Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 503


He said, “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”



Jesus, by all accounts of the gospels, is surrounded by moral inferiors. No one can hold a candle to his courage, generosity, compassion and honesty. But all those virtues and many more would mean nothing if he could not see greatness in others, as he demonstrates in today's gospel.

When a poor, nameless widow drops "two small coins" into the temple treasury, Jesus exclaims with wonder and admiration. He has entered Jerusalem and nearing his "hour." Calvary looms on the horizon. He will surrender his own body to his tormentors like a sacrificial lamb, saving nothing for himself. Yet he pauses in wonder to honor a poor widow. 

Working at the VA Hospital has been an especially happy one for me because I hear and see so many professionals honoring one another's skills, generosity and openness. There are problems, of course; a system as complex as a hospital is rife with problems. And yet we make the system work because our morale is good. 

Statue of Saint Catherine
at Mundelien Seminary.
She is represented by the wheel of torture.

This is the Spirit of Jesus, a human spirit and vital to every human organization. Nothing can be accomplished if people are not willing to work with each other. It doesn't happen automatically. Steel cogs, cams and wheels don't generate their own oil. Mutual admiration is like transmission oil; it is a gift of God shared throughout the company. 

Families, companies, parishes, volunteer and civic organizations work well when people stroke one another. 

Take nothing for granted. Admire those around you and let them know it. And thank them when they return the compliment.