Readings: Amos 8: 4-7; St. Paul’s 1st Letter to Timothy 1-8; Luke’s Gospel 16: 1-13
Are you aware how much God loves you? Every day take a moment to say, “Jesus loves me more than I can ever know.” If we do, we will know where our heart’s treasure is; we’ll know the true source of our self-esteem. And should we forget, Jesus remains the source of our daily bread regardless – BUT isn’t it good to be reminded that we rooted in Christ daily? “Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left –and in every direction the traditional Prayer of Saint Patrick encompasses.
I remind us of God’s love in Christ today, because our readings are exceptionally challenging. I don’t think we can take any of the Bible’s challenges to heart, unless we are secure that we are loved. Remember, all Jesus’ challenges are rooted in unconditional, unremitting, relentless love. Dearly Beloved, are we convinced that we are so loved, that we can entertain what Jesus asks of us?
What does he ask? What is the challenge? In the wrestling match between God and mammon, use our possessions well, invest in our common humanity as Children of God, keep the Commandments. In common parlance, Jesus is asking: “Which is the song you want to sing? “Money makes the world go round, the world go round!”) or “When charity and love prevail, there God is ever found?”
Of course, we can’t do without love or money in this world, yet the Gospel insists that we cultivate love as our. When Jesus said, “Render to Caeser what is Caeser’s and to God what is God,” he meant that God is the foundation of life. Thus, all our obligations to the State must be grounded in Love of God and neighbor. Jesus was forever emphasizing the two Great Commandments. These are the foundation of the kingdom of God – the realities we are to live fully here on earth and for eternity. One is found in Deuteronomy 6:4:
Hear, O Israel![b] The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! 5 Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength. 6 Take to heart these words which I command you today. 7 Keep repeating them to your children. Recite them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them on your arm as a sign[c] and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.”
The other in Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.”
These are the foundational Commandments of the Jewish faith that were and are precisely the ones upon which Chris builds his Church. May we never forget it!
Therefore, Jesus insists that we remain responsible in our worldly concerns – especially our finances, because everything we must be an opportunity for spiritual growth and renewal. This should not seem a daunting way of life. Just as the apostles cried out to Jesus: “Increase our Faith!,” they probably prayed “Increase our Fishing Business!” as much. Because that is what we humans do!
It is natural that as we pray “increase our faith”, we pray “increase how prosperity, too, for that is how we can engage fully in this world. So by all means, ask, “Help my business to improve!” “Help me get that raise I so desperately need!” “Help me balance my budget!” “Help our parish refurbish the roof!” But don’t neglect the faith that supports every prayer, every person. For everyone needs one thing or another, and everyone needs God.
The most important thing to remember: Jesus is not creating a dichotomy, an “either / or” or “black and white” approach to life. Instead ,he is saying, “everything is interconnected.” Being wise in small matters helps us navigate the more difficult, complex issues. Being rooted in faith, conscious of God and God’s will on a daily basis, will help us discern when God is truly working through us and through others, and when God is not. So, as we work and look forward to our paychecks or social security, remember that every move we make, every step we take, is part of our Spiritual journey. Jesus builds on the Scriptures such as today’s First Reading: “God will not forget those who trample on the needy” in their striving for success. God will bless all mindful of our common humanity. That is the heart of spiritual growth.
One of our newly canonized Saints, Pier Giorgio Frassati centered his life in spiritual growth. He steeped himself in Catholic teaching, the writings of Sant Catherine of Sienna, prayer and service. He was fittingly declared a saintly model in the way he balanced his studies in Engineering, his love of sports and recreation (he was a Mountain climber!), with his prayer life as a Third order Dominican — for amid all these enterprises, Pier visited nearby slums in Rome, distributing his personal family allowance to the indigent, the sick, and the miserable. He is a prime example of the holy integration of life in Christ: “Be yourself and be generous.”
May tonight’s Eucharist offer us a deeper experience of God’s love for us, releasing us from our anxieties over what we don’t have, so that what we do have keeps a generous amount of our time, talent, and treasure for others. So that they, too may have an experience of God, that, in turn, affords them time to consider Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
frjamesdiluzio 