November 7, 2026
Saturday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 490
Reading 1
Brothers and sisters:
I rejoice greatly in the Lord
that now at last you revived your concern for me.
You were, of course, concerned about me but lacked an opportunity.
Not that I say this because of need,
for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself,
to be self-sufficient.
I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances;
I know also how to live with abundance.
In every circumstance and in all things
I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry,
of living in abundance and of being in need.
I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.
You Philippians indeed know that at the beginning of the
Gospel,
when I left Macedonia,
not a single church shared with me
in an account of giving and receiving, except you alone.
For even when I was at Thessalonica
you sent me something for my needs,
not only once but more than once.
It is not that I am eager for the gift;
rather, I am eager for the profit that accrues to your account.
I have received full payment and I abound.
I am very well supplied because of what I received from you
through Epaphroditus,
“a fragrant aroma,” an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
My God will fully supply whatever you need,
in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Responsorial Psalm
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commands.
His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;
the upright generation shall be blessed.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Well for the man who is gracious and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice;
He shall never be moved;
the just one shall be in everlasting remembrance.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear.
Lavishly he gives to the poor;
his generosity shall endure forever;
his horn shall be exalted in glory.
R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus Christ became poor although he was rich,
So that by his poverty you might become rich.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,
so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?
No servant can serve two masters.
He will either hate one and love the other,
or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and mammon.”
The Pharisees, who loved money,
heard all these things and sneered at him.
And he said to them,
“You justify yourselves in the sight of others,
but God knows your hearts;
for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.”
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110726.cfm
Commentary on
Philippians 4:10-19
We conclude our readings from the letter to the Christians
at Philippi with a passage where Paul thanks them for the generous help they
have given him in his time of need. As usual, Paul cannot make a simple
statement without filling it out with deep theological and spiritual insights.
Once again, he speaks with a feeling of joy. This time it is because “at last”
he has received help from them.
The delay was not due to any negligence on their part, but
because of a lack of opportunity in getting the help to him. Does this mean
that perhaps Paul may indeed at this time have been a prisoner in faraway Rome?
But there could also have been difficulties reaching him if he was imprisoned
in Ephesus. Apart from Paul’s being in prison, travel to another region or
province was a major undertaking in those days. Perhaps too, a suitable emissary
was not available. In any case, what Paul values most of all is the care and
concern that is expressed by their gift.
Once again Paul indicates his total absence of worry about
having or not having things:
In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of
being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in
need.
In the Revised New Jerusalem Bible he says:
I have been initiated into every condition and all
conditions…
Perhaps this is a reference to the ‘mystery’ religions into
whose secrets and rituals one had to be initiated. Paul has been initiated into
the Way of the gospel and its message of total dependence and total trust in
God.
As a labourer for the gospel, Paul has experienced times of
plenty and times of want. And he has now reached the stage that he accepts
whatever comes with equanimity—full stomach or empty stomach, poverty or
plenty. This is the wonderful freedom that life in Jesus gives. This is that
‘indifference’ (as described by Ignatius) that discerns and submits to God’s
loving presence in every experience.
As he says here in a much-quoted phrase:
I can do all things through him who
strengthens me.
This is the source of happiness and contentment: a close
union with Jesus the Lord. Union with the living, exalted Christ is the secret
of being content and the source of Paul’s abiding strength.
At the same time, he does appreciate the gesture of the
Philippians in coming to relieve his hardships and, in a sense, sharing in
them. The Philippian church has a special place in Paul’s heart. From the very
earliest days when Paul first preached the gospel among them on his second
missionary journey, they helped him out—not once, but many times. The gifts
sent to Paul through Epaphroditus are only the latest in a long and consistent
pattern of generosity. Even when he was in Thessalonica, another Macedonian
town, it was the Philippians who helped him out.
In fairness it should be said that Paul generally refused payments
from churches he visited, although he made it clear that he would have been
entitled to something on the basis of the services he rendered. He was always
proud of supporting himself by his own skills as a tent maker.
However, it is not the monetary value of their gift that
Paul most values. Rather it is the investment they are making for themselves in
the life that is to come. The ‘investment value’ of the Philippians’ gift is
not primarily what Paul received from them, but a ‘spiritual dividend’ they
themselves will receive.
