We create worry and anxiety for the world

One section of the Sermon On The Mount Jesus says, "Don't worry, don't be anxious - even about what to wear, what to eat.

Does this make sense when we know that there are millions who have every right - it seems - to worry about such daily needs.

The key is in the line that comes before this section where Jesus warns us not to make wealth a God.

When we in the first world make wealth a God we creat\e a world where millions have every right to worry about such basics.

This reading is not addressed to those who are destitute and oppressed but rather to those who were well to do in Jerusalem and Galilee at the time of Jesus.

Thus the first sentence is important once again. It warns against making wealth one’s God.

Then the reassurance of the passage to those with money and means not to hoard because God will look after you as God looks after the flowers and the birds.

The question of course is “God may well look after the birds and the flowers better than the millions of people who are destitute and oppressed and who have every right to worry and be anxious about the next meal for themselves and their families, to be terribly worried about where to live and what to wear.

As with the first reading these two sections need to be put together. There is a direct correlation between the way in which we make wealth our God and the worries and anxieties of much of humanity.

We have within our power the ability to remove the cause of worry and anxiety for so much of humanity.

We are able to eradicate hunger but it will not be accomplished so long as we consume the lion’s share of the resources of this world.

People in Africa and other places rightly worry about AIDS and other terrible diseases. We have the potential to deal with this source of anxiety and worry but the medication is expensive and to cover the cost we would need to give up our smartphones and expensive holidays.

People as we speak rightly worry about safety for themselves and their families in Libya because we have propped up dictators to insure a steady supply of oil to support our lifestyle.

The first sentence has everything to do with the cause of worry and anxiety for millions in the world.

The church gives us these passages form the Bible as the textbook for those preparing for adult baptism and for all of us in our continued growth as Christians.

It is crucial that we take this responsibility seriously and weekly reflect on the passages of scripture as we prepare ourselves to celebrate Eucharist and then to go out to live Christian lives in the world.

The prayer at the beginning of mass says, “send us as messengers of Gospel joy into a world of fragile peace and broken promises”.