Mark 12:38-44 The Widow’s Mite
In ancient Israel, a woman whose husband had died had no inheritances rights and was at the bottom rung of the economic ladder, alongside orphans, beggars and prisoners. Fully dependent on charity, widow’s lives were full of struggle and impoverishment. To make a donation at the Temple treasury you approached one of the thirteen trumpet-shaped chests, each labelled for its different purpose – Temple taxes, offerings for sacrifices and so on. The coins, made of copper, would reverberate when tossed into the chests, no doubt drawing attention to the donation and the donor. Jesus is watching this spectacle.
A poor person who gives ‘everything she had … her whole life’ despite her situation of poverty is certainly the more generous giver, but we should be cautious here. To say that Jesus holds the widow up as an example of true religious devotion would be to miss something. Jesus does not say ‘go and do likewise’ here because behind the widow’s actions is the unjust system that encourages her to part with the little she has. Instead of romanticising the generosity of the poor, Jesus is inviting us to take a seat beside him and notice this widow, as he does. The religious institution that was meant to care for widows and orphans has become a place that takes everything from them. The Temple is a symbol of opposition to Jesus in Mark and in the verses following this passage, Jesus prophecies its destruction (Mark 13:2), an event that would take place in AD 70. This is Jesus’ final teaching in the Temple, just days before his crucifixion. Just as the widow gives all, so too will Jesus give all at the hands of an oppressive regime. In many ways, this woman models Jesus. The widow has much to say to us. Of course we should have the heart of a giver, but let that not free us from the obligation to challenge the very systems that keep people trapped in poverty, that diminish the flourishing of life on earth. As we throw the coins down, may we also raise our voices for those who have no voice.
© Triona Doherty & Jane Mellet, 2023. The Deep End: A Journey with the Sunday Gospels in the Year of Mark. (Dublin: Messenger Publications 2023).
‘As Christians we must know that paradise must be reflected also on this earth … where we feel we are truly brothers and sisters and where our relationships are more human, more equal, less oppressive and less miserable. – St Oscar Romero, Good Friday 1978