And so, right now, Paul has all that he needs and more.
Those needs are clearly minimal. He sees the gift of the Philippians, brought
to him by their emissary Epaphroditus, like a sacrifice of thanksgiving:
…fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing
to God.
In return, Paul is confident that his God will repay the
Philippians’ generosity, as abundantly as only he can, by supplying all their
real needs through the “riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Let us today give thanks for all that we have received
directly and indirectly from the hands of our loving God. Let us learn to be
satisfied in having just our needs taken care of. As has been said, “The truly
rich are those whose needs are the least.” Let us also consider those people
who could be helped by us, whether by money or some other way.
Commentary on Luke 16:9-15
In the previous passage of Luke’s Gospel (16:1-8), we see
Jesus give the example of a corrupt, but astute manager who took effective
steps to guarantee his future employment. Today he goes on to warn us about our
own use of material things.
We are to use “dishonest wealth” in such a way that we “make
friends” for ourselves (our most important friend being God!). When this
approach fails us (as it ultimately will), we hope that a “welcome…into the
eternal homes” will be ours. We are reminded of how the crafty steward in the
parable ensured his future.
In the mind of Luke, the friends we should be making are the
poor and needy, who will be on our side before God’s judgement seat because we
had “invested” our wealth in them. As we read in Matthew:
…I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of
these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me. (Matt 25:40)
Earlier we saw a good example of a man who had made so much
money out of his harvest that he sat back to enjoy the rest of his life—which ended
that very night. That is not the way to ‘make friends’ with one’s material
goods. In one sense, there is nothing wrong with having a lot of money. Rather,
it is how we use those riches that is the question:
Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in
much…
In other words, if we can be trusted with the material goods
that come into our lives, and use them to build the Kingdom of God, to create a
more just and equitable society, then we can be trusted with something much
greater, to live forever face to face with our God.
If, then, you have not been faithful with the dishonest
wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?
And again:
…if you have not been faithful with what belongs to
another, who will give you what is your own?
And that reminds us that the material goods that come into
our lives (no matter how they may have been acquired) do not belong
absolutely to us. Everything on this earth belongs to all. We are only the
stewards of what has come into our possession, and we will be judged on how we
make use of it. On our use will depend to a large extent our receiving the one
thing that will really become our own, the unending happiness that God wishes
us to have in company with him.
That leads obviously to the next warning, that we cannot at
the same time give ourselves totally to God and become slaves of money
and the material. We saw that in the case of the rich man who wanted to follow
Jesus. He was the slave of his possessions and so could not surrender his life
to Jesus. Many of us think we can, and we try to compromise, but to give
ourselves to God completely, we must become free of the lure of money and the
acquisition of material things. It does not mean we do not have money or
material things, but what we do have is ultimately used for God’s love and
service and the love and service of our brothers and sisters.
On hearing all this, the Pharisees, whom Luke calls “lovers
of money”, mocked Jesus for what they felt was unrealistic idealism.
There are many today who would echo their views, but those
who have taken Jesus’ words to heart know that what he says is true. We have
seen this in the lives of some people in our own time. And sadly, we have also
seen the opposite. Some, with all their money, and fame and luxurious living,
are missing something precious—the freedom to give and share their whole self
with those who are destitute:
…for what is prized by humans is an abomination in the
sight of God.
The opposite is also true. On which side do I find myself?
https://sacredspace.com/commentary
Saturday,
November 7, 2026
Ordinary Time
Opening Prayer
God of power and mercy, only with your help can we offer you
fitting service and praise.
May we live the faith we profess and
trust your promise of eternal life. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.
Gospel Reading - Luke 16: 9-15
Jesus said to his disciples: “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 eternal dwellings.”
Anyone who is trustworthy in little things is trustworthy in
great; anyone who is dishonest in little things is dishonest in great.
If then you are not trustworthy with money, that tainted
thing, who will trust you with genuine riches?
And if you are not trustworthy 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 be
attached to the first and despise the second.
You cannot be the slave both of
God and of money.
