St. Boniface, bishop & martyr

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Tobit 12:1, 5-15, 20*

 When the wedding feast was over,

Tobit called Tobias, his son, and said to him, “Be sure you give the wages to the man who accompanied you, and we should add something extra.”  Then Tobias called the angel and said to him, “Please take half of all that you have brought.”   The angel took Tobit and Tobias to one side and said to them,

“Bless God, return thanks to him, proclaim his glory and render him thanks before all the living for all he has done for you. It is good to praise God and to exalt his Name, by making known in a worthy manner the story of God’s deeds. Do not be slow in giving him thanks.

 It is good to hide the secrets of kings but to make known publicly the works of God. Do the works of God. Do good, and evil will not harm you.   It is a good thing to accompany prayer with fasting, almsgiving and justice. It is better to do a little with honor than much with injustice. It is better to give alms than to treasure up gold.  Alms­giving preserves from death; it purifies from all sin. Those people who give alms and act justly will have a long life,  but sinners only harm themselves. (………)

 

 Tobit 13:2, 6efgh, 7, 8

Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊   

Mark 12:38-44

As Jesus was teaching, he also said to them, “Beware of those teachers of the Law who enjoy walking around in long robes and being greeted in the marketplace, and who like to occupy reserved seats in the synagogues and the first places at feasts. They even devour the widow’s and the orphan’s goods while making a show of long prayers. How severe a sentence they will receive!”

 Jesus sat down opposite the Tem­ple treasury and watched the peo­pledropping money into the treasury box; and many rich people put in large offerings. But a poor widow also came and dropped in two small coins.

 Then Jesus called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all those who gave offerings. For all of them gave from their plenty, but she gave from her poverty and put in everything she had, her very living.”

 

 Gospel Reflection：

 Jesus warns His disciples about those who use religion to enrich themselves. They accumulate prestige and money by pretending superior spirituality. They love to dress up to project power and authority. They exaggerate religious acts and demand respect for their office from people in  excessive ways. That is what the hierarchical mindset is all about.

It is a contrived power without any basis in reality. On the other hand, there are those who exude a quiet dignity that comes from their inmost being. Take for example the widow in the gospel. She gave all she could afford unselfconsciously. She's not ashamed of her poverty.

There is dignity in her giving no matter how small it may be in the eyes of the world. She has a power that is not dependent on what she has. It is a power that comes from within that can never be faked.