Fr Ian writes:
As we imagine the scene
at the treasury of the Temple, we ought to try to imagine perhaps
someone giving to the Church, perhaps our congregation today. How
would we respond if someone walked in and dropped in a fat cheque?
How would our response differ to, say, a child putting in their
week's pocket money? Would we treat them differently? I suggest most
of us would.
The truth our Lord
reveals is that God sees things very differently. Our Lord would
assess any gift on the basis of the degree of sacrifice involved, and
the degree of generosity. St John Chrysostom, commenting on this
said, “Our Lord paid no attention to the amount of money but only
to the abundance of her generosity.” What the Lord looks for is our
generosity. So it might be a worthwhile exercise imagining our Lord
watching us as we give – what would he say of us? Well the truth
is, that our Lord knows the secrets of our hearts now, and He is
aware of the truth of the matter. There is perhaps nothing like the
issue of money to crystallize our commitment to something.
Central in this concern
for generosity is what we might call today 'detachment'. How detached
are we from our wealth? To what extent are we ruled by our wealth?
How free do we feel towards our wealth – beyond providing for our
basic needs? How much of a hold does our wealth have over us?
The Beatitudes of the
gospel call us to blessedness through being 'poor in spirit'. This
isn't to do with whether we are economically poor or not, but how
detached we are to our wealth. Blessedness, or eternal happiness or
joy, is reached through a detachment to wealth.
People become attached
to wealth because they believe it can provide them with the security
they need. This is in fact the opposite to the Christian way. For a
Christian finds security not in material possessions but in Christ.
The Christian does not build up treasures on earth, where moth and
rust can corrupt, but builds up treasure in heaven. It might seem we
can buy security and happiness, but sooner or later we must all learn
that we cannot take it with us! Christ alone can give us eternal
happiness (which is what blessedness is) and eternal security (which
is salvation) ; we in fact depend on His great generosity bestowed on
us – He asks us to be as generous with others.
So the issue we are
addressing is not just to do with how much we give to Church, but the
attitude of our hearts. Do we have hearts formed by habits of
miserliness, that is grudging, or that is over cautious? Because this
will not only affect the way we give money, but also the way in which
we give ourselves to Christ. How wholeheartedly have we given
ourselves to Christ? How much have we held back? How generous are we
in giving our lives, our time, our energy to Christ? If He stood
before us in bodily flesh would you give all, or be reserved? Are there
no-go areas in our lives, where we are not prepared for Christ to
enter?
These are the things
that matter in the Kingdom of God. What matters to God is not the
quantity but the quality of the spirit in which we give. Do we give
as generously, as He has given to us?
