GREAT RESPONSIBILITY
"The bosoms of the poor, the houses of widows, the
mouths of children are the barns, which last forever. True wealth consists not
in what we keep but in what we give away." (St. Ambrose)
How can a bad person
possibly give a good example? Jesus obviously thought that the example of
someone who is dishonest would be a perfect illustration for a spiritual lesson
about the Kingdom
of God. What's the point
of Jesus' parable? The dishonest steward is commended for his shrewdness. The
original meaning of "shrewdness" is "foresight". A shrewd
person grasps a critical situation with resolution and foresight. Jesus is
concerned here with something more critical than a financial crisis. His
concern is that we avert spiritual crisis through the exercise of faith and
foresight.
If Christians would
only expend as much foresight and energy into spiritual matters which have
eternal consequences, as much as they do to earthly matters which have temporal
consequences, then they would be truly better off, both in this life and in the
future age. St. Ambrose, a fourth century bishop said, "The bosoms of the
poor, the houses of widows, the mouths of children are the barns, which last
forever. True wealth consists not in what we keep but in what we give
away." Possessions are a great responsibility. The Lord expects us to use
them honestly and responsibly and to put them at His service and the service of
others.
In today's first
reading, St. Paul
comments about people for whom God is non-existent, if not in theory at least
in practice. He wrote, "Their only god is their belly, and their glory is
in their shame" (Phil 3:19). When people make their own desires supreme,
when they in effect make themselves their own god, there is no freedom for
them. They believe they can do whatever they please, but in doing so they
become slaves of their own appetites.
Actually, many people
who do not practice religion or who question the existence of God act in accord
with an instinct within themselves which insists that there must be a God. We
are called to live with an explicit and expressed belief in God. We are
committed to following His will and we believe that in following it we can
accomplish the true purpose of human existence. We live for the future, not in
the sense that we deny the reality of this present world, but in the
understanding that our true and final citizenship is in heaven.
We are all God's
servants and all that we have belongs to Him. He expects us to make a good
return on what He gives us. Jesus makes clear that our hearts must either be
possessed by God's love or our hearts will be possessed by the love of
something else.
What does your heart
most treasure?