THIS POOR WIDOW PUT IN MORE THAN ALL THE OTHERS

Mark 12:38-44

Today we celebrate the 32^nd Sunday in ordinary time year B and from the gospel the Church gives us the opportunity to meditate upon two big points in our Christian life. The first point: Last week we read about the scribe who asked Jesus about the first of the commandments. In the end Jesus gave him his word of encouragement: "You are not far from the kingdom of God". Soon after that, in today's reading, Jesus warns his followers against the scribes who were going to receive a great condemnation. What is the crucial difference between the Good Scribe of last Sunday and the generality of scribes who are condemned this Sunday? We need to understand that Jesus is condemning the hypocrisy and of the use of religion to exploit simple, suffering and powerless humanity. Jesus in the gospel of today wants to point at the lack of integrity. “Beware of the scribes. The word “Hypocrite” refers to one who is acting, pretending to be what he is not. The main point of these verses is integrity. The Lord warns us of hypocrisy, and leads us to transparency, and genuine simplicity in our Christian life. Not acting or pretending, but living genuine Christian life.

The second point: Generally we read this Widow's story as a story about boundless generosity and self-sacrifice. But I think today we should read it differently. Before reading the story as a model to encourage generosity, that you should give everything and remain with nothing, we need to read it first as a invitation to total trust and strong faith in God.

When something is precious we say it is of great value. But for God, something of great value or of tremendous weight can actually refer to two small coins.

When Jesus says: “This poor widow put in more than the others”, what does he mean? Actually, this text is not about how generous this woman was; Jesus is not concerned with the dollar amount people put in. He is not contrasting the donations of the widow and the rich people; he is rather contrasting what they rely on, he is contrasting the degree of their trust and the amount of their faith. 

This is precisely what gave the widow the advantage in our story today –– she didn't have much to hold on to.  She wasn't encumbered by worldly possessions.  Her only real asset was her faith in God, which, when she put her last two cents in the collection plate, made her worthy of God’s protection.  Her willingness to offer God everything she had, was her "might" –– the source of her strength.

In biblical days, widows occupied one of the lowest rungs of the social ladder.  They lived at the mercy of others.  They had no power, no position and no prominence in the community.  They depended on others to protect them and provide for their needs.  This is why, again and again, we read such admonitions as: "You shall not take advantage of any widow or fatherless child. If you take advantage of them at all, and they cry at all to me, I will surely hear their cry (says the Lord)."

The widow gave everything she had, and, in so doing, she laid depended totally on everything God had to offer.  She became part of something greater than herself –– the kingdom of God.  As such, she walked away with something more than those who still had money in their pockets.  Her "mite" was her "might".

  More is at stake here than money.  It comes down to an issue of trust. The widow,  not only risks by the size of her gift, but she gains treasure by relying on God who alone will never disappoint her. Jesus praises her for her sincere and total trust in God.