Saturday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s Gospel selection is part of Jesus’ parable of the Dishonest Steward (Luke 16:1-13). I encourage you to read the entire parable so that you have the context for today’s text. Jesus calls us to be prudent and trustworthy stewards of all the good gifts God gives us. Just as we (hopefully) are prudent in ensuring our affairs are in order, planning our earthly future, let us be even more prudent in planning for our heavenly future in God’s kingdom. As a disciple of Jesus, what does prudent and trustworthy stewardship look like?
In the first part of the parable, Jesus paints a picture of a steward who, though dishonest, acts prudently in taking initiative to solve his problem and ensure that his needs are taken care of in the future. Essentially, he gives away wealth and forgives debts. Isn’t this what we are called to do as disciples of our Lord? In Matthew 10:16 Jesus commands us to “be as shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.” The Greek word translated here as “shrewd” is the same word, “prudent” in today’s parable. The term also means “wise.” We are called to imitate the shrewdness of both a serpent and the dishonest steward without emulating their other undesirable qualities.
One of the Catholic priests whose podcasts I follow has loosely defined prudence as “doing the right thing in the right way at the right time.” That description offers general guidance to us as we consider any particular course of action. As we walk out good biblical stewardship on a daily basis, practicing prudence in this way leads to godly discernment.
In our text today, the focus shifts from being prudent to being faithful, or trustworthy. The Greek word “pistos” carries a connotation of deep obedience. It begins with faith in God but does not end with mere intellectual ascent. To have faith, to be faithful, is to remain loyal, trustworthy, and true. Here, the focus, the main point, of this parable is our wealth. One’s wealth, one’s treasure, belongs to God. If we treat it as our own, we wind up trusting in it rather than trusting in God. I might ask myself; do I place pistos in myself and my worldly wealth and material possessions, meaning does my sense of well-being, confidence, and security come from entrusting myself to worldly accumulation? At the end of the day, in what do I place my trust so that I can sleep at night?
Jesus warns us, “No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.” Catholic scholars have noted that the word “mammon” likely derives from a Hebrew word meaning “that in which one trusts.” Jesus employs a wonderful word play here! You cannot serve both God and “that in which you’ve placed your trust.” Whatever it is that we are trusting here on earth in a disordered manner becomes a god. Let us consider today if we have any misplaced trust within us and ask God for the grace to trust him more.
Faithful disciples of Jesus serve as good (prudent, trustworthy) stewards of all that God gives. God entrusts gifts to us in all their many forms. God is trustworthy; God calls us to be trustworthy, too. Just as the dishonest steward figured out how to give away wealth and forgive debts, let us consider today how God is inviting each of us to share generously what we have with others and to be people who are quick to forgive. May we prepare well and prudently for the future that awaits us in heaven!
I’ll see you in the Eucharist,
Elizabeth Wells