1st Reading – Amos 8:4-7

Hear this, you who trample upon the needy
and destroy the poor of the land!
“When will the new moon be over,” you ask,
“that we may sell our grain,
and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?
We will diminish the ephah,
add to the shekel,
and fix our scales for cheating!
We will buy the lowly for silver,
and the poor for a pair of sandals;
even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”
The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Never will I forget a thing they have done!

Amos was the great 8th century BC prophet who preached justice in the northern kingdom. He is the earliest writing prophet and is often referred to as “God’s angry prophet” due to his frequent condemnations of injustice.

In today’s first reading, Amos condemns those who exploit the poor, providing the backdrop for Jesus’ teaching in the gospel reading on wealth and stewardship.

Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land!

Amos directs his fiery message at those who oppress the poor.

“When will the new moon be over,” you ask, “that we may sell our grain, and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?

Israel observed a lunar calendar, celebrating the new moon at the beginning of each lunar month. Special feasts and specific sacrifices were prescribed for those days (Numbers 28:11-15), and as was the case with the observance of the Sabbaths, all business was suspended.

Unscrupulous merchants viewed holy days not as times of worship but as interruptions to their profit-making. Their supposed devotion masked their impatience to resume cheating the poor.

We will diminish the ephah, add to the shekel, and fix our scales for cheating!

They plot how they will cheat others in the midst of the religious feasts.

Amos names three methods of their fraud:

• Diminishing the ephah: Giving less grain than the measure promised (an ephah is a unit of dry measure, a little less than a bushel)
• Adding to the shekel: Manipulating the weight system (a shekel was a unit of weight) so that buyers paid more for less
• Fixing the scales: Altering the merchant scales to deceive customers

Such practices were a direct violation of God’s command against unjust weights and measures (Deuteronomy 25:13-16).

We will buy the lowly man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of sandals;

The poor whom the merchants defraud are landless — without crops of their own to harvest, they must buy grain to survive. They are entirely dependent on the merchants, who not only control the scales but also set the prices of the staples of life.

Many were driven into such dire poverty that they sold themselves into slavery for the price of basic necessities.

even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”

To maximize profit, the merchants even mixed chaff with good grain, selling what should have been discarded.

The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:

“The pride of Jacob” has multiple interpretations:

• Some see it as Israel’s arrogant self-reliance, making God’s oath an ironic judgment against their misplaced confidence. Under this reading, God swears by the people’s own corrupt pride, ironically, as if to say: By the very thing you take pride in — which is the source of your downfall — I will hold you accountable.
• Others interpret “the pride of Jacob” as God Himself — the true glory and strength of Israel. In this interpretation, God swears on his own strength, as there is nothing higher to swear upon, in the same way that elsewhere he swears by his own holiness or his own name.
• Some scholars think “the pride of Jacob” simply means Israel’s land, strength, or institutions — the nation’s glory. If so, it could be a shorthand way of saying the Lord has sworn by all that Israel holds most dear.

Never will I forget a thing they have done!

God’s judgment is expressed as an irrevocable oath: the evil they have perpetrated will not be forgotten.

The Church draws on this and other passages of scripture (Deuteronomy 24:14-15, 25:13-16; James 5:4) to teach about the virtue of justice and the dignity owed to every human person.

“We should not dedicate our lives to the accumulation of money and wealth when there are so many others who struggle to survive in abject poverty; thus we shall heed the warning contained in the words of the prophet Amos” (Saint Gregory Nazianzen, De pauperum amore [Oratio, 14], 24).

2nd Reading – 1 Timothy 2:1-8

Beloved:
First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers,
petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone,
for kings and for all in authority,
that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life
in all devotion and dignity.
This is good and pleasing to God our savior,
who wills everyone to be saved
and to come to knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God.
There is also one mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself as ransom for all.
This was the testimony at the proper time.
For this I was appointed preacher and apostle
— I am speaking the truth, I am not lying —,
teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray,
lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.

Over the next several weeks, our second readings are drawn from Paul’s two letters to Timothy, a young leader in the Christian community. In these passages, Paul offers guidance to Timothy on how to lead his fellow believers with integrity and faith.

Today’s selection highlights the importance of prayer for all people, a reminder that the Church’s mission reaches beyond itself to embrace the whole world.

Beloved: First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone,

Paul instructs Timothy to ensure that prayers are offered for all, especially in the context of public worship.

