"What makes you tick?"

What makes you tick?

Today’s Gospel story (Luke 16:1-13) it is as well-known as its punch li ne is quite clear, “One cannot serve money, or riches as some translations offer, and God.” 

So, at first glance, if one is not super-rich, or have an Elon Musk-sized 401 account, it appears that one is off the hook.

But, as it happens so many times in Bible translations, a lot is lost in translation.

You see, in the original language, “Mamona” is the word usually translated as “riches”.  Now, here is the thing, “Mamona” is an ancient semitic world literally meaning “the treasure a person trusts in.”  Or, as we could easily say, “What makes one tick.”

Yes, indeed, for many is money.  Money not necessarily as big as Jeff Bezos’ bank account but enough money to offers us a sense of security.

Perhaps you may have heard of Suze Orman, a TV financial advisor, very well known for her “Denied!” decision when people asked her for permission to buy well beyond one’s means.  Many years ago, Suze Orman used to advise people that they needed to have at least thirty but better would be having sixty days of wages plus expenses saved in cash for a rainy day.

As of lately, Ms. Orman began to advise that in today’s employment condition, one needs to have not less than six months of wages plus expenses saved, but even better to have at least nine months!

So, then, with such war chest, one can either quit and look for a better job, or if one is laid off, at least one has enough to tide over until finding a job paying about the same, or if push comes to shove, enough to make the difference between a job with a smaller check and the old paycheck.

Yes.  It is good financial advice.  And surely, it brings along a sense of security.  Enough money to feel secure, without the need to depend on God’s daily bread.

But “Mamona” is more than money.  For some people, money is a secondary to having a well-regarded position, be it in the political, social or even in the religious arena.  These days, having a “Dr” before a “Reverend” will assure a priest of a more prestigious job in a large church or a Cathedral.  Or even a nomination for a bishopric!

For others “Mamona” is the power to assert one’s will over individuals or nations – Think Hittler, Putin or any other wannabe tinpot dictator.

For others, well, I’m sorry, having a “trophy husband” or a “trophy wife” means all in the world.  And then, for many, like the religious leaders of our Lord’s time, “Mamona” was pretending to have a spot-clean life, like the young man who fabricated the story about following to the dot all the 630 commandments of the Law.

And then, for some is the temptation to be the world’s problem solver.  Yes, of course, the Scripture says, “I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).  But the Scripture never places us under the burden of taking care of any and all the problems of our lives, our families, or even society at large.

Jesus encouraged his disciples to take care of their neighbor, like the Samaritan who happened to meet the fellow who had been robbed.  But Jesus never told the Samaritan – not his disciples or us! -- that they had to go through all the roads and villages looking for a neighbor to care for. 

Not even Jesus, knowing that blindness was and continues to be endemic in the Middle East went out of his way to cure all the blind people. 

What I am trying to say is that sometimes our “Mamona” may turn up to be our drive to become Super-Samaritans.  And the proof sometimes may be found in our unwillingness to let go and let life take its own course.  And to this, I have no other thing to say but, “Guilty as charged.”

For we all if not most of us have a nurturing and tender side who feels for those who are going through a tough time.  It could be a neighbor or someone in the family.  But then, as hard as it may appear, sometimes a dose of tough love is needed.  Even Jesus challenged his followers!

Finally, at an institutional level, the fact that having “small” and “large” churches tells us a lot about what “Mamona” means at an institutional level.  For, why do we have to almost apologize because only a dozen faithful servants of the Lord gather here at St. David, if not for the “Mamona” of church size?

So, today the Gospel challenges us to consider what makes us tick.  What makes us tick on a personal or a corporate level? 

Today, in our Collect of the Day we asked our Lord for the grace to not be anxious about earthly things – the things that make us tick.

Is it the pursuit of material wealth, recognition, or the desire to be indispensable to others that truly motivates us?  Is it the fear that we may appear to be freeloading on God’s grace and mercy?  Or are our choices shaped more by a deeper calling to serve with the humility and trust that Jesus taught us in the Lord’s Prayer?

When I visited Buenos Aires, people asked me, “How’s life in America?”  My answer has always been, that in my view, America is the land of opportunity, entrepreneurship, and can-do attitude. 

However, IMHO the traits that make America great, when they are translated to the realm of spirituality, may tempt us to leave the words of “Amazing Grace” as a hymn to be sung, and not as a way of life.

So, perhaps the real challenge for us is to examine our hearts and honestly ask ourselves: do we find our worth in what we have, in how others perceive us, in the role we play, or out self-reliance in what we can by ourselves – even in the realm of the spiritual life?

Again, today’s prayer and the Gospel call us to shift our focus from these outward measures and instead nurture a spirit of trust, surrender, and genuine service.  In doing so, we will open ourselves to a deeper peace, the peace that will overcome us, but only once we shed our “Mamona” whatever they may be. 

And so, it will become a peace which will not depend on what we have and on what we do but it will be rooted in what Jesus did for us in Calvary’s Cross and in God’s boundless and unquenchable love, mercy, and grace.

Fr. Gustavo