Receive a Hundred Times More May 29

Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time


Give to the Most High as he has given to you, generously, according to your means. For the Lord is one who always repays, and he will give back to you sevenfold. (Sirach 35: 9-10)


Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. Mark 10:29-30


Piety

Let us pray: God, we recognize that your covenant with us is a two way street. For all that you provide, much is asked of us. Abraham set a high bar with his willingness to sacrifice his only son to the Lord. Help us to give back to you in alms and sacrifice while also supporting our sisters and brothers who are in most need. We ask this through our friend and brother Jesus Christ, who taught us that everything asked of the Father in His name is granted. Amen.


Study
http://www.usccb.org/nab/052907.shtml

Someone once noted that the highest form of generosity is “kingly giving” where we share with others the very things that we use for ourselves. At this level, we give with spontaneity and ease. We take great delight in giving the best we have – those things we value most – and we are always looking for opportunities to give.

Today, the readings give us a prescription for kingly giving. With all that God provides to us, not only will we be repaid sevenfold, according to Sirach, but one hundred fold, according to Jesus.

This sounds great but very few people give up everything for the Gospel. Probably fewer still actually tithe. Fewer still even remember what gleaning is – leaving behind something for the poor to find.

We still want our warm bed, our comfortable home or apartment, abundant food and drink. We still seek and enjoy companionship. We often give out of our abundance, not out of sacrifice.

“The Road” by Cormac McCarthy is one of today’s best sellers. In it, two unnamed protagonists, a man and a boy, struggle to survive after an unexplained devastation has wiped out civilization as we know it. They walk from town to town in search of whatever meager food and water they can find. They try to stay warm, stay healthy and stay alive by telling the good guys apart from the bad guys.

Along “The Road,” they encounter people who would kill them or steal all their food and blankets. They have to defend their shopping cart filled with gleanings from the journey – rotten apples, seeds, water from cisterns, and canned foods – with the business end of a pistol in the struggle to tell the good guys form the bad guys.

In this environment, achieving anything close to kingly giving, or the standards set by Sirach or Christ may seem difficult. However, the man and the boy have pledged their very lives to each other with no abundance – just to watch out for each other on the journey.

Action

Think about your charitable acts this month. Can you consider making a truly sacrificial gift out of your means, not your abundance? What would motivate you to give at this level?