In the Hands of God

November 7, Sunday

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

How much do we Christians dare to live in the hands of God? Shouldn’t that be our trademark as Christians, together with love for one another? We are supposed to love God so much that we trust him completely, absolutely, without conditions, without fear or hesitation. That was the way of Jesus, who lived in the hands of his Father. Even in his humiliating death on the cross he could say, “Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit.” Timid and weak people as we are, we now offer with Christ our Lord our trust to the Father and we entrust to him all those dear to us.

 

First Reading: 1 Kings 17:10-16

So he got up and went to Zarephath. As he came to the entrance of the village he met a woman, a widow, gathering firewood. He asked her, “Please, would you bring me a little water in a jug? I need a drink.” As she went to get it, he called out, “And while you’re at it, would you bring me something to eat?”

She said, “I swear, as surely as your God lives, I don’t have so much as a biscuit. I have a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a bottle; you found me scratching together just enough firewood to make a last meal for my son and me. After we eat it, we’ll die.”

Elijah said to her, “Don’t worry about a thing. Go ahead and do what you’ve said. But first make a small biscuit for me and bring it back here. Then go ahead and make a meal from what’s left for you and your son. This is the word of the God of Israel: ‘The jar of flour will not run out and the bottle of oil will not become empty before God sends rain on the land and ends this drought.’”

And she went right off and did it, did just as Elijah asked. And it turned out as he said—daily food for her and her family. The jar of meal didn’t run out and the bottle of oil didn’t become empty: God’s promise fulfilled to the letter, exactly as Elijah had delivered it!

 

Second Reading: Hebrews 9:24-28

That accounts for the prominence of blood and death in all these secondary practices that point to the realities of heaven. It also accounts for why, when the real thing takes place, these animal sacrifices aren’t needed anymore, having served their purpose. For Christ didn’t enter the earthly version of the Holy Place; he entered the Place Itself, and offered himself to God as the sacrifice for our sins. He doesn’t do this every year as the high priests did under the old plan with blood that was not their own; if that had been the case, he would have to sacrifice himself repeatedly throughout the course of history. But instead he sacrificed himself once and for all, summing up all the other sacrifices in this sacrifice of himself, the final solution of sin.

Everyone has to die once, then face the consequences. Christ’s death was also a one-time event, but it was a sacrifice that took care of sins forever. And so, when he next appears, the outcome for those eager to greet him is, precisely, salvation.

 

Gospel: Mark 12:38-44

He continued teaching. “Watch out for the religion scholars. They love to walk around in academic gowns, preening in the radiance of public flattery, basking in prominent positions, sitting at the head table at every church function. And all the time they are exploiting the weak and helpless. The longer their prayers, the worse they get. But they’ll pay for it in the end.”

Sitting across from the offering box, he was observing how the crowd tossed money in for the collection. Many of the rich were making large contributions. One poor widow came up and put in two small coins—a measly two cents. Jesus called his disciples over and said, “The truth is that this poor widow gave more to the collection than all the others put together. All the others gave what they’ll never miss; she gave extravagantly what she couldn’t afford—she gave her all.”

 

Prayer
God with the heart of a father and a mother,
you care for the poor,
give justice to the oppressed
and food to the hungry.
In your Son Jesus you have shown us how
to give not from our surplus but ourselves.
Confound our calculations
and change our self-interest
into generous sharing,
that our way of giving may become like yours,
counting the cost.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Reflection:

A prophet wants to be heard, not admired.

From the beginning of his public life, Jesus came into conflict with the representatives of the religious institution, the scribes and the Pharisees. They called him a heretic and Jesus called them thieves and robbers who had turned the temple into a den of thieves.

Today’s Gospel begins by presenting Jesus’ attack against the scribes. During the exile in Babylon there was no longer a temple, and therefore, the scribes gathered the people to listen to the reading from the Torah. When they returned from Babylon, the scribes became the official interpreters of the Word of God.

Jesus denounced their behaviour: “They like to go around in long robes” to attract everyone’s attention. Jesus could not stand these comedies. A person united to God, to God’s thoughts, to God’s feelings, never worried about attracting attention to be admired. A prophet wants to be heard, not admired.

To distinguish themselves from others and to show their superiority these spiritual and religious leaders used special attires. It’s a pathetic way of begging for attention, of seeking vainglory. The scribes of Jesus’ time are no more, but do we notice pharisaic behaviours today in our church communities? How often do we come cross people who try to enhance their personal glory by adding honorary titles to their names and by demanding the bowing and hand-kissing? If there is a ranking in the Church, the greatest ranking should be given to the disabled, the poor, the needy, and the sinner, because they were ones who became friends of Jesus.

Anything that crated separations and division among people angered the Lord. The only time Jesus speaks of condemnation is against people who created divisions in the community. Today’s passage is a caution for the clergy and leaders of the Church who causes divisions in the community on account rites, rituals, traditions.

Mark also presents the story of Jesus commenting on the offering of the poor widow in the temple treasury. We understand that Jesus was appreciating the selfless offering of the poor widow. Perhaps, there was something more to it. Jesus was already fed up with the temple administration and the evil deeds of the priests of the temple. How would he recommend the poor widow to contribute all her livelihood to such a corrupt system? He must have been expressing his discomfort by pointing out, “This poor widow has offered all what she had.” He must have been condemning a system that demanded an offering to the Church treasury even from the poor and the helpless!

1. Are clericalism and discriminations still a problem in our Church?
2. Is there anything that I can do to promote equality and fraternity in my community?

 

Video available on Youtube: A prophet wants to be heard, not admired.