“This is the story of a man by all modern standards would be considered eminently successful. Yet Jesus called him a fool. The central character in the drama is a “certain rich man” whose farm yielded such heavy crops that he decided to build new and larger barns, saying, “There will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.” But God said to him, “Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.” And it was so. At the height of his prosperity, he died.
When most folks think of a Fool, it’s typically associated with someone acting unwise, childish or silly. The Fool is defined as a person that lacks good sense or judgement and is rarely taken seriously. In the history of humankind, we have had many fools make their mark on the world, in good, bad and/or memorable ways and rather we liked it or not. Without naming name, we have had fools in our lives in all areas; A fool for a parent, as a sibling or a relative that shows up at all the holiday events. There are fools at our workplace, in local government (again, not naming names), some fools have become teachers, preachers, caregivers and some are successful business leaders. This bible story tells us that God called this man/person a Fool for a specific reason.
In Dr. King’s book Strength to Love, his sermon on “The Man Who Was A Fool” is broken down with three different examples of how this man’s foolishness was noted; through his work ethics, his relationship with others and most importantly, his relationship with God. My reflection invites you to spend a little time re-examining the man, reviewing his motives and relationships with God as well as discovering a new meaning of the word Fool with a modern-day twist from a woman who is always aspiring to be a better Fool.
Isaiah 58: 10 – 11 reads, “If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness… and the Lord will guide you continually… and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” Our character in this story was a man who learned how to grow wonderful crops, studied the trait and worked hard. All his rewards were evident in his dedication and investments as a farmer. The man sowed and reaped a great harvest. The story shows that he had plenty and was in a position of privilege and wealth. At the height of the man’s prosperity however, he did not think of others in need, not the hungry, the afflicted or the less fortunate. He decided to selfishly store up all his goods without thinking to share his abundance with others.
When we think of this story today, we note how people are taught now more than ever the importance of engaging in community service, volunteering in under resourced organizations and participating in sacrificial giving. It is reassuring to think that the kinds of selfish choices “The Fool” made, no longer exist and this story is a thing of the past. Sadly, that is not true, in 2023 there are more than 193 million people around the world that suffer from hunger and in the United Stated (one of the top ten riches nations in the world) 10% of our population struggle with food insecurity every day. Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, the number of people starving in America has risen by 10% after declining for decades. When we think about all the things we are blessed to have; the homes we live in, the food we eat, the cars we drive and the luxury items we adore because of our hard work, we should also consider those who are less fortunate than us. The ask here is not to give up all our worldly possession or make drastic lifestyle choices, but this story should remind us of the frivolous (not having any serious value or purpose) things we invest in and make us aware that when we have more than enough, that means we can afford to share some of what we have with others and often. There are too many people hoarding riches and know that they can and should do more to alleviate the suffering of others. These are the fools of today and they need to reprioritize how their wealth and privileges are impact the rest of the world.
Matthew 22:37–39 notes, “thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. “ As we love and serve our fellow men, we live both commandments. By helping God’s beloved children, we show our love for Him. By serving our family, neighbors, and communities in need, our love for them grows. The Bible teaches us how to serve others, follow Jesus, and find joy. When the man decided, “There will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.” he did not include God or his neighbors in the equation of taking, eating, drinking and being merry. The Fools decided to focus on self-glorification and failed to acknowledge God’s hand in the matter. The fool did not thank God for the sun, seeds, rains, richness of the soil or the other earthly elements that were provided beyond man’s power to produce a bountiful crop. The Fool spoke as though he was able to grow all that alone and as though God is not the source of all seasons and creation.
My Christian faith teaches that human beings are only a small, finite part of God’s awesome and massive creation. When we pay attention to the big picture, we see just how insignificant our role is in God’s marvelous plans for us and the world around us. According to the first book of the new testament gospels in the bible, it is God’s divine order and blessings that give our lives meaning and when we start to think what we have accomplished on any scale is not because of God’s will, power and might, we become irrelevant. Mark 8:36 adds that “what profits a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” What this world has to offer us; the possession, power or even pleasures are worthless, temporary and cannot be exchanged for a man’s soul. When we honor God’s plan and purpose for our lives, we will live a truly abundant life full of God’s grace and mercy.
