November 9, 2012. Homily, Saturday, November 10, 2012

Luke 16:9-15

Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."
The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and sneered at him. And he said to them, "You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows our hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God."
The Gospel of the Lord.

Memorial of Saint Leo the Great:  raised to the see of Peter in 440, died in 461, a true pastor and father of souls. He labored strenuously to safeguard the integrity of the Faith and vigorously defended the unity of the Church. He pushed back or at least softened the onrush of the barbarians. He has then deservedly won the title of "the Great".

Window of the Holy Family. The Holy Family of Nazareth serves as example, guide and strength for all families of the world. St. Joseph is shown working at his carpenter's trade while Mary cares for the child Jesus. The left panel has the coat of arms of Pope Leo XIII, who occupied the chair of Peter from 1878 to 1903 (25 years, JPII was 28 years). The right panel contains the word "RERUM NOVARUM" which are the first Latin words and therefore the name of Leo's famous Encyclical on "Conditions of Laboring Men."  Issued in 1891, this document is the Magna Carta of Christian social teachings, a main thrust of the Church into the industrial revolution. Upholding the dignity of human labor, Pope Leo demanded good working conditions with honest pay. The scales of justice proclaim family security to be the solid basis of family development, health and happiness. Family peace guarantees world peace. All families have natural rights to social justice. The lower panel on the left shows all families united as one in God.


What is the enemy of generosity? It is greed, the excessive desire for personal security. True generosity does not impoverish the giver, but enriches him a hundredfold! Generosity expands the soul; greed contracts it.

God is generous and superabundant in lavishing his gifts upon us. We can never outgive God in what he has already given to us. Do you know the joy and freedom of generosity and liberality in giving to others what God has so richly given to you?

Jesus concludes his parable with a lesson on what controls or rules our lives. Who is the master (or ruler) in charge of your life? Our "master" is that which governs our thought-life, shapes our ideals, controls the desires of the heart and the values we choose to live by. We can be ruled by many different things -- the love of money or possessions, the power of position, the glamor of wealth and prestige, the driving force of unruly passions and addictions. Ultimately the choice boils down to two: God and "mammon". What is mammon? "Mammon" stands for "material wealth or possessions" or whatever tends to "control our appetites and desires". There is one Master alone who has the power to set us free from the slavery of sin and addiction. That Master is the Lord Jesus Christ.

God loves generosity and he gives liberally to those who share his gifts with others. The Pharisees, however, had no room in their hearts for God. The gospel says they were lovers of money. Love of money and wealth crowd out love of God and love of neighbor. Jesus makes clear that our hearts must either be possessed by God's love or the heart will be possessed by the love of something else.