Shrewd and Prudent

Very shrewd indeed.

Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.

“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’

7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’

“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.

“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.-Luke16:1-8

When I read the first few lines of the Gospel, the writer in me thought, "Yeah. Yeah. I know the story. The manager was fired. He begged for forgiveness. He was pardoned. He learned his lesson and became a better manager (or steward). Happy ending." But the parable is different. The manager added another work of dishonesty by reducing and manipulating the debts of some people. From 900 gallons of olive oil, it was reduced to 450. From a thousand bushels of wheat, it was reduced to 800. Who wouldn't love the man? Jesus is not encouraging us to be dishonest. Jesus is still encouraging us to be honest and transparent in our work. But how come the master commended the dishonest manager for acting shrewdly?

Yesterday's Gospel reading spoke also of the woman who lost a coin. Because it was important to her, she lighted a candle and swept the entire room, searching carefully for it. Perhaps she was unmindful of the lateness of the night nor the darkness because what is more important is to find the coin. I shared also my experience of being a victim of an online fraud. Because my savings are important to me, I immediately visited my bank and processed everything. In a different time, I would have disregarded bank matters like promos, notices, newsletters, etc. but because my savings are at stake, I took actions immediately and quickly even sacrificing other important things. Yes, if something is important, we took pains in protecting it. We become aggressive, bold, shrewd, cautious, prudent just so that we protect our possessions and even loved ones.

But, notice that we are not like that in matters of the Lord. Some can put off attending Mass if they don't feel like it. Some can put off repentance if it meant sacrificing a favorite sin. Some can put off change if it meant losing friends, family or peers. Some can even be oblivious (or pretend to be one) to a suffering neighbor right before their noses.

Why not we be shrewd and prudent, as well, in the matters of the Lord?

Image courtesy: various artists; Godfried Schalcken (Parable of the Lost Piece of Silver)