Mark 12:42-44
And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.” Parallel Luke 21:2-4 Cross references: Proverbs 22:4; Ecclesiates 2:10; Isaiah 45:13.

I think we have a tendency to forget to “think out-side the box” when it comes to Biblical texts. We read what it says, think that is all there is and then apply the “lesson” to similar situations, and get quite irate if someone suggests a different way of approching the text, than the one we are used to.

Let’s think away the money for a minute. This lesson is not primarily about money. This story is about pride and vanity. About being a show-off. In AA’s Big Book we find a passage about Acceptance (page 419, third edition) where it says: “Shakespeare said ‘All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players…’ He forgot to say that I was the chief critic…” We like to “strut our stuff”, whether it be spiritual, financial, social or just human stuff. We critique each other and whomever manages to out-dazzle the others with spiritual gifts, correct doctrine, most copy and paste bombs, most thought through theology and best apologetics “wins”. Just like the people Christ admonishes in Matthew 6:1-6 we have gotten our ‘reward’. Jesus points to the poor widow and tells us that she is one to emulate, because she didn’t “strut her stuff”. She gave what she thought belonged to God from her heart, and didn’t care one yud about whether it ‘pleased the crowd’. She put her two mites in and pleased God, and I am not too sure she was aware that it pleased God

Now, let’s get to the money
We live in an extremely materialistic world, that measures worth and success in money and possessions. If you have neither you are, also among many Christians, considered a second class person.

I’d like to share a portion of a Blog entry:

“Maybe the poor shoe maker is poor in a financial sense, and needs Tzedakah to provide for his kids – but he is rich in knowledge on how to make shoes, which means he can teach. The Rabbi might not be very well off, and some times need assistance to make ends meet – but he has one thing in abundance – knowledge of Torah, which provides Spirtual richness to the Community. The Artist may not be rich at all, but what he creates enriches peoples’ lives by providing beauty that opens peoples’ souls and hearts…and so on and so forth…”

I imagine you know where I am going with this . Jesus pointed out the Poor Widow to us, because despite her poverty, she was rich in love for God, and she didn’t make “a thing” out of it. With her two mites she kept the entire Law of Moses, which says “love thy neighbor as yourself!” Leviticus 19:18

Blessings,
Henry