Ordinary Time

Jan 06 2025

Scripture Study for

The circumstances within which Habakkuk finds himself are overwhelming: violence, ruin, misery, and destruction. He faces strife and discord. It seems to be more than he can handle, and so he cries out to God: Why? Why do I have to be a witness to all of this desolation, especially since you do not seem to be open to my call for help? Finally, God responds with a vision, not an answer. Without telling the prophet why he has had to carry the burden of suffering or how long he will have to wait, God instructs him that the righteous wait in faith.

Paul appeals to Timothy to be courageous in the face of hardship. He admonishes Timothy to renew his zeal, to be unashamed of the gospel that he preaches, to bear his share of suffering, to adhere to Paul’s teaching, and to safeguard it. Paul is aware of the risk that one takes in publicly professing faith in Jesus Christ. There is a stigma attached to such bold testimony. Despite this, Timothy should be willing to accept and to embrace the suffering that will inevitably befall him as a minister of the gospel. Nothing should undermine Timothy’s confidence, for he can be strong with the strength that comes from God.

Two independent sayings constitute the Gospel reading: the power of faith and the responsibilities of discipleship. Jesus’ attitude is so different from that of the apostles. They ask for an increase of faith; Jesus speaks about its nature. They are interested in quantity; Jesus is concerned about quality. Using the image of a household staff, he insists that though it is relatively small, it is still expected to perform several tasks—plowing, tending sheep, preparing food, and serving at table. The householder might appear unreasonable, but the story is not about being considerate. This is a teaching about the obligations of the one serving, not of the one being served.

Jan 06 2025

Open the Gate

Being complacent means being pleased with yourself. The prophet Amos paints a vivid picture of a pampered people, lying on couches, snacking and sipping to soothing music, massaged into a state of lethargy. Then he lowers the boom: “Party’s over. Get ready for exile.”

Jesus also paints a portrait of ongoing indolence. Rich Man lies on his couch, dressed in luxuriant purple and soft linen, eating rich foods and drinking choice wines “each day.” The problem is that he has become so anesthetized that he can’t move, not even to go out to the gate where poor Lazarus lies, smelly, starving, and sickly. Then, suddenly, death pulls down the curtain. Next scene: a reversal. The gate has become a gap, an abyss. Rich Man is on one side, Lazarus on the other. What is the point? If you enjoy this life, you will pay for it in the next? More that gates have an expiration date and we need to go through the gates life gives us now. The Latin word for gate is porta. The word opportunity comes from it. Every opportunity is a gate for entering into a world where we can make a difference. Who is on the other side can vary: a sick person, a sore person, a helpless person, a poor person.

And someone has come back from the dead to tell us this is our calling—Jesus, Resurrection Man. There is always some gate nearby. Open it and look at what’s in front of you.

Consider/Discuss

Who is “outside the gate” in your life?
When have you heard the voice of the Risen One call you to care for the poor?

Responding to the Word

Lord Jesus, the age to come should start now. Now is the time to hear your word calling us to make this world a place of hospitality and gracious care for all. If we are complacent in any way, break through our indifference and move us to act.

Jan 06 2025

Scripture Study for

The prophet Amos does not denounce wealth itself, but the complacency that often accompanies it. He is distressed because the affluent entertain themselves with wantonness while the social structure of the northern kingdom of Israel disintegrates. He censures the habit of self-indulgence at feasts. The wealthy dine on the meat of lambs and calves, the very animals that were used for sacrifice. Their fastidious tastes expose their arrogance. Perhaps the most excessive example of dissolute dining is their manner of drinking wine. Not content to sip from goblets, they guzzle from wide-mouthed bowls. One can only imagine the result of such drinking.

Paul’s address to Timothy contains a fourfold message. He exhorts him to pursue virtue, to fight for the faith, to grasp eternal life, and to keep the commandments. While these are responsibilities of all Christians, Paul expects that Timothy will fulfill them in ways that reflect his pastoral office. He employs an image from athletic competition in order to illustrate the struggle that being faithful often entails. The prize that Paul has in mind is eternal life. Underscoring the seriousness of his admonitions, he charges Timothy, before God and before Christ, to obey the commandments in anticipation of Christ’s glorious manifestation.

