Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
We have two stories in the first and gospel readings today, and they are both stories of poor widows. In the Biblical times, widows occupied the lowest rung of society. They were counted among the aliens, the gypsies, the poor and the orphans. Generally, they were objects of other people’s charity. For this reason, the Law provided for their sustenance, allowed them special privileges, and cursed everyone who exploited them (Deut 24:17–27:26).
An Insight into the Mind of God
Surely, the stories of these widows are stories of selflessness, generosity, and trust in God’s providence. But for me, first and foremost, these stories offer us an insight into the mind of God. Of all the people in the famine-struck land, God sent the prophet Elijah to the poor widow of Zarephath. Were there no others? Jesus too, as he sat observing by the treasury, took notice of the poor widow rather than all the others who put in large sums. Were there no others? Scripture is divine revelation and for me, these passages reveal the mind of God.
Both the Old and New Testaments tell us about God preferential option in favor of the poor. No wonder then, that Son of God himself came into the world as a poor human person. He was born of a poor, simple, and humble woman. At his birth it was the poor shepherds to whom the good news was announced. In his lifetime Jesus chose poverty, lived simply, rejected wealth, power, and glory, and finally died naked and powerless on the cross. Jesus’ life, message, and ministry is an insight into the mind of God. God is rich, but God thinks like the poor. God is rich, but God is a God of the poor.
When I look at my own life, I am not poor. I am not rich, but I certainly am not poor. If Elijah had to come today, would he come to me? Would he come to you? If God was looking for someone to accomplish an important task would God choose me? Would he choose you? I don’t know the answers to these questions. But if I want God to choose me, what would it take?
To Think like God Thinks
The second reading from Hebrews provides us an answer to the question we ended the first point with. Hebrews tells us about the high priests who would enter the holy of holies in the temple of Jerusalem to offer sacrifices with the blood of animals. When Jesus, the eternal high priest came, he did not go to the temple. Rather, he went to the cross. His sacrifice was not the blood of animals but his own life. He was not just making an offering. He was giving everything he had to God – his very last breath and his very last drop of blood. His life was his own, but he laid no claim to his divinity and his dignity. It was completely, totally, and radically available for God and for human redemption.
This is what I meant when I said that the stories of the two widows reveal the mind of God. I believe that God sent Elijah to the widow because she was the kind of woman who exhibited the mind of God. Similarly, Jesus noticed the poor widow because she displayed the mind of God. As Jesus said of the widow in today’s gospel, “She, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood” (Mk 12:44). Just like Jesus, the poor widows did not lay claim to even the littlest thing they had. All they had was radically and totally available to God.
Practical implications
I would like to offer three practical implications. First, in reality, today’s scripture is about authentic religiosity. I say this because just before the passage of the poor widow in today’s gospel, Jesus had said this about the scribes and Pharisees: “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” (Mk 12:38-40). It is interesting that the Mark recounts Jesus’ praise of the poor widow after he accused the scribes of devouring the houses of widows while trying to be religious.
There is a lesson here. Scripture is teaching us that true religiosity is not lived inside churches. That is one part of religiosity. True religiosity is often lived on the streets, in our homes, in our workplaces. I said earlier that when Jesus came, he did not go to the temple but that he went to the cross. Jesus love for God and neighbor was not lived out in the Temple but on the cross. This week, reflect on how our religiosity has implications for our relationships, especially the poor. What is our temple? Where is our cross?
Second, Jesus and the two poor widows do not merely teach us to become a little more generous. The implication is not that if we give $10 for charity that we give $20. The implication of today’s scripture reading is that we understand the mind of God. Our God is not merely a generous God. Our God is a God whose generosity is boundless, whose mercy is never-ending, whose compassion is limitless, and whose love is eternal. Our redemption was not accomplished some kind of trickle-down-effect. We were redeemed by God’s total and radical self-giving. We must understand this.
Third, after having understood the mind of God, today we are invited to put on the mind of God. We must learn to think like God does. The widow of Zarephath had the mind of God. The widow who put the only two coins she had, had the mind of God. If we want to be used by God for God’s plan and purpose, then we need to put on the mind of God. Jesus shows us how it is done. The poor widows are models of total and radical self-giving.
As we celebrate this Eucharist, we do not offer silver or gold. We offer simple bread and ordinary wine. That is what Jesus has asked us to do. And see what God can do with them? They become for us the means of our salvation. As we partake of this bread and wine, may we put on the mind of God. May we become like Jesus and the poor widows and be totally, radically, and selflessly available for God. Amen.
- Fr. Satish Joseph