Daily Reflection – Nov 23, 2015
Monday 23 November 2015
First Reading: Daniel 1:1-6, 8-20
Psalm Response:
Glory and praise forever
Daniel 3:52-56
Gospel Reading: Luke 21:1-4
Today’s Saint: St Clement I and St Columban
Gospel Reading:
When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people
putting their offerings into the treasury
and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins.
He said, “I tell you truly,
this poor widow put in more than all the rest;
for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”
Reflection:
‘She, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.’
To bestow with the heart is to truly give, whether it is time, talent or treasure.
It is when we give of ourselves that we truly give, to share what we have of money, goods, shelter or knowledge, expecting nothing in return. The truest giving is when the gift is as desperately needed by the gift-giver as by the one receiving it. This is ‘sacrifice’ and why Jesus praised the widow for her mite. Australians are generous givers. There have been many calls for donations this past year; floods in Pakistan, earthquakes and avalanches in Nepal, volcanic eruptions and cyclones, and ordinary people have responded with generosity. If we are generous towards others, God will see to it that the blessings we bestow will be returned to us in full measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.
