Twenty-fifth Sunday of the Year, C – September 18, 2016.
Readings: Amos 8:4-7, 13-14; Responsorial Psalm Ps 113: 1-2.4-8.R.v.17); 1 Tim 2:-1-8; Gospel Lk 16:1-13.
Theme: The Scandal of Padding & a Call to Faithfulness
Nigerians recently woke up with a new vocabulary in the news namely, “padding.” For the purpose of this homily, padding is inflating or removal of entries in a financial account. The alleged padding of the 2016 appropriation bill has left our country in economic comatose as implementation is way out in the woods.
While Nigerians are waiting for the outcome of the purported budget padding and perhaps bringing the culprits to book as President Muhammadu Buhari has promised, this Sunday, we are presented with the story of a servant who padded his Master’s accounts for future favours.
Dearly beloved, the centrality of the theme of one’s attitude towards the possession and usage of material wealth spreads from Luke 16 through the Acts of the Apostles. What is important for our reflection today is the sum and substance of Jesus’ teaching on the subject.
We are not sure if the rich man in the gospel (Lk 16:1-13) is God since most Lucan narratives present God on the side of the poor. What is suggestive is that the rich man knew the servant he employed otherwise he would have sacked him immediately he heard the guy was wasting his resources.
Mores so, it is probable that the Master would have done the same thing given the opportunity since he praised the dishonest servant – A praise not meant for any ethical deed but for his shrewdness – supposedly, the rich man and his servant were “sons of this age” as opposed to the “children for light” for whom the parable is meant.
By giving the servant a window of opportunity to cheat for the last time, both the rich man and his servant benefitted. Perhaps the Master had an opportunity to shop for a new servant. The servant too had the chance to pad his accounts so that those he has helped would eventually be of help to him in time of need. Both of them had to prepare for the future.
The gospel shows that the servant was unfaithful from start to finish – he developed a squandermania career of looting his Master’s possessions and grew old in doing evil. He was unrighteous as a person and unfaithful as a steward.
Blinded by self-interest, he became a master-scammer. He defiled his conscience by being unrighteous. He robbed his Master by being unfaithful to the task entrusted to him. It was his unfaithfulness that necessitated his shrewdness in preparing for his future.
A part of the narrative to watch out for is the rich man’s debtors. As co-conspirators and collaborators in the padding, the rich man’s debtors, who thought they knew what they were doing fell for a cheap trap.
By appealing to their greed, the shrewd servant roped them in. He did not want to go down alone. He took a 50/50 chance. If he survived it, they would help them. If the Master discovers and disassociates himself from them all, he would console himself thus: “At least I am not alone in the mess.”
In telling this parable, Jesus wants “the children of light” to emulate “the children of this age” in faithfulness not shrewdness. It would be a grave mistake to think that Jesus wants Christians to be shrewd.
On the contrary, we must understand that the steward ‘had to’ be shrewd because he had been unfaithful – that is why disciples of Christ are called to faithfulness, not shrewdness which constitutes the way of the world.
The first reading (Amos 8:4-7) warns Christians about the ways of “the children of this age” which is the way of the world. These shrewd ways are: trampling upon the needy, bringing the poor of the land to a ratchet end, being deceitful with false balances, buying the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals and selling the refuse of wheat.
Our world today is also rife with money changers, tax collectors, spiritualists, business moguls, educationists and government agents who maximise profit at all cost and trample upon the rights of those on the margins of society. They use human philosophy, sophistry, deceit and sometimes maximum force to get at their clients. Who are those who suffer? The underprivileged, who are often poor and defenceless.
The second reading (1 Tim 2:-1-8) insists that “God our saviour desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth...” - That truth is growing in the awareness of heavenly values meant for “the children of light” as opposed to those of the world.
How much time, energy and resources do we put in acquiring material wealth, education and career? Aren’t we shrewd in maintaining beneficial friendships and scheming evil plots against our enemies? How about the time and resources we spend on sophisticated mobile phones and cable television? Do we spare such for godly purposes?
Have you ever considered the amount of time and resources yahoo yahoo boys, scammers, rapists, kidnappers, armed robbers, terrorists and propagandists spend in the planning and execution of their said objectives?
When they are counting their “blessings” and how successful they are, consider such as loot and “think that Christ has promised you his reward untold” as the song goes. Their shrewdness, sure, belongs to the world!
The gist of our reflection is the fact that:
God does not want us to be shrewd because shrewdness is of the devil;
He is calling us to be faithful, not successful because fidelity is of God;
God wants us to know that we are in a football match between “the children of light” and “the children of this age;”
As a referee, he wants us to beware of the rough tackle of evil men and women who think and act in worldly manner.
Have a great week ahead!
No comments:
Post a Comment