A challenging message

“I charge you ... proclaim the word; be persistent ... convince, reprimand, encourage. ... For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth.” (2 Timothy 4:1-8)

Paul's encouragement and challenge to Timothy to be an evangelist, without fear, and full of courage, gave me some encouragement to not be afraid of the message in the gospel I’m reflecting on today.

“Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes and accept greetings in the marketplaces, seats of honor in synagogues, and places of honor at banquets. They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers. They will receive a very severe condemnation.” (Mark 12:38-44)

I get a kick out of Jesus being really hard on the religious leaders of His day.  The long robes, the honors they receive so willingly, really clashed in Jesus' heart with the way the same religious leaders "devour the houses of widows," and at the same time, "as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers."  Jesus is so clear throughout the gospels: being "religious" ought to make us nice people, kind people, compassionate people.  Why doesn't it?  What goes wrong?  What is the temptation to self-righteousness and the externals of religious practice, over and against a heart like His which is rich in mercy and hearing the cry of the poor?

When the story moves to Jesus sitting across from the temple treasury, He becomes the teacher who gives us an image to remember for life.  Jesus observes that, "Many rich people put in large sums." Then, "A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents."  Jesus contrasts those who "contributed from their surplus wealth" and the widow who "from her poverty, has contributed all she had."

That’s the honest, challenging, liberating message of Jesus.  As people of God, we’re called to lives of justice, honesty, and love.  Our lives must have no room for exploiting the sick, the weak or workers.  Racism, classism, sexism, or any form of domination of people or natural resources is evil.

As I pray over this Gospel and examine my conscience, I need to discern areas of my life where prejudices blind me to reaching out to the frail, the powerless, the exploited, the mentally ill and addicted, the frightened and the poor.

Do I stand in solidarity with workers struggling with poverty wages?  Do I give generously, not just from my surplus, but from my essential resources?  Do I respect and love, in my heart, the ones who are different from me in color, in language, in heritage, in income?

In my reflections today, I think these questions are the ones Jesus wants us to ask ourselves.  The answers will determine how closely we’re walking with Jesus.