tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919739073150068939.post3997736200407459049..comments2024-01-15T22:50:33.776-06:00Comments on the patience of trees: When God's Chosen People ForgetUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919739073150068939.post-66823655053250827112012-11-12T15:03:35.453-06:002012-11-12T15:03:35.453-06:00Thanks for the thoughtful comment. Your reading of...Thanks for the thoughtful comment. Your reading of the passage echoes Jesus' instruction to the rich young ruler (sell all you have, give to the poor, follow me). There's a lot going for that reading, I think; the tension is that Jesus appears to be critiquing the faithfulness, not the fact or mere existence, of the religious leaders. <br /><br />As you observe, there is ample New Testament warrant for a corporate response to the poor - one that is only possible if members of the Church entrust their possessions to the faith community. Whether salaries and/or buildings are faithful ministrations of that trust is a fair question, but neither buildings nor salary seem to be, in and of themselves, in fundamental opposition to the needs of the poor. <br /><br />Still, asking how all of ministrations of that trust can be made to serve the poor is a good and constant question for the Church. We (Church) can/should do much to push ourselves on this question.Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09443365190314386219noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919739073150068939.post-29431824547508950692012-11-12T12:11:37.526-06:002012-11-12T12:11:37.526-06:00I agree that Jesus did not point out the widow'...I agree that Jesus did not point out the widow's offering to encourage more gifts to the temple. I think he wanted to contrast her gifts with those of the rich. For even after the rich gave (a tithe?) they still had a lot left for themselves, while the widow had nothing left for herself. So the point is: it's not so much how much you give as how much you keep for yourself.<br /><br />When Jesus did target those to give to, it was usually the poor (and never the temple or synagogue). So should our giving now not go primarily to the poor rather than to the "church" (salaries and buildings)? The N.T. churches did give priority to the poor among them, including poor leaders, and also extended their love our to those "not chosen."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com