St. Clement I, Pope & martyr 

St. Columban, abbot

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

Revelation 14:1-3, 4b-5

I was given another vision:

The Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, surrounded by one hundred and forty-four thousand people who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.   A sound reverberated in heaven like the sound of the roaring of waves or deafening thunder; it was like a chorus of singers, accompanied by their harps.

 They sing a new song before the throne, in the pre­sence of the four living creatures and the elders, a song which no one can learn except the hundred and forty-four thou­sand who have been taken from the earth.   

They are those who were not defiled with women but were chaste; these are given to follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They are the first taken from humankind who are al­ready of God and the Lamb. No deceit has been found in them; they are faultless.

 

Ps 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6

Lord this is the people that longs to see your face.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

Luke 21:1-4

 Jesus looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasure box; he also saw a poor widow dropping in two small coins. And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow put in more than all of them. For all gave an offering from their plenty, but she, out of her poverty, gave all she had to live on.”

 

Gospel Reflection：

I see three lessons for disciples in the brief story of this simple, pious widow:

 1.Proportional Giving. Jesus is teaching us that how much we give is related to how much we have. Earlier, Jesus had taught his disciples, “From         

    everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked”(Luke        12:48).

   This principle of proportional giving is at the root of the tithe (10% giving to the Lord) taught in the Old Testament. Paul reiterates this principle to         the Corinthian church: (1 Corinthians 16:2).

 2. Sacrificial Giving. God is watching when we make sacrifices. It doesn’t matter if no one else sees or knows. It is better that they do not. Jesus            

     promises, “Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Matthew 6:4).

3. Faith-filled Giving. Sometimes we fall under the worldly spell that “bigger must be better.” That’s not true of our giving to God. we are to give what        we are able, whether small or great.

    If you’ve ever been poor, then you know that it is easy to feel, “My small gift won’t make any difference. It won’t matter.” But that’s not true. it does       matter to your Heavenly Father who loves you.