Daily Reflection Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

For today’s reflection I will cite the masterful commentary, The Hospitality of God: A Reading of Luke’s Gospel, by Fr. Brendan Byrne, S.J. We used to hear this gospel passage interpreted as an example of one person’s total dedication to God. It appears that this woman’s meager offering demonstrates her selfless devotion to the Lord.

However, I suggest that we read the preceding passage, Luke 20:45-47. Here we may find another meaning to the plight of this poor woman. Notice how Jesus criticized the scribes, those religious leaders, who dressed elegantly and craved attention in public places. And they would recite long prayers even while they devoured the houses of widows. After announcing this to the crowd, Jesus noticed a widow dropping her two small coins into the Temple treasury. These coins were of little value, ordinarily, but for her they would have held considerable value.

The story of the widow follows a major theme from this gospel. Saint Luke shows special concern for the anawim, a Hebrew word meaning the “poor and the lowly.” Luke will emphasize Jesus’ attention to, and great care for, the outcasts of society. For example, in pointing to this widow, Jesus challenges a religious system which pressured people to contribute to the Temple what they barely could afford. Such a religion works to suppress people rather than to fulfill them. Jesus exposed this injustice in order to replace it with a proper vision of God and what God wants for all people. As Jesus said, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).