For Sunday
Proper 27B
Collect
O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Reading
Reflection
After the confrontations with religious leaders, after pushing the crowd to reimagine the Messianic tradition as inviting another David, Jesus warns the public of the scribes: of their intentions, of their behavior, of their loyalties.
His warning: that they oppress the weak through the power of the purse is both morally and economically unjust. It is a matter of bad theology and behavior. In short—this isn’t just about what they think and *believe—*it is also what they do.
Jesus warns the people because this isn’t patently obvious. The supposedly-righteous clothe themselves in the appearance of righteousness while they starve the weak and powerless. Economic exploitation is Jesus’s number one pet peeve and these people have it down to a science.
Then Jesus sits down and watches a woman approach the Temple deposit box. He calls his disciples close, inviting them to see the visual metaphor of what he was just saying. This poor widow gives her last two coins to the Temple. And he calls that an infinitely greater act of faith than the wealthy folk in front of her giving from their largesse.
It is easy to forget this as a matter of both thinking and acting—that morality is both a matter of belief and behavior as we go about our business of living—believing and doing things. But Jesus isn’t seeking to shame the wealthy here. Nor is he only seeking to glorify the generosity of the widow. He wants to point out that, without a penny, this woman will be dead in four days and the powerful don’t care. Economics, they’ll say. Just the way it is, they’ll say.
Exploitation Jesus is saying. Sin he is saying.