We are still a long way from Christmas, but the parable that Jesus tells us in the Gospel today has me thinking of my favorite Christmas movie of all time, It’s a Wonderful Life. The movie follows the life of a man named George Bailey, who finds himself in a desperate financial situation and thinks about taking his own life. Thankfully, his guardian angel, Clarence, saves him and proceeds to show him that his life’s worth doesn’t depend on money. He does this by giving George a glimpse of how different the world would be had he never existed. I love the moment where George finally prays, “I wanna live again. I wanna live again!” It chokes me up every time.
Several scenes in the movie take place in George’s office at the Building & Loan, which he manages. On the wall is a picture of his late father, who ran the Building & Loan until his death and who George replaced. Below his picture is a framed quote: “All you can take with you is that which you’ve given away.” Of course, those words defined the life of George’s dad. This quote represents the legacy that George’s father passed onto him and which he has continued through tireless efforts to serve the community through his business.
Without realizing it, George has become incredibly rich through the relationships with the people he has served through his business. Although a financial crisis has come to his life and robbed him of hope, by seeing a world without himself through Clarence’s help, George comes to realize that money is not a reason to lose hope. He realizes the importance of all the people he has come to know and love through his work in Bedford Falls, above all his family. At the end of the movie, when George is surrounded by family and friends, he reads a note from Clarence which says, “Remember, no man is a failure who has friends.”
There is so much truth to those words–our relationships, those deep family and friendship bonds we form in this life, the love we give away–these are what make us rich. Truly, “All you can take with you is that which you’ve given away.” We will ultimately either enjoy the fruit of a life lived in love in Heaven, or suffer the misery of a life without love in Hell. How we live today is a preparation for how we will live in eternity.
This is why the parable that Jesus tells us today should bother us. Because, unlike most of His parables, there really isn’t anybody to whom we can relate in the parable. Everybody seems off. Of course, the steward who tries to bribe his master’s debtors by arbitrarily reducing what they owe is dishonest and not praiseworthy. He is just looking out for his own good. The debtors who willingly go along with him are also crooked. Finally, the master himself, who praises the shrewdness of the dishonest steward, isn’t worth imitating. What’s going on here? What are we to make of this parable?
I think the fact that nobody in this parable is praiseworthy is actually the point. Jesus isn’t encouraging us to be dishonest. Rather, he’s showing us an extreme example of how much all people can be corrupted by making money their ultimate goal. And this is such a big temptation for us, because money is useful for meeting certain needs, but it can easily be warped into the be-all and end-all. This is what Jesus shows us through this parable where everybody seems out of their minds. He warns us not to put our stock in our stock, so to speak. He’s reminding us that our relationships–both with God and others–are what will ultimately bring us joy in this life and the fullness of joy in Heaven.
Jesus tells us today to “make friends with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings” We have to understand what Jesus means by “dishonest wealth.” He doesn’t mean wealth obtained by cheating, he means wealth that is tied up in this world; money and worldly riches which so often tempt us toward dishonesty. He is contrasting “dishonest” wealth with true wealth–the love we share with God and other people. This is what makes us truly happy. Like Clarence says, “No man is a failure who has friends.” This is clear by what Jesus says after encouraging us to make friends with dishonest wealth. He warns, “If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?” We are called to grow in love with God and others, to be responsible with those true riches of love. This will form our hearts to honestly deal with the “dishonest wealth” of possessions. When we allow our hearts to be given to others, we won’t be as susceptible to giving them to things.
Let’s take stock of where our hearts are today. Are they given more to honest or dishonest wealth? Let us ask the Blessed Trinity to set our hearts on the true riches of love, the only treasure not forfeited at death.
+ Father, thank you for warning us against the temptation of wasting our lives on the riches that fail. Jesus, give us the courage to seek deeper relationships with you and those you’ve put in our lives. Help us to trust your assurance that all other things will be provided when we seek your kingdom first. Holy Spirit, help us to surrender those passing riches that still have a grip on our hearts. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen. +