Today’s gospel reading is both moving and instructive. Jesus was observing how people were contributing money for the temple of God.
Suddenly he noticed a poor widow putting in her little bit. Christ, being God, saw something more. He could read the widow’s heart. And what Christ saw delighted Him. He was so pleased that He called in His followers to teach them a lesson.
“This poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For they all contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, her whole living” (Mark 12:43-44).
To contribute to the support of the Church is a duty incumbent on every Christian. It is but logical that we, who benefit from the Church, should try to do our part.
In today’s reading, Christ is not discouraging us from fulfilling our duty. In order to maintain its purpose for worship, for being a place of prayer, a temple of God needs to be in good condition.
For your pastors to be able to serve their flock, they cannot be encumbered with the need to look for a living outside of their pastoral ministry. We can say that the rich people did well in contributing out of their abundance. But the poor widow did even better in contributing out of her need.
The external gift is important. But the internal one is even more so. And in the final analysis, God looks more into the internal dispositions. That widow reflected a number of important internal attitudes that we would all do well to emulate.
In the first place, she was not thinking of her own self, but of God. She could easily have rationalized and thought that she needed her little mite more than the temple did; that, after all, there were many rich people putting in much more than she was.
Yet, she put in her little bit, and she was correct in doing so. We owe everything to God—whether it be little or much. Is it surprising that we somehow “return” them to God?
In the second place, that widow had a lot of trust and confidence in God. Although the gospel tells us nothing more about her, I am sure that she did not die nor neglect her obligations.
God is like a doting father, who asks his child for the little candy the child may be keeping in his pocket. The father is not really after that piece of candy. He just wants to see if the child loves him and trusts him enough, to part with his “little treasure.”
A person who is generous with God will soon realize that God is even more generous than he is. God repays him a hundredfold, sometimes in the same currency; at other times, with a better one.
Thus, when we help in an undertaking or project that is related to God, we come out winning in the end. Rather than seeing ourselves as doing a favor to God or the Church, when we help the Church, we should think that it is God doing us a favor. He is giving us the opportunity and the honor of doing something of real value, with these perishable goods that we have. Because, after all, we cannot take these goods along with us to the grave. But the good works of generosity are like a treasure that we are laying up in heaven.