Today we are invited to reflect on the importance of being generous, regardless of whether we are rich or poor. The generosity of a person is not measured by the amount one gives, but by the disposition which prompts the giving.
There are many ways of being rich, just as there are many ways of being poor, for material wealth and money are not the only factors that determine what a person can offer. But the highest form of richness and generosity is that loving disposition toward others which, like an inexhaustible fountain, gives its very best without asking for anything in return.
Such spiritual richness will never be affected by any economic crisis because its “shares” are bonded with the abundant bank of God. In this Eucharist let us ask for this grace for ourselves and all the people dear to us.
In the course of his teaching Jesus said to the crowds, “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.”
He sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, “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.”
