Homily: Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time

Homily: Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Mk 12:28b-34) “Stewardship Goes Both Ways

            Widows and orphans were the most vulnerable members of ancient society. Women and children were completely dependent on the man of the household to provide economic security. When a man would die there was no social safety net. Life insurance, social security, Medicaid, didn’t exist. If there were no relatives that would help, widows and orphans would be left destitute.

                A contrast is drawn in this Gospel between the scribes, who were the religious professionals and the widow. Jesus was unhappy with the scribes. He says, “beware of them.” Why are the scribes so dangerous? Because religion can be misused. Religious leaders can use religion to manipulate the vulnerable to get benefits for themselves.

                The story is told of a widow and orphan boy who lived in the 20th century in Chicago. The man of the house died of cancer at a young age. The widow was devastated but she was a strong woman who vowed to carry on with life. She worked to support her son and herself.

                Her 4th grade boy was a very sensitive child who went to church often. His dad had a Catholic funeral. But there were no memorial Masses that were offered because the relatives put all the memorial monies in a fund to support the widow and her son.

                One day at church, the orphan boy was sharing his grief with a priest that was visiting religious education classes. The parish priest knew that there had been no memorial Masses offered for the man who had died. He said to the boy, “Your Dad needs to have memorial Masses said or he won’t see God face to face. The boy went home very distraught. He said to his mother, “Mom, the priest says, if we don’t have a memorial Mass said for Dad, he won’t see God face to face. Can I have some money so we can offer one.” The widow, being a strong woman of faith said to the boy, “In the book of Exodus Moses only saw God’s backside. If Moses was happy with that, I am sure that your father would be.” The boy was consoled by what his mother said.

                I think the widow in the Gospel was a kindred soul in the Gospel story we just read. The story is about trust. We might also say it is a story about stewardship. The scribes in the Gospel were all about profiting off religion. If they could manipulate people to increase donations they would. We are told they devour the monies of houses of widows. We would call this misuse of church funds. The scribes used the funds for personal benefit.

                We would think Jesus would say, “Don’t be like this foolish widow who donated her last two coins to the temple treasury.” But he praises the woman for her donation. Why? Because she believed it was important to give something back to God, even if it was a small amount. She didn’t just want to take charity. She wanted to be charitable. She wanted to make a sacrifice, however small.

                Stewardship is about giving gifts without conditions. Also, it is about receiving charitable gifts and using them for the right purpose. Our parish tries to be very aware of that. For that reason, we have a finance committee, we have a financial report once a year, and we have trustees who approve capital projects. Parish leaders are aware that any donations we receive are given to us with the belief that they will be used wisely.

                Jesus had to rely on donations for his ministry. But he wasn’t a religious leader who profited from his ministry. He used his money to spread the Gospel. He used it to help the poor. He gave his life for the world. He is the model for all religious leaders. He is our model for stewardship.

 Reflection:

1.    What does it mean to give a sacrificial gift? When was the last time I made one?

2.    How do I know when to give to a charity? What makes me trust a charitable organization?

Dear Parishioners,

            It is hard to believe, but we are coming to the end of the church year. Advent begins on the first weekend of December. It will be short, the shortest that the liturgical year allows for. We will not have a lot of time for spiritual activities.

            We will be providing two opportunities for Advent reflection. The Sacred Justice Committee will be sponsoring four weeks of small group discussions. The sessions will be held at various times during the week. Topics that will be discussed revolve around the infancy narratives contained in the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke. If you wish to join a small group, sign up the next time you are in church or call our office and leave your name.

            We will also have two evening prayer opportunities on Sunday afternoon. There will be scripture, psalmody, and a reflection on the new encyclical of Pope Francis called “Delexit Nos” which means “he loved us. The encyclical is a teaching on the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Fr. Mark will give the reflection on the 8th of December and Fr. Matthew will offer his thoughts on the 15th of December. The prayer service will be at 3 p.m. A large part of the encyclical reflects on the Blessed Virgin and her spirituality. Please come and join us.

Mary, Queen of Peace, pray for us,

Fr. Mark