The Gospel paints a picture of radical reversals. The man who was treated as a castoff enjoys the bliss of heaven, while the one who savored life’s pleasures ends up in great torment in the netherworld. The reversal of the rich man’s fortune was not the consequence of the lack of moral rectitude; it resulted from his indifference to the needs of the covenant brother who lay at the gate of his home. When he asked that Lazarus be sent to warn his brothers to change their way of life (metánoia), he was told that if they did not heed the religious tradition that charged the wealthy to meet the needs of the poor, they would not listen to a resurrected Lazarus.

Jan 06 2025

The Bottom Line

The word “mammon” is Aramaic and means property, not only money, but also any possession. More than twenty-five years ago, Fr. John Haughey, S.J. wrote a thoughtful book entitled The Holy Use of Money: Personal Finances in the Light of the Christian Faith. He described the condition of “mammon sickness” as having three interrelated aspects: running after things, a numbness in our relationships, and a divided consciousness regarding God.

Today’s readings invite us to take our spiritual temperatures to see if we are suffering from a low-grade, or even a more severe, case of “mammon sickness.” The prophet Amos rails not simply against dishonest business practices in buying and selling, but more importantly how pursuing wealth can diminish honoring God on the Sabbath and lead to “trampling upon the needy and destroying the poor of the land.” The prophetic voice shouts out to proclaim God’s love and care for the poor; wealth can exclude such love and care from our daily lives.

The parable Jesus tells and the sayings that follow call for more consideration than space allows, but note that the master’s seeming admiration is for his steward’s “prudence” or “shrewdness” in using money to make friends. Jesus then contrasts how the children of this world deal with their own kind more astutely than the children of the light. Succinctly put, use mammon to help others. There can be a holy use of money, to care for those most in need, thereby giving glory to God.

Consider/Discuss

Do you see mammon/money as seducer or sacrament?
God or mammon—whom do you serve? How do you know?

Responding to the Word

God of justice, you are our true wealth and you have entrusted us with the goods of all creation. May we use them wisely and work to see that all have a just share in them. Form us into just and generous stewards, modeled after the image of your Son.

Jan 06 2025

Scripture Study for

Amos denounces the unscrupulous merchants for their false piety, their avarice, their dishonest business practices, and their exploitation of the poor and defenseless. The judgment of God is passed on these unrighteous individuals in the form of an irrevocable oath. Amos prophesied to the northern kingdom, referred to here as Jacob. As this oracle shows, the people of privilege frequently took advantage of the vulnerable poor. God swears an oath against such pride, showing that the evil perpetrated by it will not be forgotten; it will be avenged. This is truly an oracle of judgment.

The major point of Paul’s instruction to Timothy seems to be the all-inclusive scope of Christian prayer. Twice Paul states that prayers should be offered for all people. Special attention is given to civic leaders. Thus, Christianity was not fundamentally inimical toward those who wielded worldly power. Besides, if all power comes from God, as Christians believed, then rightful leaders govern by God’s authority, and this authority should be respected. Paul is urging prayer for the conversion of these leaders. If they are converted, they will recognize and accept the teachings of the gospel, and all will be able to live tranquil lives.

Jesus tells a story of a manager who rewrote the debts of his employer in order to ensure a financial future for himself as he faced dismissal. The story has raised many questions, because Jesus seems to commend unscrupulous behavior. Actually, Jesus uses this particular incident to make a religious point. He states that the children of this age (children of the world) have more practical wisdom than do children of light. The real point of the story is found in the last verse. Though shrewd in the ways of the world, the steward chose to serve his own financial needs rather than the economic interests of his employer. Rather than choose to serve the master of the household (God), he chose his own personal interests (mammon).