“All”
November 10, 2024
Rev. Rebecca Migliore
* The story of the Widow’s Mite, along with the story of the widow at Zarephath, talk about the generosity of those who don’t have much, but share or give what they have. In the Old Testament, the widow is willing to make a little loaf for the prophet Elijah even though she is contemplating making a “last meal” for herself and her son before they die of famine (because of the drought caused by God withholding rain from the earth). And for her gift, Elijah says God will make sure that the oil and the flour will not run out (until the day when the Lord sends rain once again). In similar fashion to the story of the Hannukah oil, God rewards the faithful with more than could ever be imagined. It is as if they are made part of God’s extraordinary abundance.
* The lectionary committee paired this story with the one where Jesus sees a widow at the temple putting just a mere two coins into the treasury. But it is all she has. And so Jesus brings her to everyone’s attention. See, he says. The rich give out of their abundance but this poor woman, although her gift seems small, has made an extraordinary gift. For it was all that she had to live on. ALL. We preachers sometimes wax eloquently about how much of an example she is of sacrificial giving (these sermons are very often around stewardship campaigns). See how much the woman gave—can’t you reach a little deeper too?
* And although I certainly think that in this “me focused” culture, it is true that many could take a step forward in their spiritual life if challenged to share more—sometimes it feels like we are preaching to the choir. Yes, we do remember that Jesus tells the rich young man that to get to the kingdom of God he needs to sell all that he owns and give the money to the poor. All that he owns. But I also notice that the rich young man doesn’t do that—instead he sadly turns away because he had so many possessions.
* Is this two sides of the same coin, the same message? The young man being asked to sell what he has and give it away (which he decides not to do) and the widow who has so very little (all of which she puts into the treasury). On the face of it, it seems the same—whether you have a lot or a little, you should give it all away. Except that the context is different. The rich young man is making a choice—he has asked Jesus “what more” he can do to get near to the kingdom of God. The widow is placing a tithe into the temple coffers—a tithe that I imagine she was supposed to contribute.
* But, as these stewardship sermons often lift up, what a wonderful thing this woman is doing. Jesus asks us to give all, even our very lives, for the sake of the kingdom—and who among us follows that to the letter? This is an amazing woman, an amazing gift, an example to us all. This feeling is captured in the words to our anthem that you will hear later in the service. “All that I own, all that you give me, all the blessings of this life I bring. Lord of all, my God and King, what I have I will give Thee.” And again, “All that I am, all that I will be, all Thy hand hath created in me. Lord of all, my God and King, what I have I will give Thee.”
*I was so moved by the words and the music of this anthem that I purchased it years ago in memory of my Migliore grandparents, who gave so much of themselves and their gifts to the Presbyterian Church. I will always have a warm feeling about this story because it reminds me of so many people I have known who have given (maybe not all) but much of their time, of their talent, and of their treasure to help bring God’s vision to full fruition.
*But I have to admit that there has also always been an uncomfortable feeling as I view this poor woman, this poor widow, dropping her “all” into the large vats of temple intake. The fact that she is a widow is not her fault. But the fact that she is a poor widow means that there has been no male relative to step in and bring her into his household, to care for her. There is no father, no brother, no son, not even a cousin.
And in this ancient world, if you were to avoid poverty, you either had to be a wealthy woman (if you were unattached, like say Lydia, the purple cloth dealer), or you had to be under the protection of someone with standing, and that would be someone who was male. This unfortunate seems to have neither money nor males in her life.
*Don’t you sometimes wonder why it is always the poor that are asked and able to give all—while the rich can get away with giving just a tiny percent of what they have, and yet get lauded for it. This uneasy feeling was prodded into flower when I read the commentary on this passage by Dr. Sung Soo Hong of WorkingPreacher.com. I am so grateful to him for inviting me to look at this story again.
*Here's the question: Is Jesus really saying that it was okay for this widow to give “all that she had to live on” to the temple? Is this what we advocate for our members—that you give your very last penny? Is that something to celebrate? And more broadly, is it okay to continually ask those who are not at the top of the ladder, whether it be women, or those of color, or those who are non-normative in any way, to always be the ones who have to compromise, always have to be the ones who have to pick up the pieces, always have to be the ones who are expected to do sacrificial things. Is that really the kingdom?
As Dr. Hong says so eloquently, “The Jesus I know does not ask the destitute to squeeze themselves to the last drop to serve God. Rather, Jesus comforts and blesses them. He condemns the rich and the powerful who exploit the poor.”
*Have we been misreading this passage? What if Jesus’ tone of voice when talking about the widow wasn’t one of respect and amazement about her contribution? What if Jesus’ voice had a hard edge to it? What if Jesus was looking at this scene and saying, “This is absolutely the last straw. Look at how the rich temple asks the poor to give to them all, even what they need to survive.”
*This perspective is certainly taking into consideration the Jesus we have met in the gospel of Mark. Here Jesus has been very unhappy at the way the religious institutions have been behaving. He is constantly arguing with clerics and Pharisees and scribes about the letter of the law. Remember how he shakes his head when they suggest that he should not have healed a man’s hand because it was on the Sabbath. Or that he should not have gleaned grain as he and his disciples were on the road, again, because it was the Sabbath. Or whether he had the authority to send an evil spirit into a herd of pigs (as if they were more incensed about the loss of the herd, than amazed and grateful for the restoration of the man).
*He enters Jerusalem and immediately goes to the temple where he throws out the money-changers and upsets the carts of the animal sellers. He yells about how the authorities have taken God’s house, a house of prayer, and made it into a marketplace—a way of enriching themselves. He will end this section of Scripture by declaring that the destruction of the temple is soon to come. “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down” (Mark 13:2). Why?
*Because the temple, the seat of God on earth, is not following the Law of Love, or even the letter of the law. In the instance of widows, Deuteronomy 24:19-20 says that when you have reaped your harvest or beaten your olive trees, you shall leave a portion for the alien, the orphan, and the widow. The temple should be giving to widows, not asking them to give their all. And Jesus has even said this, in his proclamation leading up to our story. “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.” And then Jesus brings our widow to the disciple’s attention. “She has given all she had to live on” is the ultimate judgement of the temple and those who administer it.
*I will never again be able to read about this woman and feel only good about the story. For along with its wonder at extraordinary gifts, it is a harsh reality check about who is really asking that the gift be given. Would God intend for this poor widow to give all she had to live on? Or should the story have been that when the widow came to put in her meager and yet unthinkably huge offering, that bells and whistles would have gone off, and the neon sign of “God’s kingdom come” lights up, and those standing watching people put in their tithes, reach into the coffers and pull up a handful of gold coins and give them to her.
*It is food for thought as we prepare our budgets for the next year. Are we providing for those around us who are most in need? Are we focused only on filling up our coffers? Are we keeping in the forefront what we talked about last week—the most important thing that God requires of us? Love. Loving God with all—all our heart, all our mind, all our strength, all our soul and loving our neighbor as ourself.
*It’s a funny thing, this word of God. It asks of us to see on so many levels at once. It asks of us to challenge ourselves—who are we in this story? It asks of us to hear Jesus call: Come, let go of anything in your way, and follow me, with ALL you have.
May it be so, Alleluia, Amen.