In the book Foolish Wisdom, written by Joseph F. Martin, he writes “I don’t consider myself an accomplished fool. That’s the vision I’m working toward. Me, I rejoice in my littleness.” This is where I attempt to turn the tale of “The Man Who Was A Fool” upside down and then right side up again. If the man in the story had simply taking a few seconds to seek God’s counsel, the end would not have come some quickly. That night, the man could have continued to celebrate, be proud of the harvest and think wisely about how he wanted to preserve the crops. The detail that should have been added was first giving thanks, honor and glory to God for all goodness. God would have heard the man’s praise and could have granted his wishes, desires and hopes for the future. When we seek God’s wisdom, we are inherently better off in this world. According to Matthew 6:33 man must “ seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these (and other) things shall be added unto you.” This translates as rejoicing in my littleness and not boasting about his own works and deeds. A wise Fool knows to first acknowledged God as the supreme authority over all things and to recognizes our total dependance on the divine to accomplish anything of value on earth. I truly believe that the man could have lived a longer and more prosperous life, if he would have rejoiced in his littleness and glorified the Lord instead of himself.
I work with a group of community leaders in the Tenderloin (TL) Neighborhood of San Francisco and we are called the Faithful Fools. Our work each day is to make meaningful connections with our neighbors in the community through the Arts, Education, Advocacy and Accompaniment. This work is fostered in establishing relationships, meeting people where they are, shattering myths about those living in poverty, being aware of our judgements and discovering on the streets our common humanity. Being a Fool is challenging because we don’t fit into any of the non-profit boxes or check off any organizational list, we truly rejoice in our littleness. We make a point to not use city, state or federal funding for our work in the TL because it would restrict the ways, capacity and the type of support we create with our community members. Our work is often defined as filling in the cracks where government, social service providers, faith-based agencies and corporations are unable to reach.
The Faithful Fools is a living, learning community that operates 7 days a week and one of our founders have lived in this neighborhood for close to 25 years. We work each day with residents and community members who say they feel unseen or unheard or by other service providers. Our relationships and services range from supporting folks who are currently unhoused and need a place to get their mail, to offering morning meditation led by a resident that needed a safe place to grieve after losing his wife to cancer last summer. We offer advocacy assistance to dozens of residents living in Single Room Occupancy (SRO’s) units here in the TL. This is one of the most difficult areas of our work because of the housing crisis in San Francisco. From addressing lease violations and coordinating visits for family members, to getting a property manager to repair a toilet in a timely manner, reimburse a tenant on a fixed income or provide a copy of their lease, navigating these grievances requires patience and humility. We also support folks in addiction, struggling with Medi-Cal and Social Security benefits and services, people who are navigating the criminal justice system and living with medical trauma and other debilitating disabilities. All of our assistance cross cultural lines, immigration status, sexual orientation and beliefs. What we do is free and doesn’t have a time limit or contractual obligation you have to sign to work with our team. The Faithful Fools will offers a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, a hot cup of tea or a chair to just sit and rest for a bit on a busy day. The amount of work we do is nothing compared to how we do the work. We Fools have the responsibility of showing up each day, consistently, authentically and with a passion for the people that is bigger than a paycheck. Each day begins with the opening of the front door at the two-story purple building in the middle of the block on Hyde St. We are a group of fools who believe in radical reflections and building intentional communities through social justice and solidarity. Being faithful to this kind of work also means believing that something is possible even when others can’t or won’t or don’t see it as such. It means standing on truth, being rooted in LOVE and showing compassion to others. The bible teaches that Faith is complete trust or believe in someone or something and being faithful is to remain steadfast and loyal. We Fools are painfully aware of the any barriers our neighbors live with each day and we want to offer support wherever and whenever possible. Some look at the housing crisis in San Francisco and think it’s too big a problem to tackle. Other’s see the amount of open-air drug use in the area and get overwhelmed. We Fools know these are challenging issues and any people are suffering and struggling to deal with them each day. Our team is here because when one person is suffering, we all suffer. We reference this quote by Lilia Watson during our street retreats with participants, “ If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.” So yes, there are many people out there in the world causing problems, starting trouble and acting like fools, some for all the wrong reasons… and others, simply because they haven’t learned what it really means to be a fool yet. J. F. Martin said it best, “The Fool is the Lord of disorder. Creating new order on the edge of society.”
