Mountains and Molehills

Giving for joy and as second-nature, not for notoriety

11/11/2018

Mark 12:41-44 Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood."

Let me ask you a question: do you like to give money in the collection at Mass on Sunday? Boy, talk about a loaded question!  Don’t worry, I won’t make you raise your hand to answer, and cause you to lie in church.  If you do not like to give in the collection, you are not alone. Many Sunday mornings as a small boy I remember riding home from Mass in the backseat of my parents’ car listening to my father complaining about some priest and his sermon on giving more money. I thought to myself: “Man, I’m glad I’m not that priest!” Well, today, I am that priest, and you kids will probably hear your parents complain about me on the ride home today. Sorry, kids, just put in your earbuds on the ride home.

But the famous Pareto Principle applies to Catholic church contributions, that is, twenty percent of the people give eighty percent of the Sunday collection, and eighty percent of the people only give twenty percent of the contributions. Each family here can probably figure out pretty quickly whether you land in the twenty percent column or the eighty percent column. And there are some people, who for their own reasons, choose not to give anything at all. I do not mean to make anyone feel bad about their giving, but I want to paint the landscape of church finances with its peaks and valleys, its mountains and molehills.

But there is a third category of givers besides the twenty percent and the eighty percent. This third category of a fortunate few give because they have found the joy of giving. They are not concerned about receiving a tax-deduction for their donation, they do not need to be acknowledged with a plaque or a statue for their gift, and they might even feel embarrassed to receive such attention. They give because generosity has become second nature to them; they can’t help themselves.

In this sense, they have become a little like God, who in the beginning created the heavens and the earth out of nothing, in Latin ex nihilo. He not only created out of nothing, he got nothing in return, he received no reward for his effort. Giving is God’s nature. And the Son of God imitates his Father. He came to earth to suffer, die and rise on the third day and ended up with not one drop more glory than he had while he was happily in heaven. Jesus did not climb the Cross for notoriety, but because it was his nature. And the Holy Spirit inspires certain special souls likewise to be generous givers, expecting nothing in return. Why? Because the joy of giving is its own reward. There are, therefore, three grades of givers: some people give nothing, some give a certain percentage, and a few give for joy, they have learned to give like God. Giving has become their nature.

This gradation of giving may shed some light on the two poor widows we meet in the scripture readings today. The first is the widow of Zarepath, whom Elijah audaciously asks to prepare a meal for him, even though she’s about to die. When she protests that her last mouthful will be for herself and her son, Elijah assures her saying, “But first make me a little cake and bring it to me. Then you can prepare something for yourself and your son.” And God provided for her as Elijah promised. Elijah was inviting the widow to give generously – even to the point of death – and amazingly she did. Why? Well, because she had reached the heights of holiness and gave like God. Giving was her nature.

In the gospel, Jesus praises another poor but generous widow who contributed two small coins in the temple treasury. Jesus compared her giving to others that day (kind of like I did a moment ago), saying: “They have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.” These two wonderful widows would not fall into the twenty percent or even the eighty percent category of givers. Rather, they gave generously without expecting any reward, save the joy of giving, and that is how God gives. Giving was their nature.

Today I am grateful to Fr. Matt and Fr. Peter for allowing me to celebrate the Masses here, to speak about Trinity, and ask your help in a second collection. And there is only one thing I want to say about Trinity: we try to teach our students to be givers rather than takers. Those are ultimately the only two kinds of people in the world: givers and takers. We want to raise up a generation of young people who give like God, because giving has become second nature to them. Of course, we teach them math and science, they participate in cheerleading and sports, and we pray at weekly Mass and before each class. But underneath all that, we hope each student also learns there are different levels of giving, and they strive to give like God so they might experience the joy of giving. I am convinced that is why Catholic schools inspire vocations to the priesthood and religious life: People who give their whole lives without any reward except the joy of giving. In a Catholic school at least each student learns that giving is greater than getting, because that is what God does, and they experience a higher happiness.

I am sorry if this whole sermon sounded like a sales-pitch to you. If it is, then it’s the sales pitch I have fallen for, and bought with my whole life as a priest. If you do not feel like giving anything in the collection today, that is okay. At least I want you to leave today having learned there are different levels of giving: and the highest and the holiest and the happiness level of giving is to give like God and to feel his joy. That is when giving has become second nature.

Praised be Jesus Christ!