The ability to assess the impact of Jesus’ meaning as he compares the scribes to the widow depends on a variety of factors: who was his audience at the time; who was Mark’s audience at the time of his writing (Mark 12: 38-44). And perhaps more importantly for our purposes, how do his words resonate with us today? These questions are relevant to understanding Jesus’ overall message as emphasized by his quote, Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.
Jesus denounces the scribes for their hypocrisy and the way in which they amass their wealth. It is more important for the scribes to be seen in all their pompous finery and feigned reverence. The scribes are acknowledged for what they contribute to the treasury from their abundance, while she the poor widow gives from her need. So, whose contribution is truly greater?
The scribes were the educated class of religious leaders regarded as the professorial types of the time. As such they expected to sit in places of honor. In addition to doing nothing for the oppressed, much of their wealth was derived from the poor and the oppressed. This is part of an ongoing much larger criticism that Jesus levies against the temple-based authority that began with the clearing of the Temple earlier. Note, the money referenced is used to fund the Temple’s treasury; it makes no mention of its use to comfort or feed the needy.
I wonder how this message relates to us today. How do we approach stewardship and how do we maintain our focus on God and not on the temple? Over the centuries many explanations have been proposed to explain Jesus’ anger with the merchants in the temple and in this reading, the hypocrisy of the scribes. What about Jesus’ frustration with the church-governing bodies, the high priests, church councils and vestries whose public piety has nothing to do with sharing God’s love and whose adherence to rituals of worship are empty? Jesus was a radical whose focus was preaching the love of God and not about the man-made rules associated with misguiding the faithful in the name of God. Jesus sought to overturn “the tables” and rid the temples of all the piety, purity and social rules created in the name of God for the sole purpose of control and power.
Yet Church is vital to our lives because it provides a coming together where we can proclaim the Gospel and share the sacraments in which we perceive God’s grace most clearly. But then we are sent out to look for God as we partner with him to feed the needy and comfort those who are oppressed. Isn’t that the image we hold for the Church? Jesus’ anger is directed toward those who use the love of power to control their congregations rather than the power of love to create an environment that sets the stage for the sharing of God’s love. Do we have the courage to overturn the tables as Jesus did and tear down the walls that exclude, and to live the Word and let the Word become flesh in us?
Jesus didn’t object to people supporting the Temple, but more important to him than the amount
ReplyDeletethey gave was their reason for giving. Jewish law did not require a poor widow to give anything,
but did she know that? Do you think any of the Temple officials would stop her from putting her
last two cents into the collection? Was she brainwashed, told that this was her duty? Was she a
hero or a victim? We don’t know. But it seems clear that earlier Jesus is pointing out that the
very people who by Jewish law were supposed to be providing for widows and orphans are the
ones preying on them. That’s Jesus’ complaint. The people who are always pointing out that he
doesn’t follow the law are not only ignoring the law, they are misusing it to their own greedy
benefit. In so many ways, Jesus has told us that it can’t be like that for his followers. The
kingdom of God cannot abide intimidation and manipulation. He named it for the sin it is.
What of the poor widow? Hero or victim? The Greek says she put her whole BIOS–her life–
into the collection. Jesus later put his whole life on the line as victim, trusting that his heavenly
father could somehow make it come out right. God made him a hero. The church remembered
that, and remembered the story of the widow. Acts of the Apostles tells us that one of the first
things the followers of Jesus did after the coming of the Holy Spirit was to set up a soup kitchen
for the widows, so that they would never have to worry about having dying of hunger.
This is a gospel story about giving, but it is more a story about justice as God intends things to
be. Those who follow Jesus must not defraud others, of course, but we also have an obligation to
notice the poor and to offer ourselves as a sacrifice–a sacred offering of some of our bios-our
lives– to see that they have enough to live with dignity. There is a solemn obligation, specially
among those with the long robes, and the seats of honor and the privilege of being in places
where our voices are heard, to notice the circumstances of people who might otherwise go
unnoticed, and to take some responsibility for letting them know that this is the kingdom of God,
where everyone is welcome and noticed and everyone has enough.