Eternal Investment!

Sunday, September 21, 2025

Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Am 8:4-7; 1 Tim 2:1-8; Lk 16: 1-13

The twenty-fifth Sunday invites us to turn material prosperity into spiritual wealth through our benevolence and charity.

The three readings of the day are a treasure trove in communicating this truth. 

The first reading from the Book of Amos highlights the backdrop of economic prosperity in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. However, earning wealth and exploitation of the poor went hand in hand among God’s people. Amos, the prophet of social justice, sends out a prophetic warning to those greedy merchants who manipulate markets and adjust scales to oppress the poor. The expression ‘buying the lowly for silver and the poor for a pair of sandals’ points to the commodification of humans, which was the order of the day. At this juncture, the prophet holds the greedy and unjust accountable and proclaims that God will act on behalf of the oppressed and the downtrodden. 

In the second reading, Paul underscores the connection between worship and community living. For this reason, Paul calls for pure hearts in worship, marked by unity and peace. While Paul holds that a just and peaceful society requires the foundation of prayer and witnessing, he also demonstrates that spiritual and material wealth can become a blessing if they are made to serve the common good. Thus, Paul’s instruction calls for integrating faith and public life, underlining the deeper connections the two of them share. 

The Gospel text that appears provocative requires the right understanding and interpretation. Hence, it is important to highlight what Jesus intends to say and what he does not.

Jesus Does NOT…

1. Jesus does not praise the dishonest ‘steward.’

2. Jesus does not glorify or speak positively of ill-gotten ‘wealth.’

3. Jesus does not recommend the dishonest servant’s ‘example’ as worthy and deserving of imitation. 

Jesus DOES…

1. Jesus highlights the steward’s ‘shrewd’ manner of using wealth to buy friendship and loyalty.

2. Jesus points to the dishonest steward’s ‘ability’ to think ahead, anticipating the future. 

3. Jesus shows how the dishonest steward ‘controls’ wealth without being controlled by it. 

Hence, we must be careful to understand what Jesus intends to communicate rather than giving our own spin to it.

The readings of the day leave behind valuable lessons emphasizing the connection between justice, spirituality, and charity. 

Economic Exploitation – A Moral Evil: Catholic business ethics teaches that economic exploitation is a moral evil and warns that the wealth gained at the expense of others will bring down God’s judgement. As such, the three significant principles of Catholic business ethics are: 1. The economy is part of a bigger moral order; this implies that so-called economic laws are no excuse for immoral economic behaviour. 2. The human person is the center of economic activity; as a consequence, the purpose of business is not profit maximization but human flourishing. 3. The common good takes precedence over individual economic interests. 

Greed and the Corrosion of the Soul: Why is wealth always viewed negatively in Scripture? It is because of its capacity to corrupt the soul and distract us from the ways of God. Since greed is at the root of profiteering, wealth often becomes a false god. Tempting us with the illusion of self-sufficiency and permanence, wealth breeds domination and arrogance. Gradually, it disconnects us from loving God and our neighbors, forgetting that wealth carries a social responsibility of caring for the poor and needy. It is when we lose sight of the notion that our wealth is morally charged that the corrosion of the soul sets in. Thus, it begins to possess us even before we possess it.  

Charity and Eternal Investment: The Church’s teaching on charity is better illustrated through concepts like ‘Social Function of Wealth’ or ‘Universal Destination of Goods.’ The wealth that we have been blessed with has a neighborly dimension, and it remains cursed if it is not put in the service of the poor and needy. Thus, the Church invites us to understand wealth not in terms of what we store up but what we give away in love. In other words, wealth is what we use to build communities of love. This is why St. John Chrysostom preached, ‘If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the Church door, you will not find him in the Chalice.’

In sum, we are called to work for what is eternal through what is passing. This is why, for Christians, charity is a spiritual investment. It is not a waste of money; instead, it is a spiritual deposit. It does not amount to squandering one’s savings; instead, it is safeguarding them in the Bank of Heaven. Indeed, a just economy has spiritual dimensions. 

Let us pray that we may realize the moral responsibility that our material blessing carries and act in the interest of needy humanity. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar