Memorial of Saint Andrew Kim Taegon, priest and martyr, and Saint Paul Chong Hasang, catechist and martyr, and their companions, martyrs | S. Andreæ Kim Taegon Presbyteri et S. Pauli Chong Hasang et Sociorum Martyrum, Memoria
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Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C | Dominica Hebdomada Vigesima quinta (XXV) « Per Annum », Anno C
18 September 2022 in the year of our Lord
루카 9,23-26 그때에 23 예수님께서 모든 사람에게 말씀하셨다. “누구든지 내 뒤를 따라오려면, 자신을 버리고 날마다 제 십자가를 지고 나를 따라야 한다. 24 정녕 자기 목숨을 구하려는 사람은 목숨을 잃을 것이고, 나 때문에 자기 목숨을 잃는 그 사람은 목숨을 구할 것이다. 25 사람이 온 세상을 얻고도 자기 자신을 잃거나 해치게 되면 무슨 소용이 있느냐? 26 누구든지 나와 내 말을 부끄럽게 여기면, 사람의 아들도 자기의 영광과 아버지와 거룩한 천사들의 영광에 싸여 올 때에 그를 부끄럽게 여길 것이다.” | Κατά Λουκάν Ευαγγέλιον 9:23-26 23 Ἔλεγεν δὲ πρὸς πάντας, Εἴ τις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ἔρχεσθαι, ἀρνησάσθω ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ καθ' ἡμέραν, καὶ ἀκολουθείτω μοι. 24 ὃς γὰρ ἂν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι, ἀπολέσει αὐτήν: ὃς δ' ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ, οὗτος σώσει αὐτήν. 25 τί γὰρ ὠφελεῖται ἄνθρωπος κερδήσας τὸν κόσμον ὅλον ἑαυτὸν δὲ ἀπολέσας ἢ ζημιωθείς; 26 ὃς γὰρ ἂν ἐπαισχυνθῇ με καὶ τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους, τοῦτον ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπαισχυνθήσεται, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων. |
Lk 16:1-13 Jesus said to his disciples, "A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property. He summoned him and said, 'What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.' The steward said to himself, 'What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.' He called in his master's debtors one by one. To the first he said, 'How much do you owe my master?' He replied, 'One hundred measures of olive oil.' He said to him, 'Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.' Then to another the steward said, 'And you, how much do you owe?' He replied, 'One hundred kors of wheat.' The steward said to him, 'Here is your promissory note; write one for eighty.' And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently. "For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. 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 both God and mammon." |
Κατά Λουκάν Ευαγγέλιον 16:1-13 1 Ἔλεγεν δὲ καὶ πρὸς τοὺς μαθητάς· ἄνθρωπός τις ἦν πλούσιος ὃς εἶχεν οἰκονόμον, καὶ οὗτος διεβλήθη αὐτῷ ὡς διασκορπίζων τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ. 2 καὶ φωνήσας αὐτὸν εἶπεν αὐτῷ· τί τοῦτο ἀκούω περὶ σοῦ; ἀπόδος τὸν λόγον τῆς οἰκονομίας σου, οὐ γὰρ δύνῃ ἔτι οἰκονομεῖν. 3 εἶπεν δὲ ἐν ἑαυτῷ ὁ οἰκονόμος· τί ποιήσω, ὅτι ὁ κύριός μου ἀφαιρεῖται τὴν οἰκονομίαν ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ; σκάπτειν οὐκ ἰσχύω, ἐπαιτεῖν αἰσχύνομαι. 4 ἔγνων τί ποιήσω, ἵνα ὅταν μετασταθῶ ἐκ τῆς οἰκονομίας δέξωνταί με εἰς τοὺς οἴκους αὐτῶν. 5 καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος ἕνα ἕκαστον τῶν χρεοφειλετῶν τοῦ κυρίου ἑαυτοῦ ἔλεγεν τῷ πρώτῳ· πόσον ὀφείλεις τῷ κυρίῳ μου; 6 ὁ δὲ εἶπεν· ἑκατὸν βάτους ἐλαίου. ὁ δὲ εἶπεν αὐτῷ· δέξαι σου τὰ γράμματα καὶ καθίσας ταχέως γράψον πεντήκοντα. 