealth is. And, in the big picture, this kind of giving actually makes more sense than holding on to our gold—which in God’s kingdom is only used to line the gutter.