Gospel Reading: Lk 21:1-4
When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”
REFLECTION – This poor widow put in more than all the rest
The act of giving is praiseworthy in itself. But it is even more noble and blessed if we give not from our surplus but from our want, as the widow in the Gospel shows us. In true giving, we give a part of ourselves, part of our life, not just something external to us. So in a sense, giving involves some “hurt,” some “dying,” as again shown by the widow who gives from what she has to live on.
Thus, we are challenged to ask ourselves: When we give, do we give from our surplus and therefore are not really “hurt,” or do we give out of what we have to live on and thus undergo a certain “dying”?
True giving is not in the amount or quantity but in the degree that part of our life goes with it.
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SOURCE: “365 Days with the Lord,” ST PAULS, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 895-9701; Fax 895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.
