Catechism Links [1]
CCC 2407-2414: respect for the property of others
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| “Mammon” by George Fredrick Watts, 1884-85 |
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [3]
Readings and Commentary: [4]
Reading 1: Amos 8:4-7
Hear this, you who trample upon the needy
and destroy the poor of the land!
“When will the new moon be over,” you ask,
“that we may sell our grain,
and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?
We will diminish the ephah,
add to the shekel,
and fix our scales for cheating!
We will buy the lowly for silver,
and the poor for a pair of sandals;
even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”
The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Never will I forget a thing they have done!
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Commentary on Am 8:4-7
This passage marks the beginning of Amos' “Fourth Vision,” that of ripe fruit. The prophet envisions God’s response to greed. The Israelites wait impatiently for the end of the monthly holy days so they can engage in business. (“When will the new moon be over” see Numbers 28:11-15, at the new moon the faithful are required to sacrifice some of their material blessings from God's bounty before they begin selling things.) Their practices of cheating on the measure of grain (the ephah is slightly more than a bushel) is strictly forbidden by Mosaic Law (Leviticus 19:36 and Deuteronomy 25:13-15). The prophet Amos holds the faithful to a higher standard than the shrewd businesspeople who lead them. He denounces injustice and reminds them that the Lord will hold them to account if they deal badly with the poor and the weak.
CCC: Am 8:4-10 2269; Am 8:4-6 2409; Am 8:6 2449
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 113:1-2, 4-6, 7-8
R. (cf. 1a, 7b) Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
R. Alleluia.
Praise, you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
Blessed be the name of the Lord
both now and forever.
R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
High above all nations is the Lord;
above the heavens is his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God, who is enthroned on high
and looks upon the heavens and the earth below?
R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He raises up the lowly from the dust;
from the dunghill he lifts up the poor
to seat them with princes,
with the princes of his own people.
R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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Commentary on Ps 113:1-2, 4-6, 7-8
The special place the poor have in God’s eyes is echoed in this song of praise from Psalm 113. In the final strophe of the passage, God’s support and salvation for the poor is promised, instead of equating earthly success with heavenly glory.
CCC: Ps 113:1-2 2143
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Reading II: 1 Timothy 2:1-8
Beloved:
First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers,
petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone,
for kings and for all in authority,
that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life
in all devotion and dignity.
This is good and pleasing to God our savior,
who wills everyone to be saved
and to come to knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God.
There is also one mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself as ransom for all.
This was the testimony at the proper time.
For this I was appointed preacher and apostle
— I am speaking the truth, I am not lying —,
teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray,
lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.
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Commentary on 1 Tm 2:1-8
St. Paul instructs Timothy and his followers on the communal prayers of the Church. He tells Timothy that everyone is to be prayed for, from the king to the servants. His intentions make it clear that he came to bring the Gentiles the good news, and that there should be unity in Christ.
CCC: 1 Tm 2:1-2 1349, 1900; 1 Tm 2:1 2636; 1 Tm 2:2 2240; 1 Tm 2:3-4 2822, Sans;; 1 Tm 2:4 74, 851, 1058, 1256, 1261, 1821; 1 Tm 2:5-8 2634; 1 Tm 2:5 618, 1544, 2574
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Gospel
Longer Form: Luke 16:1-13
Jesus said to his disciples,
“A rich man had a steward
who was reported to him for squandering his property.
He summoned him and said,
‘What is this I hear about you?
Prepare a full account of your stewardship,
because you can no longer be my steward.’
The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do,
now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me?
I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.
I know what I shall do so that,
when I am removed from the stewardship,
they may welcome me into their homes.’
He called in his master’s debtors one by one.
To the first he said,
‘How much do you owe my master?’
He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’
He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note.
Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.’
Then to another the steward said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’
He replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’
The steward said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note;
write one for eighty.’
And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently.
“For the children of this world
are more prudent in dealing with their own generation
than are the children of light.
I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,
so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?
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.”
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Commentary on Lk 16:1-13
The common practice, at the time this parable was told, was for the steward to receive interest or commission on the amounts owed to their masters. Therefore, in this account, when the dishonest steward reduces the amount owed to his master, he is really just retrieving the actual amount owed – hence the master’s praise. Three morals can be extracted from this parable. "Use prudently the wealth that you have, in order to ensure your status within the final age; remember that wealth tends to lead men to dishonesty. When earthly goods fail, you will be welcomed into the everlasting tents of the Kingdom of God (some Greek texts read, "when you fail.") In this second moralization, emphasis shifts from the eschatological age to day-to-day fidelity. The Christian must make a prudent, restrained use of earthly goods." [6] The final lesson that can be taken from this passage has nothing to do with the parable's main theme. It reiterates the expectation Jesus has of his followers, that they have total dedication to him.
