Commentary on the Gospel of
|
“Prayer and fasting are good, but better than either is almsgiving accompanied by righteousness.” Tobit
“Amen I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.” Mark
As I reflected on the readings I wondered if my giving is accompanied by righteousness. I’m pretty sure I don’t fall into that category all the time. And I certainly don’t give every penny I have.
I considered that Jesus is once again using hyperbole to make a point. And He raises up as our model for giving from the heart the lowly, the outcast, the despised, the overlooked in the form of a poor widow.
Surely he doesn’t expect us to donate every penny, thus impoverishing ourselves. He has set a high standard to make a point, to reveal a truth. And that point seems to me to be not to give ostentatiously, for show, but give all of yourself. Give with love. Give even the little things with great love, as St. Therese said. We are to love God with our whole heart, our whole soul, our whole mind. All that we are.
God wants to give us all of Himself, and yearns for us to give all of ourselves in grateful response. Let’s challenge ourselves to meet God’s generosity with our own. |
