OT XXV [C] Readings:  Am 8:4-7; I Tm 2:1-8; Lk 16:1-1

 A few years ago, a priest was giving a retreat to inmates in a federal prison in the South. One of the talks dealt with Jesus’ teaching on revenge. Jesus said: “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. When someone strikes you on [your] right cheek, turn the other one to him as well.” To illustrate Jesus’ point, the priest told the story of Jackie Robinson, the first black athlete to play in the major leagues. When Branch Rickey signed Jackie to a Dodger contract in 1945, he told him, “You will have to take everything they dish out to you and never strike back.” Rickey was right. On the field, pitchers brushed Jackie back with blazing fastballs, and opposing fans and teams taunted him. Off the field, he was thrown out of hotels and restaurants where the rest of the team stayed and ate. Through it all, Jackie kept his cool. He turned the other cheek. And so did Dodgers’ General Manager Rickey, who was abused by people for signing Jackie. The priest ended the story by asking the prisoners this question: “Where do you think black athletes would be today had Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey not turned the other cheek?” After the talk, a prisoner said to the priest: “That’s a nice story, Father. But why didn’t you tell the whole story? Why didn’t you tell why Rickey and Robinson turned the other cheek? It wasn’t for love of God. It was for love of money. Rickey turned the other cheek because if he succeeded, he would make a fortune too.” The priest thought to himself for a minute: “If the prisoner’s right, then he’s just shot my nice little story right out of the water.” — But then the priest thought: “Hey! Wait a minute! If the prisoner’s right, then my story makes an even more important point!” It’s the same point Jesus makes in today’s Gospel. Jesus says: “The children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.” 

‘The children of this world’ are the children of darkness who see and value only the things of this world.  They live for this world, concentrate their attention on it, invest everything in it, give the energies of mind and body fully to it, and find in it their entire purpose for living. 

 Christian believers, however, are ‘the children of light’ who see real, eternal, spiritual values as primary and regard temporal values as secondary. The children of this world regard themselves as owners, while true Christians regard themselves as mere stewards of God who view their resources as simply loaned to them by God. 

It sounds strange to hear Jesus praising the steward of this parable for being so sly. In saving our souls and spreading the Good News, our Lord wants us to apply the same ingenuity and effort that other people put into their worldly affairs or into their attempts to attain some human ideal.

Many of the great men and women of the world - the CEOs, the athletes, the movie stars, the political leaders - are exemplary in their tenacity, their determination, and their astuteness.  They set a goal and let nothing stop them from achieving it. They turn everything into an opportunity to advance their cause. Imagine how different the Church (and the world) would be if every Catholic pursued holiness that energetically.

The steward knew that his time of employment was coming to an end. Before his last day arrives, he uses his connections and position to prepare for the future. Jesus reprimands his followers for not applying that same astuteness to the more important project of preparing for eternity.

We are all like that steward. We know that our lives will come to an end, sooner or later. We know it for a fact. And yet, are we effectively utilizing our resources and opportunities to prepare for what will come next? This is the question he wants us to ask ourselves. Are we energetically building Christ's Kingdom now, so as to be able to enjoy it forever later?

Sometimes we are irresponsible stewards because we forget what's really at stake. We become seduced by day-to-day problems and pleasures and forget that this life is passing. It is only a warm-up for eternal life.

In the parable, the steward was in charge of his master's account books, so he exercised his smartness by rearranging the debts people owed. We don't have control over Christ's account books.  Instead, we have three commodities to be managed astutely.

The three commodities are time, talent, and treasure.

How much time do we give to Christ and his Kingdom?  We all give him some time - that's why we're here. But can we give more? Should we? It may be a matter of dedicating larger chunks of time to serving Christ and the Church, or it may be a matter of simply adding some prayers to our drive to work. We are called to be wise stewards of our time.

Second, talent. 

Our talents too are resources given by God. We are called to invest them in loving God and loving our neighbor. Maybe this area is where we can be better stewards.

Finally, treasure. 

It is a law of the Church that every Catholic should give financial support to the works of the Church, each one in accordance with their means. There is a longstanding tradition in Christianity of tithing. If we don't do that, we should ask ourselves why not.

The manager in Jesus’ story used all his resources to secure his future. We must be no less resourceful. We have the Holy Mass and the Seven Sacraments as sources of Divine grace, the Holy Bible as the word of God for daily meditation and practice, and the Spirit-guided Church to direct us. These are the best possible resources; we need to use them in such a way that it will be said of us, “And the master commended them because they acted so wisely.”

 

Today, in Holy Communion, Christ will give himself entirely to each one of us, holding nothing back.   When he does, let's ask him to teach us to use our resources for his glory and the propagation of his kingdom.