7 ἔπειτα ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν· σὺ δὲ πόσον ὀφείλεις; ὁ δὲ εἶπεν· ἑκατὸν κόρους σίτου. λέγει αὐτῷ· δέξαι σου τὰ γράμματα καὶ γράψον ὀγδοήκοντα. 8 καὶ ἐπῄνεσεν ὁ κύριος τὸν οἰκονόμον τῆς ἀδικίας ὅτι φρονίμως ἐποίησεν· ὅτι οἱ υἱοὶ τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου φρονιμώτεροι ὑπὲρ τοὺς υἱοὺς τοῦ φωτὸς εἰς τὴν γενεὰν τὴν ἑαυτῶν εἰσιν. 9 Καὶ ἐγὼ ὑμῖν λέγω, ἑαυτοῖς ποιήσατε φίλους ἐκ τοῦ μαμωνᾶ τῆς ἀδικίας, ἵνα ὅταν ἐκλίπῃ δέξωνται ὑμᾶς εἰς τὰς αἰωνίους σκηνάς. 10 Ὁ πιστὸς ἐν ἐλαχίστῳ καὶ ἐν πολλῷ πιστός ἐστιν, καὶ ὁ ἐν ἐλαχίστῳ ἄδικος καὶ ἐν πολλῷ ἄδικός ἐστιν. 11 εἰ οὖν ἐν τῷ ἀδίκῳ μαμωνᾷ πιστοὶ οὐκ ἐγένεσθε, τὸ ἀληθινὸν τίς ὑμῖν πιστεύσει; 12 καὶ εἰ ἐν τῷ ἀλλοτρίῳ πιστοὶ οὐκ ἐγένεσθε, τὸ ὑμέτερον τίς ὑμῖν δώσει; 13 Οὐδεὶς οἰκέτης δύναται δυσὶν κυρίοις δουλεύειν· ἢ γὰρ τὸν ἕνα μισήσει καὶ τὸν ἕτερον ἀγαπήσει, ἢ ἑνὸς ἀνθέξεται καὶ τοῦ ἑτέρου καταφρονήσει. οὐ δύνασθε θεῷ δουλεύειν καὶ μαμωνᾷ. |
Jesus concluded his parable in today’s Gospel with these words:
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. (Lk 16:13)
The word “mammon” refers to “wealth regarded as an evil influence or false object of worship and devotion”
We see just what kind evil influence worldly wealth has on a greedy person’s soul in the words the Prophet Amos used to dramatize their contempt toward God and neighbor:
“When will the new moon be over,” you ask, “that we may sell our grain, and the sabbath, that we may open the grain-bins? We will diminish the ephah, add to the shekel, and fix our scales for cheating! We will buy the destitute for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals...” (Am 8:4-6)
Here Amos exposes how the desire for material wealth can so dominate a greedy person’s life that he or she even despises the Lord’s Day because it interferes with their corrupt motivations. God and religion become for them a hindrance to their frenetic pursuits...and they treat people as pawns to be manipulated...or products to be sold.
Many, if not most, people today who worship worldly wealth, probably don’t even recognize how their lives reflect indifference for God, if not outright contempt. They might still even practice the externals of their Catholic faith, though with hearts that are far from God (cf. Isa 29:13).
We Catholics should differ from our non-practicing Christian peers, but far too many of us are utterly indistinguishable not only from non-Catholics, but even non-believers. Consider this finding:
Twenty years ago, a Gallup poll called “Religion in America” demonstrated that 89% of regular churchgoers live their lives exactly in the same way as non-churchgoers—same rate of marital infidelity, cheating on income taxes, etc.
How does a compelling Catholic witness get wiped out so easily? We find the beginnings of an answer in Jesus’ words:
...the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. (Lk 16:8)
Jesus’ urges us to apply the same energy and ingenuity to our spiritual lives as worldly people devote to their material pursuits. He wants us to imagine how we would be different—and by extension—how the world would be different—if Catholics invested the same kind of time and energy into our relationship with God as we do manically clamoring after objects and experiences that simply cannot bring lasting joy to our lives.