CCC: Lk 16:1 952; Lk 16:3 952; Lk 16:13 2424
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Or
Shorter Form: Luke 16:10-13
Jesus said to his disciples:
“The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?
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.”
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Commentary on Lk 16:10-13
The focus of this alternate reading changes from the prudent use of material wealth, to one of trust and dedication. The Lord defines trustworthiness as a character trait. If present it will be there in large and small matters, and if absent, it will be absent in all instances as well.
Concluding both readings is the statement “You cannot serve God and mammon." This is a third conclusion of the story; wealth in this statement is cast as a god. We can have only one master. Emphasis in this form is upon the third moral of the parable, the complete dedication required of Jesus’ disciples to the Lord and his Gospel message.
CCC: Lk 16:13 2424
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Reflection:
We listen to the whole body of Scripture today, which is one of those very practical messages that tells us how we should live as God’s children in the secular world. We begin with the prophet Amos. He is reminding his audience (over seven hundred years before Christ) that, if they deal shrewdly with the poor and hoard their wealth, God will remember their acts of greed when they come before him in judgment. This is supported by the psalm which praises God and reminds us that our acts of generosity to the poor echo God’s own plan, that all may have dignity before him.
Next, we come to St. Paul instructing Timothy at the church of the Ephesians. His cornerstone theme is embedded in this passage. All Christians are one in Christ. This means that we are to serve one another, and that no one should suffer when there are resources within the community to prevent it. Material wealth is shared with those less fortunate.
If we hear this message clearly in the first three examples today, the Gospel message from St. Luke becomes almost anticlimactic, although in the longer form of St. Luke’s Gospel, we are given three conclusions, not just one. The first of these is actually a bit of a warning. The story in the parable of the dishonest steward demonstrates that caution must be exercised when dealing with those in the secular world in matters of material wealth. (The implication is that we should not have to worry about that when dealing within the community of faith.)
The second conclusion is that trust is a matter of character (and should be the hallmark of Christian character). If a person is trustworthy, they may be trusted in large or small matters; temptation will not dissuade them from their honest and faithful trust. If, on the other hand, a person is not trustworthy even small trusts will be violated.
The final conclusion summarizes the lesson today. One may not serve two masters, God and wealth. If our prize is eternal life, then our eyes must be fixed firmly on God. Yes, we use the gifts he has given us to make our way in the world. We also make sure that our brothers and sisters are helped along the way. But our efforts are for God’s glory, not for the sake of accumulating wealth. Wealth is its own prize, and the rewards end with this life.
I’ll remind you of the story of the wealthy man who died and went to heaven. St. Peter saw the man and saw that he was very sad. He approached the man and said “Dr. Wu, I see you are sad, yet on earth you were a faithful man and did many good works. Your reward is here in heaven. You should be rejoicing.”
Dr. Wu said “St. Peter, thank you. I know I cannot take my wealth with me, but I wish I had just a small souvenir to remind me of that life.”
St. Peter thought for a moment and said “I guess we have time, since there is no time here. You can pop down and bring something back. Nothing too big now, like a yacht or something.”
Dr. Wu brightened immediately and, poof, he was gone and poof, he was back carrying a shoe box that was clearly very heavy. St. Peter smiled and said, “Dr. Wu, I am just curious, what did you bring back?”
Smiling sheepishly, Dr. Wu opened the shoe box and inside there were four bars of gold bullion. St. Peter looking surprised said “You brought pavement?” (For much younger readers, it is said that the streets of heaven are paved with gold. I had to add that because when I told this story to a young adults group, I got blank stares.)
We have a good reminder of a very practical aspect of Christian values today. Let us pray that our efforts reveal God’s glory, and our own wealth helps those in need. As a side note, as we contemplate our participation in the upcoming elections (in the United States), we may wish to measure the candidates among whom we must choose by this measure of their character. Our choice becomes the lesser of two evils. Let us remember that in all things we are children of the light, and greed has no place with us.
Pax
[1] Catechism links are taken from the Homiletic Directory, published by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, 29 June 2014.
[2] The picture today is “Mammon” by George Fredrick Watts, 1884-85.
[3] S.S. Commemoratio
[4] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[5] The Navarre Bible: “Letters of St. Paul,” Scepter Publishers, Princeton, NJ, © 2003, pp. 561-62.
[6] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 44:120, p.149.
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