Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

“Beggars Receiving Alms at the Door of a House”
by Harmenszoon van Rijn Rembrandt, 1648

Readings for Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary:[3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Corinthians 9:6-11
 
Brothers and sisters, consider this:
whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,
and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion,
for God loves a cheerful giver.
Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you,
so that in all things, always having all you need,
you may have an abundance for every good work.
As it is written:
 
He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.
 
The one who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food
will supply and multiply your seed
and increase the harvest of your righteousness.
 
You are being enriched in every way for all generosity,
which through us produces thanksgiving to God.
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Commentary on 2 Cor 9:6-11
 
This is possibly part of a second letter, written after Titus was sent from the churches of Macedonia to initiate a collection for the church in Jerusalem.  Here St. Paul reminds the Corinthians that they should be generous as the Heavenly Father is generous and have faith that he will supply their needs as a consequence of their own generosity. “The behavior to which he exhorts them is grounded in God's own pattern of behavior. God is capable of overwhelming generosity, as scripture itself attests (2 Corinthians 9:9), so that they need not fear being short. He will provide in abundance, both supplying their natural needs and increasing their righteousness. Paul challenges them to godlike generosity and reminds them of the fundamental motive for encouragement: God himself cannot be outdone.”[4]
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 112:1bc-2, 3-4, 9
 
R. (1b) Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
Blessed the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commands.
His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;
the upright generation shall be blessed.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
Wealth and riches shall be in his house;
his generosity shall endure forever.
Light shines through the darkness for the upright;
he is gracious and merciful and just.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
 
Lavishly he gives to the poor;
his generosity shall endure forever;
his horn shall be exalted in glory.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
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Commentary on Ps 112:1bc-2, 3-4, 9
 
Psalm 112 is a hymn of praise. The psalmist assures the faithful that those who follow God’s own beneficence will receive a like reward. (“Light shines through the darkness for the upright; he is gracious and merciful and just.”)  The psalmist also encourages the faithful to give generously to the poor.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
 
"When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door,
and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
 
"When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to others to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you."
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Commentary on Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
 
The Lord continues the Sermon on the Mount. In this selection, the Lord specifically addresses the pious acts of charity, prayer, and fasting, contrasting each with the spurious or pandering acts of the scribes and Pharisees. He tells his audience that when they do these things, do them for God to see, not other people. They are to do what is right for God’s glory, not their own, not so that others will place them in high esteem because of their piety or generosity. In all three instances, almsgiving, prayer, and fasting, the same instruction is given. We are to give generously but in private, we are to pray fervently but alone, and we are to fast with purpose but hide our discomfort. (Omitted from this reading, Matthew 6; 7-15, is Jesus giving the disciples the Lord’s Prayer.) In all of these instances, prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, the Lord is showing us where he can be found and where he is not.
 
“This striking coincidence of opposites instructs us by what it omits, the oblique reference to the place where God is not. God is not to be found in the street-corners where trumpets are blown between hands that rub against one another in greedy self-satisfaction or on the contorted face of the fasting man who wants to be admired. God is not to be found in hypocrisy, in relationships based on mutual self-promotion, in a religious devotion whose practitioner steals for himself the glory due to God alone.” [5]
 
CCC:  Mt 5:43-44 1933, 2844; Mt 5:44-45 2303, 2608; Mt 5:44 1825, 1968, 2262; Mt 5:45 2828; Mt 5:46-47 2054; Mt 5:47 1693; Mt 5:48 443, 1693, 1968, 2013, 2842
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Reflection:
 
Sacred Scripture deals with a difficult subject that contains some interesting traps for the unwary Christian.  We speak of course about “almsgiving” or stewardship.  As in almost every society, as far as written history reaches, material wealth and the disposition of it is a subject of great interest.  This is especially true for the society in which we live.
 
From the beginning of man’s encounter with God, the Father’s great generosity and mercy toward his creation has been seen as an example to follow.  Since his gift of life was given to Adam and Eve in the Garden, God has always been generous to his faithful, generous in material wealth, in spirit, and in what he only can offer- life.  How we have responded to this example is the subject of the portion of the Sermon on the Mount that was presented in St. Matthew’s Gospel.
 
Jesus takes issue with the scribes and Pharisees who feel a need to be recognized within the social structure for their acts of charity and piety.  He points out that, if it is the admiration of people that is important to one motivated to almsgiving, prayer or fasting, the total reward will be just that, NOT God’s grace, but simply the admiration of one’s peers.  When the object of the action is ostensibly to please God, the admiration of peers is a poor substitute indeed.  To quote another part of the Gospel, “What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?” (Matthew 16: 26)
 
For us this message is clear.  Our piety and generosity must be motivated by a desire to please God, not the neighbors.  Acts of intense love of God should not be for others to see, but for God to see and reward.  To be facetious, acting pious for others to see is like appearing to be diligent at work for your peers to see but ignoring the desires of your boss who is the one who will let you keep your job!
 
We mentioned that there were traps involved in these instructions and there are.  We too are called to be examples to others.  It is the principal way in which we spread the good news of the Gospel – through our own example.  How are we to be that example if we are instructed to keep our acts of piety and charity a secret from others?  Therein lies the distinction we must draw.  The Lord asks that we behave in ways that let everyone see that we love one another.  We do not try to draw attention to ourselves (blowing our own horn as the Gospel says).  Rather our efforts and intentions on behalf of God and others will be seen, even if we do so innocuously.
 
Today we smile (because, as St. Paul says, “God loves a cheerful giver”) as we go into the world as a people sent by God to continue the work of his Son.  We dedicate our efforts to the Lord, working to use his gifts for the good of all so that all might see and give glory, not to us, but to God.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture is “Beggars Receiving Alms at the Door of a House” by Harmenszoon van Rijn Rembrandt, 1648.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
[4] NAB footnote on 2 Corinthians 9:6ff.
[5] Fire of Mercy Heart of the Word Volume I. Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, CA, © 1996 p. 270.