It’s a safe bet that most people who do “serve mammon” aren’t even aware of their idolatry—that is, until something jarring or even tragic snaps them out of their trance and back to their senses—much like the Prodigal Son’s starving stomach ultimately awakened his soul’s longing for the security of his father’s home.
Allow me to illustrate what such an awakening can look like in our own day with an example involving my brother, Ed.
And let me preface what I’m about to say by assuring you that I asked his permission to preach about this!
For the past four years, my brother—who works in real estate—has consistently been among the top salespeople in his company. He doesn’t like me to say that he’s actually been the top salesman in Phoenix for his company more than once, so I won’t!
But his business success is not even the point of the story.
Quite a few years ago, just as Ed was just breaking into the residential real estate business in California, the housing market there tanked.
Shortly before things went south, he described the crushing financial pressures he was experiencing. At the time he drove a really nice Audi convertible. Part of his financial stress was intensified by the hefty car payment, so I asked him, “Why do you have to have that fancy car?” He said something along the lines of, “I need a car that communicates success so people will be confident doing business with me.”
I told him that when I sold my house in Seattle before I moved to Phoenix some years before, I had no idea whatsoever what kind of car the realtor drove...nor did I care. My only concern was whether or not they could sell my house for the right price.
Following the California housing market collapse, my brother moved to Phoenix to establish his realty business here. Not long after that relocation, the Arizona housing market collapsed! He was forced to declare bankruptcy and left real estate for several years for something less lucrative but more stable.
The economic disaster he experienced in those market collapses became a blessing in disguise, though it took some time for the lesson to sink in. I first noticed his perspective shifting after he forfeited the Audi to the dealership and turned in the keys. He said it felt like a giant weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
The same car which—only weeks earlier—he had regarded as an essential “sign of success”, had become a burden so unbearable that he couldn’t wait to get rid of it.
Adversity has a way of exposing the emptiness of the worldly trinkets that we so easily compromise our souls to obtain. When our possessions possess us, then we are truly...slaves.
Eventually—after nearly a decade in another industry—he returned to the realty business here in Phoenix—this time selling new homes. The first few years were lean, and the road from rock bottom to top performer was anything but a cake walk.
During that long transition, his priorities shifted significantly. With no more silly illusions like having to “drive the right car”, he put his personal and professional affairs in more proper order, with his Catholic faith much more solidly at the center of things. And what he applied to his own life, he often shared with customers...to their benefit...and to his.
Here’s a great example:
When young married couples are buying their first home, they’re often tempted to overspend on fancy amenities that stretch their financial capability to the absolute limit. Ed can envision them sitting in the house, surrounded by the fancy stuff, but being so stressed about money that they can’t actually enjoy it.
He can see this because he’s been there!
When Ed senses this, he sets aside the business discussion and starts a heart-to-heart conversation with them about what really matters. He explains—from his first-hand experience—the devastating price one pays for living beyond one’s means and losing everything.
He encourages them to forgo these unnecessary extras in order to establish a home fit for a family, rather than a house outfitted for a fat-cat millionaire.
Now instead of trying to impress his clients with a showy convertible, my brother shows his customers how he has their best interest at heart. They really don’t care what he drives but they do care what drives him.
And when they see what it is, they trust him.
Jesus said:
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones... If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? (Lk 16:10, 12)
The greed-driven false “religion” of the “children of this world” demands the sacrifice of spiritual wealth for material gain.
One scripture scholar—commenting on today’s readings—points out the better way:
Christianity is precisely the reverse of this. It is a religion in which we sacrifice material in order to gain spiritual wealth.
Our heavenly Father delights in rewarding his honest stewards—here on earth—with a foretaste of the joys that he has prepared for each us in the eternal dwellings of heaven.
This does not necessarily mean being rich in the things of this world, unless God knows that the soul can handle it. It does mean that our hearts will be rich in what matters to God (cf. Lk 12:21).
As Jesus said in Matthew’s Gospel:
...seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. (Mt 6:33)
That’s not only sound spiritual advice from our merciful savior. It’s also good business!
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