Today, 26th of December, we celebrate
Saint Stephen
In those days, Elijah the prophet went to Zarephath.
As he arrived at the entrance of the city,
a widow was gathering sticks there; he called out to her,
"Please bring me a small cupful of water to drink."
She left to get it, and he called out after her,
"Please bring along a bit of bread."
She answered, "As the LORD, your God, lives,
I have nothing baked; there is only a handful of flour in my jar
and a little oil in my jug.
Just now I was collecting a couple of sticks,
to go in and prepare something for myself and my son;
when we have eaten it, we shall die."
Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid.
Go and do as you propose.
But first make me a little cake and bring it to me.
Then you can prepare something for yourself and your son.
For the LORD, the God of Israel, says,
'The jar of flour shall not go empty,
nor the jug of oil run dry,
until the day when the LORD sends rain upon the earth.'"
She left and did as Elijah had said.
She was able to eat for a year, and he and her son as well;
the jar of flour did not go empty,
nor the jug of oil run dry,
as the LORD had foretold through Elijah.
R./ Praise the Lord, my soul! or: Alleluia.
The LORD keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.
R./ Praise the Lord, my soul! or: Alleluia.
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
R./ Praise the Lord, my soul! or: Alleluia.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
R./ Praise the Lord, my soul! or: Alleluia.
Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands,
a copy of the true one, but heaven itself,
that he might now appear before God on our behalf.
Not that he might offer himself repeatedly,
as the high priest enters each year into the sanctuary
with blood that is not his own;
if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly
from the foundation of the world.
But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages
to take away sin by his sacrifice.
Just as it is appointed that human beings die once,
and after this the judgment, so also Christ,
offered once to take away the sins of many,
will appear a second time, not to take away sin
but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.
In the course of his teaching Jesus said to the crowds,
"Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes
and accept greetings in the marketplaces,
seats of honor in synagogues,
and places of honor at banquets.
They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext
recite lengthy prayers.
They will receive a very severe condemnation."
He sat down opposite the treasury
and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.
Many rich people put in large sums.
A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents.
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them,
"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."
«He threw in everything he had to live on.»
Dearly beloved, peace and goodness.
Today the stories seem to be about widows. Both the Elijah story and the Gospel story. In Old Testament times, as in Jesus’ time, widows, along with orphans and strangers, were the most destitute people in society. The condition of widowhood was one of helplessness. So we could say that today the focus is on the last of society, those who do not appear in the glossy pages, those who do not make «history,» those who only appear in the press or other media when great misfortunes occur.
The Bible is no ordinary history book. It tells us stories like the one we heard today, the first and the last. The protagonists are two widows. This may help us to reconcile ourselves a little with our truth. None of us will enter the history written according to the normal canons of historians. We are not personalities of our world. But if we are of the same wood as these two widows, our personal history, the history of any community, does not go unnoticed in the eyes of God. On the contrary.
And today the texts also show us a law, not of nature, but of God’s relationship with humanity. Give and it will be given to you,» said Jesus. In other words, give and God will give to you. The story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath illustrates Jesus’ maxim. This widow was a pagan who did not worship the God of Israel, but only knew Him as «the God of Elijah. Yet she behaved like a true Israelite, practicing the law of hospitality. Without knowing it, she belonged to the «humble and poor who trust in the name of the Lord» (Zeph 3:12); she was able to embody the ideal of the pious believer who is proclaimed «blessed» in the Psalms: «Blessed is the one who takes refuge in the Lord… Those who respect him will lack nothing… The rich will become poor and hungry; those who seek the Lord will not lack for anything» (Ps 34:9-11).
Today’s Gospel is a pedagogy of the gaze. Jesus invites us to see things differently, not as everyone else sees them. In the first lines we see a criticism of the vanity and ostentation of the scribes, people who liked to be given special attention, even excessive attention. For the common people, the way to worship God was to «worship» them. That was as far as things had gone. The long robes distinguished them from the rest of the mortals. That was how they identified themselves.
Jesus criticizes this desire to stand out, to attract attention. Not only that, but instead of protecting the most disadvantaged – the widows – they dedicated themselves to exploiting them, taking advantage of them, and leaving them with nothing. On the pretext of long prayers… Because of them, many people would surely turn away from the faith, tired and ruined. An abuse on the one hand and a pity on the other.
Then, in the episode of the widow, a fact that is often irrelevant at first sight, Jesus teaches us to see the full meaning that it carries. It is a gesture of radical detachment and radical abandonment into the hands of God. It is an example for everyone. Especially for those of us who do not fully trust God.
Why is the widow’s gesture important? It is true that many rich people, in absolute terms, put in much more than this poor widow; but Jesus emphasizes that they put in what was left over. On the other hand, the widow gave all she had. Yes, to the temple treasury and to the common eye, this was a negligible gift. It would not have been missed even if the widow had kept it in her lap.
But to Jesus’ more penetrating gaze, the woman’s gesture was admirable. And he pointed it out to the disciples. This is the way God judges, who looks deep inside and is not deceived by appearances. The God who takes into account even the glass of water given to one of the little ones because he is a disciple of Jesus.
When our High Priest appears again, he will come to take those who have been redeemed by his sacrifice. This death on the cross has freed us from all guilt if we agree to follow the Master and live as He taught us. What is expected is that we can respond as God deserves.
