Loving God, you have always taught your people to care for the poor, and yet, greed is always close at hand.  Grant us the faith and trust that enables us to be generous, and grant us peace through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            You may have noticed, somewhere along the line, that widows are mentioned quite frequently in the Scriptures.  In Deuteronomy, which is part of the law of Moses, or Torah, farmers are instructed to leave some “leftovers” in the fields or on the vines “for the alien, the orphan, and the widow” to glean (24:19).  Similarly, when the tithe of all of the produce was brought in, it was given “to the Levites, the aliens, the orphans, and the widows, so that they may eat their fill within your towns” (26:12).

         It was given to the Levites so that they could serve in the Temple on behalf of all of God’s people.  It was given to aliens, or foreigners, or migrants, as a way of caring for the stranger.  It was given to orphans and widows, because they were “financially poor and socially helpless” (sundaysandseasons.com).  Without a father or a husband to care for them, widows and orphans were vulnerable to abuse and to starvation.  Enter: the widow in today’s gospel, and Ruth and Naomi, who also are widows.

         While we hear the happy ending today of the book of Ruth, those of you who have read the whole story will know that both Naomi and Ruth were in a precarious situation.  After both of them lost their husbands, they moved to Bethlehem, and Ruth goes out into the fields at harvest time in order to glean some of the leftovers from the fields.  As it turns out, the fields belong to Boaz, who is a relative of Naomi’s, and thus Ruth is promised that she won’t be molested in these fields.  Ultimately, God provides, and Boaz marries Ruth at the end of the story.

         While the focus from today’s gospel has usually been on the widow who gives her last penny to the temple treasury, there is more going on here than comparing the size of people’s offerings.  The entire Temple system is being called into question, as well as the religious leaders who would leave a widow with next to nothing to live on.

         Today’s gospel begins with a warning about the scribes, who like to draw attention to themselves.  In case you’re wondering, scribes were people who could read and write, made copies of the law of Moses, and were experts on both Jewish and Roman law.  Sometimes they are referred to as lawyers, or as teachers of the law.  The irony in today’s gospel is that these same scribes “devour widows’ houses” rather than caring for orphans and widows as the law of Moses commands (Mk. 12:40).

         While we are not told exactly how they were devouring widows’ houses, it seems that there was some sort of “unscrupulous acceptance of hospitality and support” that was going on (Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. 7).  It also seems apparent that the Temple (which would have been where the scribes were praying) was devouring the resources of the poor (Stoffregen).  The Temple itself was already rich, and yet this poor widow felt that she needed to give her last penny as an offering.  Had the scribes and the other religious leaders been keeping the Law, this widow would not have been this poor (workingpreacher.org).

         At least part of what is going on in today’s gospel is questioning the reason for the existence of the Jerusalem Temple.  The same questions had been raised in the past by the Old Testament prophets, who had warned about the destruction of the Temple in the same breath as they denounced the oppression of orphans and widows (e.g. Jer. 7:1-14).  Jesus points out that the same thing is happening all over again.

         At the same time, we are introduced to a widow who gives absolutely everything that she has as an act of worship.  While Jesus does not ask those who are destitute to squeeze themselves to the last drop in order to serve God, he, too, will be giving absolutely everything to God – for our sake and for the sake of all people.

         Of course, coincidentally, we hear this gospel the day before Remembrance Day, where we are reminded of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.  It is worth taking the time to remember, for things such as freedom and peace do not come to us without a price.  There are always those who would like all people to serve them, rather than living in service to others.

         While we are reminded today of a broken system that leaves widows with nothing and feeds the egos of religious leaders, we are also pointed to Jesus, who sees past the amount of people’s offerings to how much each person has to begin with.  A couple thousand from a billionaire simply doesn’t compare with a loonie from somebody who is flat broke.  It is the second person who is making a sacrifice.

         At the same time, the widow reminds us that Jesus also gave absolutely everything – not for any earthly cause, but for the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.  Earthly temples may indeed be torn down, but the love and mercy of God lasts into eternity.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Lectionary 32(B)                              Mark 12:38-44

November 10, 2024                        Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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