Be Prudent And Act Promptly
1. I Have Entrusted Much to You
2. God or Mammon
Introduction
1. I Have Entrusted Much to You
The Lord is asking us today: “What have you done with the many things and the people I have entrusted to you?” We speak much today of accountability not only for our jobs, our finances, our families and our parishes, but accountability for our very lives. God has put so much into our hands: the material things we have as well as our gifts and talents. These are not just personal gifts for our own enjoyment, but for our communities, for the Kingdom of God. We must also be prudent and prompt in taking the decisions regarding our lives and our different charges. May we give a good account to the Lord.
2. God or Mammon
We celebrate the Eucharist of the Lord. Here Jesus shares himself with us and he reminds us of how he gave himself so totally for us that in his love he was willing to die for all. In this light we have also to listen to his words. He knows that we need money and things but he warns us not to let money become our master. Rather, let the poor become our masters. The things we have are not really ours. They are on loan to us and we are their steward.
First Reading: God’s People Must Be a Just People
In the name of true religion and the covenant, the prophet Amos warns God’s people: God will reject them if they enrich themselves at the expense of the poor.
1 Reading: Amos 8:4-7
Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land! “When will the new moon be over,” you ask, “that we may sell our grain, and the Sabbath, that we may display the wheat? We will diminish the ephah, add to the shekel, and fix our scales for cheating! We will buy the lowly for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals; even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!” The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Never will I forget a thing they have done!
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 113:1-2, 4-6, 7-8
R. (cf. 1a, 7b) Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor. or: R. Alleluia.
Praise, you servants of the LORD,
praise the name of the LORD.
Blessed be the name of the LORD
both now and forever. R.
High above all nations is the LORD;
above the heavens is his glory.
Who is like the LORD, our God, who is enthroned on high
and looks upon the heavens and the earth below? R.
He raises up the lowly from the dust;
from the dunghill he lifts up the poor
to seat them with princes,
with the princes of his own people. R.
Second Reading: God Wants Everyone to Be Saved
Liturgical prayer, says St Paul, must be universal and missionary, as God wants everyone to be saved through the only mediator, Jesus Christ. We should not forget to include in our prayers those who do not yet know Christ.
2 Reading: 1 Timothy 2:1-8
Beloved: First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity. This is good and pleasing to God our saviour, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as ransom for all. This was the testimony at the proper time. For this I was appointed preacher and apostle — I am speaking the truth, I am not lying —, teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.
Alleluia: Cf. 2 Corinthians 8:9
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Though our Lord Jesus Christ was rich, he became poor,
so that by his poverty you might become rich.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Give Me an Account of Your Service
The heart of Christians must be undivided. Their main concern is to serve God faithfully and to share generously what they have.
Gospel: Luke 16:1-13
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 the steward said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’ The steward 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 are the children of light. I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”
Commentary
We often hear it said that the rich become richer and the poor poorer. This is heard in relation to globalization, as well as to the economic crisis that many countries face. Big banks and businesses have often become wealthy through dubious tactics and yet they are the ones that get bailed out, while many people are laid off and lose their homes. The Nigerian members of the House are suggesting that Government bailout ailing Companies. It seems accurate to say that the children of darkness are cleverer than the children of light. In economic terms, this almost always seems to be true. The villain in many movies seems to have endless resources for evil, lies, and manipulating things to their advantage; meanwhile, the good person suffers, is trampled under oppression, lies, and abuse at the hands of the one who seems stronger. Sometimes we feel like shouting to the good one in the television screen not to allow himself or herself to be deceived any longer; but in the midst of all this, we firmly believe that goodness triumphs in the end.
We think goodness conquers; we know, as Amos says, God will not forget injustice; but often we place too much trust in those who lead us and those we see in positions of power, and sometimes we don’t take advantage of important opportunities to do good and build a better world. While we are busy being good we allow evil to advance and take over places that should be important for us if we truly want the will of God to be fulfilled, on earth as it is in heaven. It doesn’t mean we don’t have to be good; but the children of darkness sharpen their thoughts and actions for their own benefit. Seems they know most appropriate time to strike and plan ahead. For the children of light to do good, to find resources and ways to do good acts is a Christian obligation, since it is directed toward the common good. We cannot remain passive because, as Jesus would tell us, we would be allowing darkness to reign.
The children of light need to act faster, to be more intelligent: not for their own profit or enrichment, but for the good of others. The fact is that, when we love someone, we don’t lack imagination or resources or the creativity to do good things for that person. Shouldn’t this be the same for the Christian community? God calls us to love our neighbour and even our enemy. The idea is, therefore, to sharpen our creativity to see in which ways we could be more efficient, and to optimize our resources for the good of others.
Blessing
Let us be good stewards
of all God’s good gifts to us,
and in the service of God and those around us.
And let us also be good stewards
of one another,
with the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Go in peace,
and serve the Lord in one another. R/ Thanks be to God.