Vanity of Vanities

Homily for Thursday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time

The American jazz singer, Peggy Lee, recorded a hit record in 1969 entitled: “Is That All There Is?” The refrain which is repeated several times asks the question: “Is that all there is? If that's all there is my friends, then let's keep dancing. Let's break out the booze and have a ball if that's all there is.”

The Book of Ecclesiastes is one of several texts in what is called the wisdom literature of the Hebrew Scriptures. Ecclesiastes begins and ends with the same sentiment; namely, “vanity of vanities, all things are vanity.” Though the author expresses the same sentiments as the Peggy Lee song, there may just be a reason why such sentiments are expressed in the Scriptures.

Many scholars would locate Ecclesiastes in the third century B.C., when Judea was under the oppressive domination of the Hellenistic kings of Egypt. These kings were highly efficient in their ruthless exploitation of the land and people. The average Jew would have felt a sense of powerlessness and inability to change things for the better. For Qoheleth, God seems remote and uncommunicative, and men and women cannot hope to understand, much less influence, God’s activity in the world. If we place ourselves in their situation, it is somewhat easier to understand this cynical and pessimistic perspective.

I’m sure that there are people in our world today who might have the same viewpoint. As wars drag on, as hunger continues to grip so many parts of the world, and as political leaders continue to act on their own behalf rather than on the needs of the people they represent, it is easy to see how people would adopt cynicism rather than hope.

Toward the end of Peggy Lee’s song, she tells us that when others suggest that she might as well take her own life rather than live in such a pessimistic world, she reveals that she is convinced that even death will leave her disappointed. It is precisely at this moment that our faith tells us that even in a world full of trials and suffering, we can look forward to an eternity of love in the arms of our Creator God. To both Peggy Lee and Qoheleth, the resounding answer to the question is: “No, our hope will not be disappointed.”