The scribes are again the subject of the teaching of Jesus in today’s Gospel. As interpreters of the Jewish law they attracted a high level of respect in the community and people stood to greet them in the streets. But Jesus warns against their arrogance in sitting at the front of the synagogues and taking the places of honour at banquets. He says “these are the men who swallow the property of widows, while making a show of lengthy prayers. The more severe will be the sentence they receive”.
In the second part of the Gospel we read the account of Jesus observing the people putting money into the treasury. In Jewish times the treasury was the inner court of the Temple where worshippers donated their money. Jesus saw how many of the rich people came and made large contributions there – he doesn’t condemn these gifts of the wealthy, rather he puts before the disciples the example of the poor widow as the focus of his teaching. The widow came and gave just two small coins – the equivalent of one penny to the collection, and Jesus attests that her contribution was more valuable than the entire collection “I tell you solemnly, this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury; for they have all put in money they had over, but she from the little she had has put in everything she possessed, all she had to live on.” We can consider the poor widow as a model of faith. She gave all she had with love and trusted completely in God’s providence, believing that He would look after her. In such a way she demonstrated the true riches of faith.
The Gospel message prompts us to reflect on the social realities of poverty and injustice, and the widening gap between rich and poor in our world today. The excessive availability of material goods for some parts of society creates an imbalance with those who live in poverty. We are reminded of our Christian responsibility to care for the poor, reaching out to them in love and generosity and recognising the presence of Christ in one another. By giving to others in freedom and joy, we can truly grow in faith – giving thanks and gratitude for our own gifts, given to us by God. We remember that God encourages us to give with love and that his generosity is never outdone.
“The poor are a gift from God; they are who we love the most…the poor we seek may live near us or far away. They can be materially or spiritually poor. They may be hungry for bread or hungry for friendship. They may need clothing, or they may need the sense of wealth that God’s love for them represents. They may need the shelter of a house made of bricks and cement or the shelter of having a place in our hearts.” (Blessed Teresa of Calcutta)
