Missionaries of Mercy
being God's good stewards
Dear Friends,
The altar servers have started to rib me again for beginning my homilies by saying, "this is a challenging Gospel passage." Well, guess what? This weekend's Gospel passage is worthy of the well-worn transition!
The Parable of the Unjust Steward presents us with a rich man holding his steward (basically, a money manager) to account for squandering his property. When told he would be fired, the steward negotiates with his master's debtors to reduce what they must repay.
The master commends the steward. Jesus comments that the children of light (Israel) ought to be as prudent as the steward in his story.
Confusing? Very much so. Let's take one quick swipe at it, and dig into it more at Mass this weekend.
Any time we hear a story about a master and a steward, we should think of God and his relationship to Israel. The People of God (Israel, the children of light) were always meant to be God's good stewards: owning nothing themselves, they were to manage God's resources for his purposes.
So what, of God's resources, have they mismanaged? Most important among them, his mercy.
Jesus is on the scene, then, to turn out the unjust stewards, and entrust the mercy of God to those who will manage it well.
That's us, my friends. And as the new Israel, that's our life's purpose. We manage God's mercy well by giving it away, by bringing his merciful, kind, compassionate, forgiving, patient love to life for everyone we encounter. Even - nay especially - the people we encounter every day!
With Love,
Father Daniel
δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ
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Preparing for Mass?
Check out this weekend's readings:
Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Marinus van Reymerswale, Parable of the Unjust Steward