When we talk about how to enter the kingdom of God, we have a model to follow in this passage. This widow got in for only two pence. Others enter by offering a cup of fresh water (Mt 10:42). The price to be paid is simple: the kingdom of God is worth everything you have, no matter how little or how much.
None of our lives is insignificant in the sight of God. They are all precious, extremely precious. We have a vocation of generous love that God knows how to measure like no one else. Let us respond to the vocation we have received.
Your brother in faith,
Alejandro Carbajo, C.M.F.Give praise to the Lord
who gives bread to the hungry
and raises up those who are bowed down.
It is he who protects the stranger
and upholds the widow and orphan.
May this loving God be with you always. R/ And also with you.
A.In the Hands of God
How much do we Christians dare to live in the hands of God? Shouldn't that be our trademark as Christians, together with love for one another? We are supposed to love God so much that we trust him completely, absolutely, without conditions, without fear or hesitation. That was the way of Jesus, who lived in the hands of his Father. Even in his humiliating death on the cross he could say, "Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit." Timid and weak people as we are, we now offer with Christ our Lord our trust to the Father and we entrust to him all those dear to us.
B. The Poor Know How to Share
For some it is something surprising and heartwarming to see how many poor people help one another, how they share the very little they have and do so without much ado, discreetly and spontaneously. Should that not be to all of us an invitation to conversion, to greater generosity? It makes the poor person a benefactor, the receiver into a giver, the destitute into a rich person. Where do we stand? Do we know how to give with trust in both God and people? Let us join Christ in his sacrifice, in the eucharist and in life, for he gave himself totally.
God has been generous to us,
but we have often been stingy to others
in our love and things to share.
Let us ask pardon from God and from one another.
(PAUSE)
Lord Jesus, you called blessed
those who are poor in spirit,
and you showed us the way:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you gave yourself -
your life, your death, all you are.
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you took upon yourself
our sins and faults
and made us rich with your own life:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord,
take all our sins away
and make us generous like yourself.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Let us pray to God for deep trust in him
(PAUSE)
God with the heart of a father and a mother,
you care for the poor,
give justice to the oppressed
and food to the hungry.
In your Son Jesus you have shown us how
to give not from our surplus but ourselves.
Confound our calculations
and change our self-interest
into generous sharing,
that our way of giving may become like yours,
counting the cost.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading Introduction: She Gave the Last She Had
At a time of famine, a pagan widow gives her last food to the prophet Elijah because he asks for it in God's name. Both the prophet and the widow trust that God will provide.
Second Reading Introduction: Christ Sacrificed Himself for All
Christ offered to God not man-made gifts but himself. This is why his sacrifice, offered once and for all, was powerful enough to save all.
Gospel Introduction: She Offered All She Had to Live On
While others gave what they did not need, the poor widow gave all she had to live on. She was more generous than anyone else.
Let us pray to God our generous Father, who loves the weak and the humble, and let us pray for all those who are poor. Let us say: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we pray for your Church. Preserve it from the temptation of power and riches. So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we pray for all public officials. Keep them from the temptation of greed and abuse of power. So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we pray for widows an orphans. Keep them from despair and make us attentive to their need of love and compassion. So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we pray for all the poor who are insecure about the next day. May we bring them security and love. Also for the rich, we pray you that they may open their hands and hearts. So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we pray for this community. Make us generous enough to share not only from our abundance but also, when needed, from our own poverty. So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
- Lord, we bring also our personal intentions before you. (moment of silence) So we pray: R/ Listen to your people, Lord.
Father, we know that you love us and care for us with the tenderness of a mother. We entrust all our cares to you. Be generous to us and make us generous like you by the power of Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Loving God,
in these signs of bread and wine
we celebrate how Jesus, your Son,
gave himself once and for all,
that we might live and love and be free.
May we learn from him
to ask not how much we can afford
without hurting ourselves,
but let him be our strength
to give the best of ourselves
and to answer his voice
crying out to us in everyone in need.
Grant us this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Let us now give thanks and praise to God our Father for Jesus, who gave all, his whole self, that we might live and become capable of love.
God knows what we need,
for he is our Father.
We pray to him with the full trust
of Jesus himself: R/ Our Father...
Deliver us, Lord, from every evil
and grant us the peace that comes
from living in your hands
and from discovering your presence
in our brothers and sisters in need.
In your mercy, keep us free
from the fear of really giving ourselves,
as we wait in joyful hope
for the life and salvation
of our Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
This is the Lamb of God
who sacrificed himself
to forgive our sins
and to share his life with us.
Happy are the poor and hungry,
for the Lord invites them at his table
to give himself to them.. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
God, merciful Father,
your Son came to fill with your gifts
the poor aware of their own emptiness,
and he called them blessed.
Help us to discover how poor we really are -
poor in faith, in trust, in generous love.
Be near to us in your Son,
that we may be available to all
and share the best that is in us
without any outward display
but in quiet deeds of love and service,
as Jesus did, your Son,
who lives with you and with us for ever. R/ Amen.
We have celebrated the sacrifice of Jesus.
He gave what he had and was -
his whole self -
to bring others life and happiness.
Let us go to become Christians,
that is, people like Christ
who do not count the cost of our gifts.
May almighty God bless you,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let us go and share ourselves
with one another. R/ Thanks be to God.
