Today’s gospel reading is the last of the teachings that Jesus gives in Mark’s gospel. Next week is the last Sunday in Ordinary Time when the Church presents to us readings about the end times. Jesus is approaching the end of his earthly ministry. Soon, he will be facing his Passion, his resurrection, and his return to heaven. What then does the gospel writer in Mark present us with as Jesus’ final words of wisdom?
Jesus gives us a warning and then draws a contrast. In this contrast, Jesus gives us a final window into the Kingdom of Heaven, and how we need to order our lives while we are still here. It is an easy message to hear, but it is not an easy one to live out because it calls for a true examination of what we consider important.
How does Jesus start his warning today? He points to those who have been giving him a hard time during his teachings in the Temple-the scribes. As Fr. Matt pointed out last week, the scribes have been trying to discredit Jesus through their questions about paying the tax to Ceasar and who is married to who in heaven. After dispensing with their questions, he goes after their lifestyle.
The job of a scribe was to study, become familiar with, and interpret the Jewish Law as it had come down from the time of Moses. Today’s equivalent would probably be lawyers and judges. They would have been the best educated and the most respected. They were supposed to help assist their fellow Jews to live according to the Law. As often happens with human beings, pride got in the way.
Whether it was their own arrogance, the respect offered them by the people they were supposed to serve, or a combination of both, many the scribes had become self-important and corrupt. They began to care about passing things- clothing that showed their status, places of honor, formal greetings. Scribes were often given the role of managing widows’ estates. Instead of performing their fiduciary role, they would take exorbitant fees for their work or practice other fraudulent activities through these estates. What had started as a noble profession had devolved into just another secular activity.
How should we, as followers of Jesus, act then? Let’s practice the opposite of what the scribes do. Instead of drawing attention to ourselves, make humility a common practice. Be generous with our time and talent in the service of others. Let’s care for the well- being of others less fortunate than ourselves, the weak, abandoned, or marginalized, instead of taking advantage of them or looking away as the corrupt scribes did. There are no shortages of them in today’s world.
What makes this difficult is that we always forget that the trappings of this world are a passing thing. This is a tendency I always fight against and am reminded of when friends or relatives pass away. The secular awards, titles, achievements, and plaudits, while nice and motivating in the short term, all pass away. What usually remains are the memories special to each surviving person or the effects that person’s good deeds have on the lives of others.
This would have seemed the logical place to end the gospel reading and this homily. However, we have this additional story of Jesus observing those giving donations to the treasury in the Jewish Temple. The treasury would have been in the part of the Temple located in the Court of the Women. It was the only part of the Temple opened to everyone. It is believed from the records we have that there were thirteen different collection points for donations. Those making contributions would have placed them in a trumpet shaped object that led to a collection box.
As one deposited his or her donation in the open end, it would have noisily clinked down, the length of the trumpet into the collection box. Once again, here was a chance to show off. Their large contributions would have literally made a loud noise as it entered the receptacle and clanked into the box. One can almost see a tired Jesus, knowing his Passion was near, watching all of this, listening to the noise, and wondering about it all.
Something then happens that attracts his attention. A poor widow comes up. She probably would have gone unnoticed by everyone but Jesus. She deposits her small contribution which silently slid into the collection box, and then went on her way. Jesus points her out to his disciples by saying she has contributed more than everyone else.
Like any large institution, the Temple needed the generosity of others to keep going. I’m sure the expenses were not small. Thus, those who donated a lot in monetary terms were the ones “keeping the lights on.” If the Temple had to rely on the small donation of the poor widow in this story, it would have been in trouble. Where is Jesus coming from then?
Just as Jesus urged those listening to him to avoid the secular ways of the self-important scribes, he is urging his disciples and us to look at this world in a different way. That poor widow did give a pittance. However, she gave from what she needed to survive. The others, while they gave more, gave from their leftovers.
So, is Jesus saying give till it hurts? Does he really want this widow to go without a meal so she can give to the Temple? In our first reading, we see another poor widow presented with the same scenario. After suffering through years of drought, her and her son are down to their last meal when she runs into the prophet Elijah. He asks her for a drink of water and then demands something that seems very unjust- a cake from someone with no food for themselves. The widow, who is also a Gentile, brings this up to the prophet. Elijah assures her though that the faithful response to his request will be a great blessing to her and her son. Whether she responds out of desperation or faith, she and her son are saved as others probably die around them.
This isn’t recorded in the gospel, but would any of us be surprised if Jesus goes to the disciple holding the money purse, takes out of it twice the value of the widow’s donation, goes up to her as she’s leaving the Temple, and gives it to her?
Is Jesus then saying the real treasures in the Kingdom of God are not the scribes with their outward appearances of success, those who keep the Temple running, or even the Temple itself but this poor widow who is so dedicated to her faith in God that she would put herself in danger. Is it faith and a life lived in total dedication to Jesus and his message that is the gold standard? In contrast, is a life dedicated to accumulating fame, riches, and power one headed for a very severe condemnation?
Who are the poor widows today? Who are the scribes? As we contemplate Jesus final teaching today, let’s continue to reflect on his call to not just reject the passing temptations of this world but to help bring about the radical transformation he so desperately wants. As he looks on this world in the same way he looked on the treasury, may we be the faith filled light shining in the darkness.
