Dec
5
Written by:
host
12/5/2008 7:00 AM
When I have taught Disciple Bible Study, one of my favorite lessons comes the week we discuss the little story about the poor widow in Luke 20:41-21:4 (a text that isn't part of the Sunday lectionary cycle , but which does come up about this time of year in some daily readings). As a collector of ancient coins, it's a story I'm very interested in. The text is one that is frequently misunderstood. The common interpretation many people have about the story, my classmates typically decide, is that we are to be generous to the point of being selfless, just like the widow. ...
However, a careful reading of the text--particularly in it's larger context--leads one to a different reading. Jesus was not praising the widow but instead was criticizing the leaders of the temple, who were in charge of a system that was (in Jesus' day) incredibly unjust. In effect, Jesus was condemning temple practices that had become so corrupt that this widow would have to put her last two coins in the treasury! (It's hardly a scripture appropriate for stewardship campaigns!)
The tendency of many "institutions"--governments, organizations, religious groups, even traditions--is that they can easily become focused too heavily on maintenance and process and structure, rather than on the people they are supposed to serve. The temple leaders had forgotten the many admonitions to care for "widows, aliens, and orphans" in their Hebrew scriptures. Perhaps if they had recalled those, they would have given funds to the widow and not taken them from her.
Note that I mentioned "traditions" above. Our traditions can easily become oppressive over time. Although it's probably too late for you to significantly adjust your church plans, perhaps this is the year your family might simplify a few of your more time-intensive holiday practices in favor of new ones that allow you to spend time together and to share with others. Just as a careful reading of the text for today leads to new and deeper insights, a careful and thoughtful evaluation of your holiday traditions may lead you to some new, life-giving alternatives.
If you think you (or your congregants) would benefit from having a guide to help with evaluating holiday practices, perhaps you might look for a book that would be helpful in that process. Two that I recommend are:
Hundred Dollar Holiday: The Case for a More Joyful Christmas by Bill McKibben
Unplug the Christmas Machine: A Complete Guide to Putting Love and Joy Back Into the Season by Jo Robinson and Jean Staeheli
~ Tim Gossett