The universal scope of Christian prayer reflects God’s universal salvific will.

for kings and for all in authority,

Prayers are to include civic leaders, even non-Christians, even pagan rulers of the Roman Empire.

This shows that Christianity was not fundamentally opposed to legitimate authority. Since all authority ultimately comes from God, Christians are called to respect it and to pray for those who govern, even if they do not share the faith.

Paul’s insistence on this point suggests some in Ephesus may have resisted praying for nonbelievers, but he is adamant that the Church must intercede for all.

that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity.

Two reasons are given for such prayer. First, it allows Christians to live in peace. Because they refused to participate in pagan worship, both Jews and Christians were often viewed with suspicion. Publicly praying for rulers helped demonstrate loyalty and eased hostility.

When the Church and civic leaders maintain good relations, the faithful are freer to live out their devotion with integrity.

This is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth.

The second reason is theological: prayer for others aligns with God’s universal will for salvation. Our prayers are not only for peace but also that all may come to the truth in Christ.

“Is God not good to all, then? He is certainly good to all, because He is the Savior of all, especially the faithful. And so the Lord Jesus came that He might save what was lost (Luke 19:10); he came, indeed, to take away the sin of the world (John 1:29) to heal our wounds.

But not all desire the remedy, and many avoid it… He heals those that are willing and does not compel the unwilling” (Saint Ambrose of Milan (ca. 350 AD), The Prayer of Job and David 2,4).

For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as ransom for all.

Here, Paul may be quoting an early Christian creed. Some interpreters have called it a Christian version of the Jewish Shema: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone…” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).

Just as God is one, so too is there one mediator: Christ, who took on our humanity and offered himself for all. This universal ransom underscores why Christians must pray for all people.

“Through His body the Church has been allied to Christ and has been enabled to become a partaker in the Word of God. We know this both from the fact that He is called the ‘mediator between God and the human race,’ and from the apostle’s saying that’ in Him we have access through faith in the hope of the glory of God (Romans 5:2)” (Origen (ca. 240 AD), Homilies on Song of Songs 3,2).

This was the testimony at the proper time.

The meaning of this phrase is unclear. Most commentators believe it refers to the ransom Christ paid for all, which is mentioned immediately prior, a reference that his death ushered in the time of universal salvation.

For this I was appointed preacher and apostle — I am speaking the truth, I am not lying —, teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

Paul’s own mission to the Gentiles confirms the Church’s universal scope. If he was sent to proclaim Christ to all the nations, then it is only right that the Church pray for the conversion of Gentiles.

It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.

Paul concludes with a call to prayer “in every place.”

The gesture of uplifted hands was a common posture of prayer in the early Church, and also symbolizes the Cross. To lift “holy” or “blameless” hands is to pray in purity and unity, free from dissension.

“Even a person’s bearing, when he raises his hands, describes a cross; therefore we are ordered to pray with uplifted hands so that by the very stance of our body we might confess the Lord’s suffering” (Maximus, Bishop of Turin (died between 408-423 AD), Sermons 38,3).

Gospel – Luke 16:1-13

Jesus said to his disciples,
“A rich man had a steward
who was reported to him for squandering his property.
He summoned him and said,
‘What is this I hear about you?
Prepare a full account of your stewardship,
because you can no longer be my steward.’
The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do,
now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me?
I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.
I know what I shall do so that,
when I am removed from the stewardship,
they may welcome me into their homes.’
He called in his master’s debtors one by one.
To the first he said,
‘How much do you owe my master?’
He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’
He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note.
Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.’
Then to another the steward said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’
He replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’
The steward said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note;
write one for eighty.’
And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently;
for the children of this world
are more prudent in dealing with their own generation
than are the children of light.
I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,
so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?
If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?
No servant can serve two masters.
He will either hate one and love the other,
or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and mammon.”

Today’s gospel reading is the Parable of the Unjust Steward. In it, a household manager who is about to be fired avoids falling on hard times by shrewdly remitting the debts of his master’s tenants.

Jesus said to his disciples, “A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property.

A steward (oikonómos), or household manager, held full responsibility over his master’s affairs, especially if the master was absent.

The “rich man” is likely an absentee landlord, a common figure in first-century Palestine.

He summoned him and said, ‘What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.’ The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.

The steward’s inner quandary gives us a glimpse of his predicament. Too weak for manual labor and too proud to beg, he must quickly devise a plan to secure his future.

I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.’ He called in his master’s debtors one by one.

