Reflecting on Stewardship as Care for Others
For the Church, and for us as the faithful, when we speak of stewardship, we commit to the care of Christ’s Church, but more importantly, we commit to the care of Christ’s people…all of His people. We do not limit care to those whose who are of a particular financial category. We do not limit care to those of a particular ethnic or national identity or speak a particular language. This becomes abundantly clear in today’s Gospel reading that reflects on the Last Judgement (Mt 25:31-46).
We are called upon to provide care to all of God’s creation. In this parable Jesus tells us that we will be judged according to what we do for one another. “…For I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.” This is a statement of action reminding us that we must be the ones doing the action for it bears on what is to come for us. “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”
I pose a few questions for each of us to use to assess our spiritual lives as we draw closer to Great Lent reflecting on our stewardship as shown in today’s Gospel reading. As stewards of God’s creation, what are we doing as individuals and as community to care for creation and for one another? What are we doing today that will allow us to stand before Christ so that He knows, as we are judged, that we have provided responsible compassionate care for others? Have we invested our time to the care others? For those in need? Have we used our talents, the gifts that have bestowed upon us by God, to provide and assist others? Have we used the resources we have to the fullest to assist those who are in need, the hungry, the thirst, the lonely, the homeless, the sick? Are we ready, in the next moment, to face Christ as judge and be accountable for our lives?
During these coming days and weeks of Great Lent, use them wisely to focus our lives on the stewardship of God’s creation, so that when our time comes, we are worthy to hear the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’