By Father Paul Nord, O.S.B.
Sunday Scripture
First Reading: Amos 8:4-7; Response: Psalm 113:1-2, 4-8; Second Reading: 1 Timothy 2:1-8; Gospel: Luke 16:1-13
The prophet Amos was active “in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam… king of Israel” (1:1) – around 760 B.C. Amos warns the people of judgment for their sins. Today’s reading tells them the Lord God will judge “you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land” (8:4)!
Those who treated the poor unjustly were also guilty of disrespecting the religious holidays of the new moon and the Sabbath. Amos connects their impiety toward God with their sins against the poor. Their sinfulness is also shown in their intention to “fix our scales for cheating!” As sellers of grain, they were cheating the buyers – another injustice. The ephah was a measure of the grain’s weight. The shekel was a weight measure of gold or silver – used as currency by the buyers. So these unjust sellers were trying to extort more payment – and also cheat on the weight of wheat received by the buyers.
The next verse describes the poor being bought for silver or for a pair of sandals. This enslavement of persons was likely a consequence of their personal debts. It is a terrible list of injustices that call down God’s judgment upon such sinners. The passage concludes: “The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob: Never will I forget a thing they have done!” The prophet insists that God sees and will remember these injustices. God will act to defend the poor.
Today’s reading is preceded by a vision given to the prophet: “This is what the Lord GOD showed me: a basket of summer fruit. He asked, ‘What do you see, Amos?’ And I answered, ‘A basket of summer fruit.’ And the LORD said to me: ‘The end has come for my people Israel; I will forgive them no longer’” (Amos 8:1-2). This vision depicts harvest time. The Bible often uses harvest imagery to represent the time of God’s judgment. In this vision, the whole people of Israel are guilty of injustice against the poor and needy. God’s judgment is coming; Amos warns them.
Today’s Responsorial is Psalm 113 – a classic “praise psalm.” In the Hebrew original, this psalm begins with “Hallelujah!” This is an imperative (command) verb with its direct object. First “Hallel” means “Praise!” Second, “jah” is an abbreviation of “Yahweh” – the name of the Lord God of Israel. It is also written “YHWH” or called the “Tetragrammaton” (“four letters”). Out of reverance, Jews and Christians traditionally do not pronounce God’s name. Instead we substitute “the LORD” – in Greek: “kyrios.”
Calling for us to praise Him, Psalm 113 names the Lord God (YHWH) six times. Two reasons are given praising the Lord God. First, in today’s final stanza: “He raises up the lowly from the dust; from the dunghill he lifts up the poor, to seat them with princes” (verse 8). The second reason is given in verse 9 (omitted here): The Lord God “gives the childless wife a home, the joyful mother of children.” Both verses emphasize that the Lord God protects the poor and the powerless. The psalm ends as it began: “Praise the Lord!”
The First Timothy reading instructs the Christian community how they should maintain good, orderly conduct when they gather for prayer. Paul asks that “supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone” – especially for kings and other authorities. The Christian community is commanded to “lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity.” Doing this, they will please God. Avoiding conflict with civil authorities will help them to focus on proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to everyone. For God wills “everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth.”
The remainder of this passage expresses essential truths of the Gospel – “there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as ransom for all.” We Christians are obliged to testify to the good news we have received. Christ’s coming has inaugurated “the proper time” for proclaiming this to the whole world. Paul proclaims Christ’s gospel as a “teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.”
Paul emphasizes his desire that the Christian community should be united in prayer – “lifting up holy hands.” Even in the early Church “anger” and “argument” sometimes damaged the unity and devotion of Christian common worship of God. May it not be so with us.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells a parable that might confound us. Why would the master commend the “dishonest steward?” How can the steward’s actions be understood as “acting prudently?”
Our interpretation must follow Jesus’ comments in Luke 16:9-13. First, Jesus tells his disciples: “For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.” This begins Jesus’ explanation of the parable. The dishonest steward does not belong to “the children of light” – that is, Jesus’ followers. Rather both the steward and those whose debts are reduced are “children of this world.”
Second, Jesus tells them: “make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth.” So when dishonest steward reduced the debts owed, he was giving away “dishonest wealth.” Children of this world value “dishonest wealth,” but we Christian “children of light” should not. Previously the dishonest steward had been extracting dishonest wealth from debtors, perhaps even charging an unjust amount of interest. But once the steward realized that he was losing his position, he changed. He gave away dishonest wealth to the debtors, but he gained their good favor.
Next, Jesus contrasts “dishonest wealth” and “true wealth.” The following line describes “what belongs to another” – that is, dishonest wealth. So the goods of this world do not really belong to us. This “dishonest wealth” lacks true value. Finally, Jesus says: “You cannot serve both God and mammon.” This “mammon” is worldly wealth. In Jesus’ parable explanation, mammon is “dishonest wealth.” Consequently “true wealth” comes from serving God, who is the source of every good gift.