The steward turns to his master’s debtors. In the economic system of the time, agents often inflated debts by adding hidden interest or commissions for themselves, skirting the Mosaic prohibition on usury.

Thus, a loan of 50 measures might be recorded as 100, with the steward pocketing the difference.

To the first he said, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.’ Then to another he said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note; write one for eighty.’

By reducing the notes, the steward eliminates his own commission, ingratiating himself with the debtors in hopes that they will later welcome him after his dismissal.

And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently;

Jesus presumes that we realize the immorality of the man’s behavior (“dishonest steward”). Jesus does not praise the steward’s corruption but highlights his shrewdness — his ability to act decisively in light of an impending crisis.

for the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.

The “children of this world” — represented by the steward — show zeal and ingenuity in pursuing temporal goals. The “children of light” — Jesus’ disciples — are called to show equal or greater dedication in pursuing eternal life.

Two lessons emerge:

1. We are stewards, not owners. All we possess belongs to God and is entrusted to us for the sake of others. Jesus has already warned against hoarding in the parable of the rich fool (Luke 12:13-21).
2. This life is temporary. Just as the steward prepared for his dismissal, so must disciples prepare for eternity, knowing they will one day render an account to God.

Jesus is chiding his disciples for their lack of zeal and practical wisdom. Those who believe in God often don’t give anywhere near as much attention to living godly lives as the worldly give to making more money.

“What zeal people put into their earthly affairs: dreaming of honors, striving for riches, bent on sensuality! Men and women, rich and poor, old and middle-aged and young and even children: all of them the same. When you and I put the same zeal into the affairs of our souls, we will have a living and operative faith: and there will be no obstacle that we cannot overcome in our apostolic undertakings” (Saint Josemaría Escrivá, The Way, 317).

I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,

The literal translation of ton mamōna tēs adikias (“dishonest wealth”) is “mammon of iniquity.” Mammon is the Greek transliteration of the Aramaic or Hebrew word that is usually explained as meaning “that in which one trusts.”

This is dishonest wealth not only because it was acquired by fraudulent means, but also because those who place trust in any material wealth will certainly be deceived.

so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

Worldly possessions are temporary, uncertain, and unreliable. Jesus urges his disciples to use these temporal goods for works of mercy, so that when wealth fails — as it always does — they will gain eternal life.

The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?

Earthly wealth is a “very small matter” compared to the true riches of grace and eternal life.

Fidelity in the little things of this world prepares us to be entrusted with spiritual wealth.

If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?

All material goods are God’s; we manage them only for a time. If we fail in stewardship of what is passing, how can we be entrusted with the lasting inheritance of heaven?

No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

Here, in the last verse, we find the heart of the parable.

In the culture of Jesus’ time, a servant’s loyalty was absolute; divided service was impossible. Likewise, a disciple cannot serve both God and wealth. Every action must ultimately be directed to God.

The dishonest steward chose his own advantage over his master’s. The disciple must instead choose God over mammon, acting with the same urgency as the steward — but in service of eternal, not earthly, gain.

Connections and Themes

Living out God’s justice. Today’s readings call us to reflect on justice, especially in contrast to exploitation. In our first reading, Amos condemns those who cheat the poor, revealing the human cost of greed. In the gospel reading, Jesus challenges his disciples to consider how they use wealth, warning against self-serving manipulation and urging faithful stewardship. In the second reading, Paul reminds the community to pray for leaders, even those opposed to the gospel, so that society may flourish in peace and justice. Together, these passages affirm that God calls us to fairness, integrity, and care for others — particularly those most vulnerable.

Wealth and responsibility. Another focus of this week’s readings is a complex and sometimes divisive theme: the proper use of money and goods in this world. Ethical use of resources is inseparable from the consideration of human needs: food, clothing, shelter, and the simple beauty of life. Amos and Jesus together invite us to ask: When we manage our resources, are we attentive to the needs of those around us, or are we driven by self-interest alone? Prosperity itself is not sinful, and saving for the future is prudent, but we are called to reflect on limits, fairness, and how our choices affect others.

Children of light.  We live in a world full of economic and moral complexity. The men in today’s readings are not condemned for their privilege, but for using it solely for self-interest. As Christians, we are called to be children of light, living in the real world according to God’s standards. Our value is not measured by possessions but by the quality of our relationships, especially with those who are less fortunate. We cannot disown the world, but we are called to live in it gently, using what we need and sharing what we can. Every economic decision matters; we are called to serve God, not mammon, and to act as trustworthy stewards of the household of God.