Daily Liturgy
Friday November 5
THIRTIETH-FIRST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
GOOD STEWARDS
Introduction
Paul excuses himself for interfering in the affairs of the Church of Rome, for it was not founded by him. But he will rely on the Romans for his missionary journeys to the West. He has two basic reasons for dealing with them: collegiality – for he is an apostle like the others – and his priestly ministry as evangelizer bringing the Good News to all.
Whatever the unknown context of today’s parable may have been, the central thought of Jesus’ words seems to be this: Much has been entrusted to us and we will have to give an account for it to God. We must act responsibly, keeping our goal in mind: God and our neighbor. Let us be people who try to know where we are going and what we are doing.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
you have made us responsible with you
for many persons and things:
for ourselves, for other people,
for the future of this world.
May we be good stewards
of all you have entrusted to us.
Help us to use our talents wisely and well
in the service of all that is good,
always inspired by faith
and living in the love
of Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Reading 1: Rom 15:14-21
I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters,
that you yourselves are full of goodness,
filled with all knowledge, and able to admonish one another.
But I have written to you rather boldly in some respects to remind you,
because of the grace given me by God
to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles
in performing the priestly service of the Gospel of God,
so that the offering up of the Gentiles may be acceptable,
sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast in what pertains to God.
For I will not dare to speak of anything
except what Christ has accomplished through me
to lead the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed,
by the power of signs and wonders,
by the power of the Spirit of God,
so that from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum
I have finished preaching the Gospel of Christ.
Thus I aspire to proclaim the Gospel
not where Christ has already been named,
so that I do not build on another’s foundation,
but as it is written:
Those who have never been told of him shall see,
and those who have never heard of him shall understand.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4
(see 2b) The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
Alleluia: 1 Jn 2:5
Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever keeps the word of Christ,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Lk 16:1-8
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 he said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’
He replied, ‘One hundred measures of wheat.’
He 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 the children of light.”
Intercessions
– For the Church, that it may be a serving Church and a Church of the poor, bearing witness to God’s gratuitousness as a living parable of sharing, we pray:
– For those in positions of responsibility in politics, finances and the economy, that honesty, justice and concern for the good of all may guide their decisions and actions, we pray:
– For those who live by the work of their hands, that people may recognize their dignity and the service they render to all, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
in these gifts, we bring before you
our toil and care,
with the aspirations and sufferings
of people far and near.
Let us always entrust to you everything
for which you have made us responsible,
not to refuse our task but to ask you to give us
the patience and the strength,
with your help to bring everything to a good end.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
we are but weak and timid,
and yet we know that you expect much of us.
Open our hearts to the bold Spirit
of Jesus, your Son,
that in us and through us, he may bring to a good end
all you have begun in us
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
God has entrusted much to us to be thankful for: our talents, our friends and relatives, other people, even nature. Let us care for everything entrusted to us. May Almighty God bless you,
Commentary
Most of us would consider the steward’s conduct reprehensible in defrauding his master in order to ingratiate himself with his master’s debtors. Even if it may be the case that the steward was simply eliminating his own commission, in accord with what we now know after examining financial transactions of the time, the reader is not advised of such a procedure, and we are left to deal with the story as it stands.
The parable is not intended to deal with every feature of the steward’s conduct. The point is that in the face of a crisis he acted decisively to provide for his future. Whether or not his action was morally appropriate is not the point of the parable. The master commends him, not for his honesty but for his ready decisiveness to avoid greater damage.
Would that all were as prudent and ready to act in the interests of the reign of God as was the steward to protect his own interests.
After extending words of counsel to the Romans, Paul defends his action on the basis of the gospel. The only objective Paul has in mind is to bring the Gentile world into obedience to Christ. Whatever is accomplished is done by the Spirit of God. This has carried him from Jerusalem through much of die Greco- Roman world always in the spirit of the gospel.
The Gospel today reminds us that we should be as decisive as was the steward in the interests of God and the gospel. Procrastination usually spells inaction. A laissez-faire attitude does not spell progress. We are engaged in the world’s greatest drama as key players, not walk-ons. That calls for enthusiasm and spirit!
Points to Ponder
The action of the steward
The response of the master
Acting for the gospel.