The wisdom tradition from which the first reading is taken is rooted in the fact that life is a series of choices. The epistle and the gospel reading provide us with examples of the way Christians should choose. Finally, the psalm’s description of the fleeting nature of life sets the context and tone of our decision-making.
Discipleship demands that, in the face of all the choices available to us, we keep our priorities straight. In the gospel, Jesus insists that we must be single minded. We must cling to the one thing necessary, and that one thing is authentic discipleship. In choosing Jesus, we choose other things as well. We choose new relationships with the very people to whom we have already been committed. Those who were slaves, or lower class, or employees, or providers of service are now regarded as sisters and brothers in Christ. In choosing Jesus, we also choose the cross. We choose to live in a way that calls us to travel the high road: to forgive offences committed against us; to live simply so that others can simply live; to take responsibility for the moral character of society.
The fleeting nature of life as characterised in the psalm forces us to look at the meaning of life. When the day dawns for us to return to dust, what will we have gained from life? The realisation of our finiteness and the transitory nature of life should help us to set our priorities right and should give us the courage to remain faithful to them.
© Dianne Bergant CSA, https://www.liturgyhelp.com/calendar/date/2025Sep07/0/RefDiBer