Thirty Second Sunday of the Year – November 07, 2021
1 Kings 17:10-16; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark
12:38-44
A money-collection drive was being been
conducted in a particular Church for a particular intention. The people were
free to put in as much contribution as they wanted for the noble cause. One
gentleman stood up and announced a rather large contribution, and the people
applauded greatly. A few moments later, an old lady stood up and announced her
donation. But it was greeted with silence.
The priest, however, in reply to the cold
response of the people, stood up and said emphatically, “Ladies and gentleman,
I believe I hear the applause of the nail-scarred Hands!”
The people understood what the priest
meant, and slowly but surely applauded the old lady’s generosity.
The Gospel of the Day presents such a
similar act of appreciation by Jesus over the apparently “tiny” yet really
“great” contribution by a widow to the Temple Treasury.
The Gospel passage of today places before
us the question, who really serves God? This question seems to emerge from the
ostentatious public behavior of some Scribes and other learned persons and the
contrast between the amount of money given to Temple treasury by the rich
people and a poor widow. People can succeed fooling their companions but cannot
fool God. Therefore Jesus gives his disciples the vivid example of the
sacrifice and generosity of the widow.
This picture given in the second part of the Gospel shows a very
different picture. In a way, it is a completely different scenario, and yet
there are connections. The linking word between the two is
"widow". There is a striking
contrast between the poor widow described in the second part of today's Gospel
and the Scribes and Pharisees in the first part. The simple piety of this woman
of no social standing is contrasted with the arrogance and social ambitions of
some so-called religious leaders. She is
also contrasted with the rich donors offering a large amount of money they can
easily afford and the tiny amount given by her.
It is doubtful that what they offered would not really affect their
standard of living. The point that is
made by Jesus is that the value of a gift is not necessarily assessed by its
quantity.
An interesting point we ought to note is
that the treasury was actually called a trumpet. This is because it was constructed in the
form of a trumpet as if to blow the horn. When the coins were dropped it made a
loud noise and all came to know of the contribution a person had made to the
Temple. Perhaps the small two coins dropped by the widow did not make any noise
but it did not escape the attention of Jesus and he appreciates this great
gesture. The poor widow may not even have heard the praises of Jesus and
certainly, she would receive the reward from God. This poor woman, in a daring
act of trust in God's providence, put into the treasury everything she had --
and it was next to nothing. She had two small coins. She put in both. We must
remember that in the Kingdom of Jesus everyone counts. At the same time to be
counted, we must go on changing our ways and surrender ourselves to Him and
trust in his providence.
Happy Sunday
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