Unlocking the Treasure in a Puzzling ParableRead Time 9 min

TWENTY-FIFTH SUNDAY
IN ORDINARY TIME
Amos 8:4-7
1 Timothy 2:1-8
Luke 16:1-13

This Sunday, we continue reflecting upon the parables Jesus tells in Luke’s Gospel with the parable of the dishonest, or unjust, steward. (Lk 16:1-13) Parables are stories told to illustrate a lesson, like the parables of the lost sheep and the prodigal son. But the lesson Jesus is teaching with this parable might seem unclear to us at first.

The story is about a steward who squanders his master’s wealth. His master discovers that his property is being mismanaged, so he summons the steward to give an account. The steward knows that he is likely to lose his job. So, before he goes to report to his master, he visits all his master’s debtors, and he writes them false promissory notes to make it look as though they owe much less than they do. It’s a rather dishonest form of debt relief. His purpose in doing this is to set himself up so that when he’s out of a job, he will have people he can ask for favors.

Then comes the confusing part. After the master discovers everything that has taken place, rather than becoming angry at the steward, he praises him instead: The master commended the dishonest steward for his prudence; “for the sons of this world are wiser in their own generation than the sons of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal habitations.” (Lk 16:8-9)

What’s going on here? The conclusion of the parable is startling, but that shouldn’t come as a surprise. As he so often does, Jesus is using a story to grab our attention. Jesus is using a rhetorical technique that involves an argument from lesser to greater. It’s a way of saying, “If this lesser thing is true, then this greater thing is even more true.” With that in mind, several things can be said to try to interpret this passage.

To begin with, we should notice that the master praises the steward not for his dishonesty but for his prudence. Indeed, Jesus clarifies that those who are dishonest in small things will be dishonest in great things (v. 10), and he directly cautions against those who serve mammon over God. (v. 13) Clearly, then, the steward in question is not being held up as an example of virtue.

Nevertheless, while the moral conduct of the steward is not to be followed, the urgency with which he faces his predicament is admirable. In this sense, let us reflect that if even this unjust steward is willing to go to extreme lengths to save his livelihood, how much more so should Christians be willing to go to extreme lengths to save our souls.

Jesus is expressing his frustration at the fact that the sons of this world often seem to show more resolve in tending to their worldly problems than Christians do in tending to their spiritual problems. And so, despite his many flaws, the unjust steward reacts to his problem in a manner that Christians should learn from. For one thing, the steward knows he is in a crisis, and he never tries to pretend otherwise; Jesus is reminding his listeners that they, too, must recognize the spiritual crisis of sin that they find themselves in. Additionally, the steward is honest about his weakness: “I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.” (v. 3) Once again, he acknowledges the reality in front of him, just as Christians need to admit their own frailties and their total dependence on divine grace.

There’s one more key to unlocking this parable, and it comes in verse 9: “I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.” In this verse, the worldly prudence of the steward becomes a model for Christian almsgiving. Readily appreciating the fleeting nature of human wealth, Jesus exhorts his followers to use their money for an eternal investment instead. We are all stewards. Everything you and I possess (our material goods, our wealth, our gifts and talents, our bodies and our souls) really belongs to God. He entrusts us with these gifts, but there will come a day when we must give an account for them. Are we at least as prudent as the dishonest steward in the parable when it comes to planning for that day and for the account we will have to give before our Divine Master?

Faithful disciples understand that their wealth (material or otherwise) is not their own. Being a good steward of God’s gifts means using what we have been entrusted with not only prudently but also charitably, sharing our resources freely with others, so that when we are called to give that final account to our Master, we might hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (Mt 25:23)