GENEROSITY OF THE POOR

November 22, Monday

THIRTY-FOURTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 

      To strengthen the faith of the persecuted Jews at the time of the Maccabees, the author of the Book of Daniel tells the edifying story of four young Jews who take the risk of remaining loyal to God’s law even at the pagan king’s court. They draw both God’s protection and their wisdom from this fidelity.

      The widow goes beyond the law. In her generosity, she does not only give all she has, she has only what she has given. People who are poor often know well how to give because they know what it means to be poor and dependent; they know how to live in the hands of God.

 

First Reading: Daniel 1:1-6,8-20

It was the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon declared war on Jerusalem and besieged the city. The Master handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the furnishings from the Temple of God. Nebuchadnezzar took king and furnishings to the country of Babylon, the ancient Shinar. He put the furnishings in the sacred treasury.

The king told Ashpenaz, head of the palace staff, to get some Israelites from the royal family and nobility—young men who were healthy and handsome, intelligent and well-educated, good prospects for leadership positions in the government, perfect specimens!—and indoctrinate them in the Babylonian language and the lore of magic and fortunetelling. The king then ordered that they be served from the same menu as the royal table—the best food, the finest wine. After three years of training they would be given positions in the king’s court.

Four young men from Judah—Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah—were among those selected.

But Daniel determined that he would not defile himself by eating the king’s food or drinking his wine, so he asked the head of the palace staff to exempt him from the royal diet. The head of the palace staff, by God’s grace, liked Daniel, but he warned him, “I’m afraid of what my master the king will do. He is the one who assigned this diet and if he sees that you are not as healthy as the rest, he’ll have my head!”

But Daniel appealed to a steward who had been assigned by the head of the palace staff to be in charge of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: “Try us out for ten days on a simple diet of vegetables and water. Then compare us with the young men who eat from the royal menu. Make your decision on the basis of what you see.”

The steward agreed to do it and fed them vegetables and water for ten days. At the end of the ten days they looked better and more robust than all the others who had been eating from the royal menu. So the steward continued to exempt them from the royal menu of food and drink and served them only vegetables.

God gave these four young men knowledge and skill in both books and life. In addition, Daniel was gifted in understanding all sorts of visions and dreams. At the end of the time set by the king for their training, the head of the royal staff brought them in to Nebuchadnezzar. When the king interviewed them, he found them far superior to all the other young men. None were a match for Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

And so they took their place in the king’s service.

 

Gospel: Luke 21:1-4

Just then he looked up and saw the rich people dropping offerings in the collection plate. Then he saw a poor widow put in two pennies. He said, “The plain truth is that this widow has given by far the largest offering today. All these others made offerings that they’ll never miss; she gave extravagantly what she couldn’t afford—she gave her all!”

 

Prayer

Lord our God, generous Father,
simple people put us often to shame
by their total generosity
and straightforward loyalty.
Make us realize Lord,
that like your Son, the real poor of heart
often make us understand who you are:
a God who gives himself.
Grant us too, this kind
of generous love and loyalty
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

 

Reflection:

Charity begins at home
We are once again given the story of the offering of the poor widow for our reflection. A couple of weeks ago, we have reflected on it in detail during a Sunday liturgy. The beautiful explanation by Fr. Armellini helped us to reflect on the corrupt practices and traditions of the temple which forced an offering even from people like this hapless widow. Jesus decried the attitude of the priests and religion scholars who devoured the poor and the widows to enhance their pockets.
Widows, orphans, migrants, and foreigners were the poorest people in Israel. The widow in the Gospel had offered her whole livelihood, because she trusted in the Lord. She gives everything, because for her, the Lord is greater than all else. The message of this Gospel passage is an invitation to generosity. Generosity towards the poor, towards the needy, towards the abandoned and despised.
That’s why when the Church exhorts the faithful for generosity, care should be taken that the Church herself does not fail to be generous towards the needy. Often times our Church institutions behave like the religion scholars and priests of the time of Jesus. Many churches and priests insist a fee for the funerals, marriages, baptisms and Mass resulting in chasing the faithful away from the sacraments and the Church. When the Church truly represents the presence of God among the people, it should be more concerned about not only caring for their spiritual needs but also for their physical needs.
“Charity begins at home,” says the proverb. Caring for the needy – the elderly and the sick in our homes should not be overlooked while reaching out to help the needy neighbour or even making huge offerings to the church. How often do we come across elderly and sick parents living in misery, while their children are known for their charitable works in the society and in the Church?
Generosity belongs to everyday life. Can I be more conscious of ‘How can I be more generous, with the poor, the needy… How can I help more?’ It is normal to think that, “I am not super rich to be very generous with the needs of people around me. Let me take care of my own needs first, before trying to be generous!” Pope Francis has a suggestion for us: He says, “look through your room or your wardrobe. How many pairs of shoes do I have? One, two, three, four, fifteen, twenty…. Maybe too many… But if you have many pairs of shoes, give away half. How many clothes do I not use or use only once a year? This is one way to be generous, to give what we have, and to share.

Video available on Youtube: Charity begins at home