Homily for the 25th Sunday (C)
HOMILY for 24th Sunday per annum (C)
Am 8:4-7; Ps 112; 1 Tim 2:1-8; Lk 16:1-13.
Let’s be clear from the outset lest there be some confusion: The point of this parable is not to recommend to us the dishonesty of the manager or steward, nor the fact that he had incurred even more losses for his master. Rather than the morality of the steward’s actions Jesus calls to our attention the modality, the quality, of the steward’s actions: The steward is shrewd, that is to say, he is able to judge a situation accurately and turn it to his own advantage; he is able to read the signs of the times, and act prudently for his own good; he has to foresight to act quickly for his own temporal gain. The point, then, is that we, who have so much more at stake when it comes to the eternal rewards of heaven, should likewise be shrewd, prudent, and zealous for our own salvation. As stewards of our own souls, as “sons of light”, do we know what we should do for the sake of our own salvation? And, knowing what is conducive to eternal life, do we then change our ways and act upon it? For this is what is so striking about the dishonest steward: He acts decisively and urgently to secure his future. So should we, acting under the impulse of God’s grace, decisively and urgently do those things which secure our eternal future.
To this end, the Church holds out to us honest and shrewd stewards of divine grace, that is to say, the Saints, and a fortnight ago, Pope Leo canonised two young men. In their short lives what did they do in order to become friends of Christ and true sons of light? In the case of St Carlo Acutis, who was only 15 when he died, his biographers have identified 5 steps to holiness, none of which should surprise us. But it is well to recall once again what we can do to be saved:
Great devotion to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. He would adore the Eucharist daily, and said: “I like to speak to Jesus about all I am living and feeling.”
Frequent, even Daily, Holy Communion. His prayer to Jesus on receiving the Eucharist was: “Come right in – make yourself at home!”
Regular Confession. He said: “The soul is like a hot air balloon. Venial sins are like little weights that prevent the soul from rising up to heaven. A single mortal sin makes the soul fall back to earth. Confession is like the fire that makes the hot air balloon rise up again.”
Devotion to Our Lady especially through the daily Rosary: “I never fail to keep the most gracious appointment of the day: recitation of the Holy Rosary!”
Lastly, almsgiving and acts of charity.
Indeed, today’s Gospel makes the same recommendation: “Make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth”, the idea being that the poor will pray for us, for the grace of our salvation, and that the charitable works we do for those in need are, following Matthew 25, in fact acts of love done towards Christ our Saviour. St Augustine says it is this turning towards Christ that gives deeds of almsgiving its salvific effect. Many of the Fathers of the Church, therefore, see in today’s Gospel an urge for the rich to give alms and thus to invest in heaven. As one of our Province’s principal fundraisers I would certainly agree with this!
However, the point of today’s Gospel is that we, who have been entrusted with the true riches of God’s grace, and the truth and goodness and beauty of the Catholic Faith, are called to be faithful, that is to say, diligent stewards of all that God gives us, empowered by grace to act with resolve so that we become closer to Christ. As the lay Dominican St Pier Giorgio Frassati said, aged 22, “We must sacrifice everything for everything – our ambitions, indeed our entire selves – for the cause of the Faith. In order for our life to be Christian, it must be a continual renunciation, a continual sacrifice which however is not burdensome, when only we think about what these few years [of our lives] passed in sorrow are, compared with a happy eternity, where joy will have no measure nor end, and where we will enjoy a peace beyond anything we could imagine.”
Given so great, so glorious a reward and end, it would be shrewd and prudent indeed for us now to do whatever is needful to attain it, and let not complacency or presumption or a sense of entitlement lead us astray. For yes, God “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”. The question is, do we desire this too? And so do we have the prudent foresight and will to “sacrifice everything for everything”. May the example and words of Saints Carlo and Pier Giorgio spur us on so that we can go “to the heights” with Christ our Master.
