Jesus became poor, a curse and sin for our sake. That is how needy his disciples are to become. And they should also hope in God alone and rely on him for all things.

We can safely say that to hope in God is an essential trait of the widow of Zarephath. After all, there is mention of her as having faith; the folks of Nazareth, in contrast, do not have it.

Hope in God also marks the poor widow in today’s gospel. But the contrast now has to do with the money she gives, and the money wealthy folks give. And among these may well be the scribes, wise and learned, who crave honor and recognition. They also prey on simple folks like the poor widow, as they pray for long periods of time for show.

She just gives two small coins of very little worth. Those who are wealthy, for their part, give large sums. And yet Jesus praises her and deems her coins of more worth than than the wealthy’s large sums. For while the wealthy just give what they do not need, the widow gives all she has to live on.

In other words, she gives her life, which shows that she does hope in God. And she looks to him to give her all she needs. No doubt, she is one of God’s poor, the anawim. She makes no claim to wealth, blessing, or righteousness. All she has is her faith, her hope in God, her trust in him.

And the wise and the learned look down on her. For she is not like them. She cannot explain what it means to have faith, to hope in God or to live for him. Her simple faith is enough for her. And she does again and again her prayers and religious practices. But this makes her know and do spontaneously what is right. She keeps, yes, the true religion (see SV.EN XI:190).

Lord Jesus, the Father did not spare you, his own Son, but gave you up for us all, and you, in turn, gave up your body and shed your blood for us. Grant us to be poor like you and the Father. And let us, like you, hope in God and wholly rely on him. Help us also to grasp that only such self-emptying love can save us (DN), can bring about the full setting-up of the kingdom of God.

10 November 2024
32nd Sunday in O.T. (B)
1 Kgs 17, 10-16; Heb 9, 24-28; Mk 12, 38-44