Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“If she cannot afford a sheep, she shall take two turtle-doves or two pigeons, one for a burnt-offering and the other for a sin-offering; and the priest shall make atonement on her behalf, and she shall be clean.”
NL Daily Devotion for Thursday, January 2, 2025
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Mary and Joseph sacrificed two turtle doves, (Luke 2:24), which means they couldn’t afford a sheep. Let me spell it out: Jesus was poor. Why does Luke include this detail if not to make it absolutely clear that God’s chosen messiah was not of the elite ruling class, and would never be the wealthy, militaristic king the people were expecting.
When St. Francis suggested to the Pope that Jesus was poor and that, therefore, following in the way of Jesus meant choosing a life of poverty, the Pope wanted to excommunicate him. So it is in our modern context, when there are people out there hawking the “Prosperity Gospel,” claiming based on shreds of flimsy biblical evidence that God wants us to be rich. This is absolutely ridiculous in the face of the overwhelming amount of scripture that says just the opposite.
We have to be honest with ourselves. Jesus was poor. Following in the way of Jesus means learning to be satisfied with “enough.” “Not-enoughness”—this constant drive to get more, build more, do more, earn more, have more—is a spiritual disease that it is eating our society alive. I personally am struggling with this a bit, working to scale down my life, be grounded in gratitude, and recognize where my deeply-ingrained consumerism contributes to unjust economic system that oppress countless people around the world. I’m not saying you need to run out and sell everything you have and give the money to the poor (but, um… Jesus did say that). I’m just encouraging you to look honestly at your attitudes and behaviors around money and possessions, and know that we can all live incredibly joyful and satisfying lives with very, very little in terms of material resources.
How does my financial life reflect my spiritual values?
