Two Masters

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
23 September 2007


First Reading: Amos 8:4 - 7
Listen to this, you who trample on the needy
and try to suppress the poor people of the country,
you who say, ‘When will New Moon be over
so that we can sell our corn,
and sabbath, so that we can market our wheat?
Then by lowering the bushel, raising the shekel,
by swindling and tampering with the scales,
we can buy up the poor for money,
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
and get a price even for the sweepings of the wheat.’
The Lord swears it by the pride of Jacob,
‘Never will I forget a single thing you have done’.

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 112

Second Reading: 1 Timothy 2:1 - 8
My advice is that, first of all, there should be prayers offered for everyone – petitions, intercessions and thanksgiving – and especially for kings and others in authority, so that we may be able to live religious and reverent lives in peace and quiet. To do this is right, and will please God our saviour: he wants everyone to be saved and reach full knowledge of the truth. For there is only one God, and there is only one mediator between God and mankind, himself a man, Christ Jesus, who sacrificed himself as a ransom for them all. He is the evidence of this, sent at the appointed time, and I have been named a herald and apostle of it and – I am telling the truth and no lie – a teacher of the faith and the truth to the pagans.

In every place, then, I want the men to lift their hands up reverently in prayer, with no anger or argument.

Gospel: Luke 16:1 - 13
Jesus said to his disciples, ‘There was a rich man and he had a steward denounced to him for being wasteful with his property. He called for the man and said, “What is this I hear about you? Draw me up an account of your stewardship because you are not to be my steward any longer.” Then the steward said to himself, “Now that my master is taking the stewardship from me, what am I to do? Dig? I am not strong enough. Go begging? I should be too ashamed. Ah, I know what I will do to make sure that when I am dismissed from office there will be some to welcome me into their homes.”

Then he called his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, “How much do you owe my master?” “One hundred measures of oil” was the reply. The steward said, “Here, take your bond; sit down straight away and write fifty”. To another he said, “And you, sir, how much do you owe?” “One hundred measures of wheat” was the reply. The steward said, “Here, take your bond and write eighty”.

‘The master praised the dishonest steward for his astuteness. For the children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind than are the children of light.

‘And so I tell you this: use money, tainted as it is, to win you friends, and thus make sure that when it fails you, they will welcome you into the tents of eternity. The man who can be trusted in little things can be trusted in great; the man who is dishonest in little things will be dishonest in great. If then you cannot be trusted with money, that tainted thing, who will trust you with genuine riches? And if you cannot be trusted with what is not yours, who will give you what is your very own?

‘No servant can be the slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.’

Reflection
By Elizabeth R Eguia

My colleague and I were travelling by bus going back to Malaysia. Since we just had an early dinner and our stomachs are quite full, I decided to do my reflection instead of sleeping. So I read the Gospel for this Sunday and came across with 2 words and a phrase that strike me. These were: “steward”, “faithful”, and the phrase “No one can serve two masters at the same time.”

I asked myself these questions: Have I been a good steward for all the talents, opportunities, blessings, family, and friends given to me by God? How many times have I not been faithful to Him? Am I too concentrated with earning money that leads me to neglect Him sometimes?

I will relate these questions to my current trip to Singapore. It was not a personal planned trip. It just so happen that my colleague had to exit to another country so her stay in Malaysia will be extended. From the rebooking of her ticket, arranging accommodations, and touring her around - all I did for her. I was asking myself now, why did I do all of these when in fact it is not my job anymore? I could have just stayed back home, had a good weekend rest, or I could have just worked in the office considering it is a paid weekend work. But instinct told me to do it without any question, without asking anything in return. I felt if no one will do this then who would? This is also a way for me to serve God through others even in simple ways for He has blessed me much. The good thing that actually happened, which I realized just now, was it was all planned by Him. The opportunity was just there for me to grab. He knows I have not been to Singapore for more than 2 years now. He knows that I needed a break to reflect about my life. He knows there’s a church in Singapore that I loved to go and to hear Mass. And all these things happened in my two days stay. Amazing isn’t it? As I come back to Malaysia, I am bringing with me new hope, courage, faith, and a new strength to face the coming days, to continue to be a good steward of all that He entrusted to me.

Dear God, thank you for the opportunity you gave me through Anluwage to do the Sunday Gospel reflections. Through this, I am able to reflect and relate Your words to my daily life and be more aware on how You work in wondrous ways. May the same thing happen to all of our readers. Continue to remind us of our responsibility to be good and faithful stewards. Amen.