Homily: May 2, 2021: 1 John 3:18-24

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(Please read the passage cited above first.)

My sisters and brothers,

Nobody wants to be poor; we would all like to be rich.  Rich people can share their wealth with the poor but the poor cannot share their poverty with the rich.  The religious brothers and sisters take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, not of wealth, chastity and obedience.

The poor probably suffer more from lack of self-esteem than do the wealthy.  Poor people will probably not achieve the lifetime goals, but the wealthy can.  The poor probably think of themselves as sinners much more than the wealthy, although the wealthy have more opportunities to sin.

The gospel of the world is that the wealthy are saved and the poor are condemned.  The gospel of the world sees wealthy as a sign of God’s blessings.

The true gospel of God, however, is that the Son of God took on human flesh in the womb of the Virgin in the poverty of a human family.  The true gospel of God blesses the poor, those who depend on God, not the wealthy, who have a tendency to rely of themselves.

The words of 1 John confirms this, “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and reassure our hearts before God, in whatever our hearts condemn, for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything.”  The poor person’s confidence in God is complete.

My sisters and brothers, you are poor in the eyes of the rich who want to oppress you.  Wealthy people take advantage of the poor.  The poor usually pay more in taxes than the wealthy.  Our laws frequently favor the wealthy.  When the poor pay more in taxes than the wealthy, the wealthy tend to say that we have a strong economy.  When the wealthy pay more they tend to complain and say that the economy is not doing well.

From the time of the arrival of Europeans on these continents until today, the wealthy have a tendency to look down of poor people because of their poverty.  Poor people, however, have the dignity of being children of God because God is greater than the consciences of the poor and knows everything.  Poor people can safely trust in God because God has called them to be children of God and good members of God’s kingdom.  Poor people do not have to look down on themselves because of their poverty because poor people are rich in their confidence in God.