The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all
this and jeered at him. He said to them, “You are the very ones who pass
yourselves off as upright in people's sight, but God knows your hearts. For
what is highly esteemed in human eyes is loathsome in the sight of God.
Reflection
The Gospel today presents some words of Jesus
concerning goods. They are words and loose phrases and, we do not know in which
context they were said. Luke puts them here so as to form a small unity around
the correct use of the goods of this life and to help us to understand better
the sense of the parable of the dishonest steward (Lk 16: 1-8).
•
Luke 16: 9: Use well the unjust money. "Use
money tainted as it is, to win friends, and then make sure that when it fails
you, they will welcome you into eternal dwellings.” In the Old Testament, the
more ancient word to indicate the poor (ani)
means impoverished. It comes from the verb ana, to oppress, to lower. This
affirmation recalls the parable of the dishonest steward, whose richness was
unjust, dreadful. Here we have the context of the communities at the time of
Luke, that is, of the years 80s after Christ. At the beginning the Christian
communities arose among the poor (cf. 1 Cor 1: 26; Gal 2: 10). Little by little
persons who were richer joined the communities. The entrance of the rich caused
some problems which appear in the advice given in the Letter of James (James 2:
1-6; 5: 1-6), in the Letter of Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor 11: 2021) and in
the Gospel of Luke (Lk 6: 24). These problems became worse toward the end of
the first century, as it is said in the Apocalypse in its letter to the
community of Laodicea (Rev 3: 17-18). The phrases of Jesus kept by Luke are a
help to clarify and solve this problem.
•
Luke 16: 10-12: To be faithful in small as well
as in great things. “Anyone who is trustworthy in little things is trustworthy
in great; and anyone who is dishonest in little things is dishonest in great.
If then you are not trustworthy with money, that tainted thing, who will trust
you with genuine riches? And if you are not trustworthy with what is not yours,
who will give you what is your very own?” This phrase clarifies the parable of
the dishonest steward. He was not faithful. That is why he was taken away from
the administration. This word of Jesus also suggests how to give life, to put
into practice the advice of making friends with unjust money. Today something similar
takes place. There are persons who speak well of liberation, but at home they
oppress the wife and their children. They are unfaithful in small things.
Liberation begins in the small world of the family, of daily relationships
among persons.
•
Luke 16: 13: You cannot serve God and money.
Jesus is very clear in his affirmation: No servant can be the slave of two
masters; he will either hate the first and love the second or be attached to
the first and despise the second. You cannot be the slave both of God and of
money.” Each one of us should make a choice, and ask himself/herself: “Whom do
I put in the first place in my life: God or money? “In the place of the word
money each one can put any other word: auto, employment, prestige, goods,
house, image, etc. From this choice will depend the understanding of the advice
on Divine Providence which follow (Mt 6: 25-34). It is not a question of a
choice made only with the head, but of a very concrete choice of life which
includes attitudes.
•
Luke 16: 14-15: Criticism of the Pharisees who
like money. “The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and jeered at him.
He said to them, “You are the very ones who pass yourselves off as upright in
people’s sight, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed in human
eyes is loathsome in the sight of God”. On another occasion Jesus mentions the
love of some Pharisees toward money: “You devour the property of widows, and
rob in their houses and, and in appearance you make long prayers” (Mt 23: 14;
Lk 20: 47; Mk 12: 40). They allowed themselves to be dragged by the wisdom of
the world, of which Paul says: “Consider, brothers, how you were called; not
many of you are wise by human standards, not many influential, not many from
noble families. But God chose those who by human standards are fools to shame
the wise; he chose those who by human standards are weak to shame the strong,
those who by common standards are common and contemptible indeed those who
count for nothing - to reduce to nothing all those who do count for something”
(1 Cor 1: 26-28). Some Pharisees liked money, just like today some priests like
money. The advice of Jesus and of Paul is valid for them.
Personal Questions
•
You and money: what choice do you make?
•
Faithful in small things. How do you speak of
the Gospel and how do you live the Gospel?
Concluding Prayer
How blessed is anyone who fears Yahweh, who delights in his
commandments! His descendants shall be powerful on earth, the race of the
honest shall receive blessings. (Ps 112: 1-2)
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