Shrewd in proclaiming the Gospel
Luke 16:1-8. November 4, 2022 - Friday, 31st Week
No passage of the Gospel has sparked so much debate as the one we have just heard. Nobody has come up with any satisfactory explanation for it either. We are not sure where this parable ends. Does it end with the last words of the shrewd manager: “take your bill, and write 80”? Or it ends with the words of commanding the dishonest manager for dealing shrewdly to solve his crisis? Finally, we do not know who spoke those commanding words. The Greek word “ὁ κύριος” can be rendered as the master or the lord. But who is this person? Is he the master of the dishonest manager or Jesus, the Lord?
Neither the rich man nor his manager are positive characters. In Jesus’ time, it was presumed that if one was rich he got that wealth at the expense of others. How about the debtors? 100 measures of olive oil and 100 measures of wheat was a huge amount. Up to such amount of wheat and oil, the king of Persia in the fifth century BC was willing to provide to priest Ezra and the scribes for the proper functioning of the temple in Jerusalem. In this case, then, the debtors would not be poor farmers but probably merchants.
The parable does not tell us whether the plan of the shrewd manager succeeded, but that is not its point. And regardless of who spoke the words of commendation, the message is clear: one day, each of us will have to give a full account of our stewardship to God. The account will be based on the quality of our lives, and the things we have done, whether good or bad. Now, this should make us pause and reflect on the last statement of today’s Gospel: “The children of this age are more shrewd in taking advantage of their opportunities than are the children of light” (Luke 16:8).
It is said that when the Mongols ruled China in the XIII century, one of the emperors, Kublai Khan, asked the Pope for 100 missionaries. But only two were found and none of them reached China. The difficulties of the journey made them turn back to Italy. But their companion, an Italian merchant, persevered till the end and established a successful business in China.
Upon sending us into a hostile world to preach the Gospel, Jesus told us “be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matt 10:16). Are we? And if not, why not?