Means to an End!

Saturday, November 11, 2023

Rom 16:3-9,16,22-27; Lk 16:9-15

In today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches how money or wealth has to be used to serve God!

Jesus helps us realize the power of money and, therefore, what it has to be used for. When money or wealth is neutral on its own, its ability to plant greed in us is undeniably true. A heart overtaken by greed does not hesitate to defraud, oppress, and murder others. Hence, when Jesus names wealth as ‘dishonest’ he hints at its corrupting power. Jesus cautions us against the irresistible lure of wealth. 

Another thing that is true about money or wealth is the ever-present drive for its accumulation. The inordinate desire to accumulate wealth only creates a web of both visible and invisible victims. For instance, sweatshops underpay the hapless workers while minting profit by selling the products at a higher price. This is how the desire for wealth shakes hands with oppression and marginalization. Because money often comes at the cost of others, it is dishonest. 

But Jesus wants us to make friends with our dishonest wealth. How do we do that? It is by changing its course to be a force for good. The Bible teaches that wealth is a blessing from God. If so, the blessing of God has to be shared joyfully. Only by sharing it with the less fortunate, can we discover the true joy that comes with possessing it. Our philanthropy is a sure way of honoring God. 

Jesus also teaches that we cannot serve both God and mammon. It is a decisive call to choose between the good and the bad. Some people wonder if they could balance the service between two masters. That is also a temptation into which not a few of us fall. The balance that we have in mind is not possible for everyone. 

The prudent thing would be to use money to serve the Lord. We should make money the means to reach God, the end. In that sense, money is the servant who should help us worship the true Master. 

Today, our Mother Church also celebrates the feast of St. Martin of Tours. Though he wanted to become a Christian, he was forced into military service before he was baptized. Once, he helped a beggar who was freezing in the cold. He removed his cloak, cut it in half with his sword, and gave one half to the beggar. That night, Martin had a dream in which Jesus was wearing his cloak. The half of the cloak he kept for himself became famous and was known as “St. Martin’s cloak.” The dream inspired Martin to immediately seek baptism. Known to be holy and committed, he was chosen as the Bishop of Tours. Living his life in solitude and poverty, St. Martin, the patron saint of France, was buried at his request in the Cemetery of the Poor. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar