Daily Gospel Reflection
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November 7, 2021
Jesus sat down opposite the treasury
and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.
Many rich people put in large sums.
A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents.
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them,
“Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more
than all the other contributors to the treasury.
For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had,
her whole livelihood.”
Reflection
Before having my first child, I was doubtful whenever people told me how challenging the first few months with a newborn could be. Until my daughter was born in August, I imagined I would be a supermom who would thrive on a lack of sleep and laugh off every inopportune spit-up. I quickly learned that having a newborn is quite often uncomfortable and requires me to give to the point of sacrifice. This discomfort fades with the tiniest reward—like when my daughter smiles or goes a whole tummy time without crying.
In today’s gospel, Jesus calls us to give of ourselves to the point of discomfort. While the rich people gave more than the poor widow, they donated an inconsequential amount of what they had. They remained comfortable despite appearing generous. Conversely, the poor widow gave only a few pennies. So small in comparison, but it was her entire livelihood. She donated to the point of sacrifice. What was her reward?
The gospels do not call us to be comfortable. Frankly, the understanding of sacrifice can be quite uncomfortable! However, when we do give of ourselves and allow ourselves to sacrifice in service of Christ, it is then that we experience the greatest of rewards—Jesus’ beautiful and infinite promise of heaven.
Prayer
Loving Father, may the poor widow move us to trust fully in your Providential Care. All is yours and all is your gift. In you, we are enough and have enough. Let us live humbly, love tenderly and walk justly each day you give us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Willibrord evangelized the Netherlands, and people in that region still honor the saint today with a unique “dancing saints” procession.
He was born in 658 and educated in a monastery led by St. Wilfrid. At the age of 20, he went to Ireland to study and live in a monastery there. After 12 years, he had a desire to preach the faith in northern Germany, but was denied because it was a dangerous region, and other monks had tried and failed.
Willibrord traveled to Rome, where he flung himself at the feet of the pope, asking for permission to preach the Gospel to pagan nations. The pope gave him authority to do so, and gave him a number of relics with which he could consecrate altars in churches he built.
He preached in parts of what is now the Netherlands before being ordained a bishop in 695. As he aged, he only seemed to gain zeal and energy for the spread of the Gospel. With help from patrons, he established a monastery in Echternach, Luxembourg, which became the center of learning and culture.
A town surrounds the abbey in Echternach today. Each Tuesday after Pentecost, the people of the town gather for a festival known as the Dancing Saints. Its origins are obscure, but it has been celebrated since the 1500s. The people of the town process with a dancing step to music, moving through the town, over a bridge, to the tomb of Willibrord. The ceremony ends with a benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Video of the people of Echternach processing to St. Willibrord’s tomb can be seen here.
In one of his journeys, Willibrord landed upon an island that was revered as a holy place by the Danes. The people there refused to kill anything on the island for food—either animals or plants—and only drew water from a spring in complete silence. Willibrord set out to demonstrate this reverence as foolishness and killed several animals and ate them with his companions. He then baptized three people in the spring, loudly pronouncing the words to the rite.
In other places, he confronted paganism, overthrowing idols and boldly proclaiming the truth of Jesus Christ. For a time, he was joined by St. Boniface.
Willibrord was known as cheerful and wise, and he nourished all of his evangelical activity with a healthy prayer life of meditation and reading. From time to time, he would return to the monastery he founded at Echternach for retreat and prayer. He died there on this date in 739 at the age of 81, and is buried in the abbey church, which is a place of pilgrimage. His relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. Willibrord is patron of those who suffer from seizures.
St. Willibrord, you evangelized the Netherlands and are honored in the festival of the Dancing Saints—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Willibrord is used with permission from Catholic Online. Last accessed October 10, 2024.