32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B
Today’s first reading and gospel reading praises the virtuous acts of two widows. In the First reading from the first Book of Kings, chapter 17, verse 10 to 16, Elijah is sent by God to a widow in Zarephath who would take care of him during the great famine. The widow trusted in Elijah’s promise and did as he said and she and her son were able to eat for a year, as her jar of flour did not go empty, nor her jug of oil run dry, as the Lord had foretold through Elijah.
Jesus in the gospel reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark, chapter 12, verse 38 to 44, after watching the people put money in the temple treasury, praises the generosity of the poor widow who put in two small coins worth a few cents saying, “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.” Jesus valued her disposition to give than the gift she gave.
These two readings remind us of the importance of Almsgiving as a virtue that should be synonymous with our lives as children of God and as disciples of Christ. This in fact shows us exactly what Jesus did for us by giving His all and everything, as an offering to God for our sake. So what is Almsgiving?
The word ‘alms’ which was first used before the 12th century, comes from the Latin word ‘eleēmosyna,’ which means "charitable gift" or "act of charity". ‘Eleēmosyna’ comes from the Greek word ‘eleēmosýnē,’ which means "pity, act of kindness, alms". ‘Eleēmosýnē’ comes from the Greek word ‘eleēmōn,’ which means "merciful", and ‘eleos,’ which means "pity or mercy.” The word ‘alms’ is used to describe money or food or goods given to the poor as a charitable act. It can also refer to donations made in a church, on the street, or at a poorhouse.
So, Almsgiving is the act of donating money or goods to the poor or performing other acts or works of charity. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church #2462, Almsgiving is "a witness to fraternal charity" and "a work of justice pleasing to God.” It is an outward sign of Christian love for others that involves some type of sacrifice on behalf of the giver in order to provide for the needs of the other. From all these definitions and explanations of Almsgiving, we can infer that it is an act that manifests our love for God in our love and generosity towards others. Almsgiving makes us be more attentive to God’s will in our lives as it makes us be more grateful to Him for His mercies, blessings and graces upon us. It also attracts more blessings from God to us as we exemplify His love through acts of charity.
It is a well known fact that almsgiving is associated with the season of Lent in the Catholic Church, but the practice of giving alms is not restricted to just the season of Lent, it is actually emphasized by the Catholic Church as a year-round spiritual practice or exercise. This is why we have various collections in the Church to help, support and assist our brothers and sisters in need. Giving alms is very essential in our lives as Christians because it helps us show gratitude to God for all His gifts to us that helps us foster a deep spiritual relationship with Him, then makes us step outside of ourselves and focus on the needs of others. More than simply giving money, almsgiving is an act of love that deepens our prayer life and brings us to appreciate God’s love for us by caring for our neighbors in need or our brothers and sisters who live in poverty.
My dear friends in Christ, how affectionate and benevolent are we to our brothers and sisters who live in poverty and need our help, support and assistance? How generous are we with our blessings and gifts from God, with our resources, our time, our talent, our understanding, our knowledge, our love, our abilities, our forgiveness, our patience, our compassion, our respect, our commitment, our selflessness etc. Let us emulate the example of the two widows in today’s readings by being loving and generous to our brothers and sisters in need, so that we will be blessed all the more and praised by our God as we answer His call to be charitable to others.
