Homily for Ordinary Time 25 - September 22, 2019

Homily for Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

September 22, 2019

Who’s Your Poor?

            Our readings speak of justice for the poor – but who are the poor? A lot of times we associate “the poor” with homeless people who are unshaven and dirty, begging on street corners. And yes, that is one type of poverty. But today I want to mention some other types of poverty – and the Christian duty we have to show mercy to the poor.

            Mother Teresa, who worked with the poorest of the poor in Calcutta, said, “You can find Calcutta anywhere in the world. You only need two eyes to see. Everywhere in the world there are people that are not loved, people that are not wanted nor desired, people that no one will help, people that are pushed away or forgotten. And this is the greatest poverty.” So, there are many types of poverty. I want to outline four types of poverty and show how we as Christians can minister to them.

Perhaps the most obvious poverty is lacking material goods. Even in this country – in this city – there are many people who do not have enough to eat. What is our duty toward them? Tolstoy once said, “I am a participant in a crime if I have extra food and another has none.” This echoes the words of St. Augustine: “Those who keep what is extra, steal from the needy.” Most of us in this church have never known hunger or want, and for this we should be grateful. But the money that is leftover when we have taken care of our family’s needs – who does it belong to? Not us – it belongs to God and to the poor. To keep it for ourselves makes it into mammon (mammon is wealth that enslaves us and becomes an idol).

            But another type of poverty is the painful poverty of loneliness. Mother Teresa once visited a nursing home in America, and her tour guide took her around and showed her all of the nicest amenities, the TVs in every room, the finest food, the best nursing care. But Mother only noticed all the forlorn looks on everyone’s face. She asked her host, “Why are they always looking towards the door?” She responded, “This is the way it is every day. They are looking to the door, hoping a son or daughter comes to visit them. They are hurt because they are forgotten.”

            Who is forgotten and lonely? It could be anyone – the elderly, single people, teenagers (a recent study from Britan found that 40% of teens say they feel very lonely all the time!). Regardless of age, we can alleviate that loneliness simply by taking the time to talk to people. We put down the iPhones and look them in the eye – both the elderly and the young – and we spend time with them. We may not have money to alleviate material poverty, but all of us have time we can spend to alleviate the poverty of loneliness. Lacking love is sometimes more painful than lacking food – but all of us have love to give.

            Then there is the poverty of being vulnerable, such as the disabled, the unborn, and unwed mothers. This is indeed a type of poverty. But thanks be to God there is much we can do, even here in Stamford, to help protect the vulnerable. For example, two of our parishioners are founding a pro-life women’s clinic here in Stamford called “Project Beloved” – check it out if you have not heard about it! We also have frequent pro-life activities here at the parish, such as our upcoming Life Chain on October 6, which is Respect Life Sunday. Respecting and proclaiming the dignity of all life – including the unborn, disabled, sick, elderly – helps to overcome the poverty of our nation’s callous disregard for the gift of human life.

            Finally, there is the poverty of not knowing the hope held in store for us in Jesus. If you give a man a fish, he eats for a day, but if you give a man a faith in Jesus Christ, he will be satisfied for eternity. More than food and shelter, our hearts hunger to know that we are loved and that our life has meaning – both of which are found in Jesus. This hunger is true if someone is homeless or if they live in a mansion; if they drive a Ford or a Mazerati. Sometimes those who wear Gucci are poorer than those dressed in rags, if they suffer the spiritual poverty of not knowing Christ. We as Christians can minister to this type of poverty by sharing the hope of Christ that dwells in our hearts.

            So I ask – who’s your poor? Who are you, as a Christian, called to minister to? The world is filled with poverty – material poverty, the poverty of loneliness, the poverty of the vulnerable, and spiritual poverty. All Christians have the duty of showing mercy to the poor - we can share our financial resources, our time, our faith. Who is your poor, and how is God calling you to show them mercy?