What's Your Two Cents?

In this story, Jesus uses the meager contribution of a poor widow to show what it looks like to give out of your whole livelihood. I always thought the story was about money. I don’t have a lot of money – a vow of poverty will do that to you – so this reading always helped me to not feel bad when I couldn’t put much money in the collection basket. However, as I really listen to what Jesus says about the woman in this reading, I wonder if it’s about more than just money.

We just celebrated the feast of All Saints, and it got me thinking about how some of our holy people gave their whole selves to the mission of the Gospel. In particular, I thought of my predecessors in community, those first women sent out by our founder to serve the economically poor people around them. Our founder, Jean Martin Moye, believed that if people were educated, they could lift themselves out of poverty, and so he sent several young women to teach people to read. It was a very ill-defined plan. In fact, there was really no plan at all. They were just supposed to go find a place where there was a need and try and meet that need. They weren’t equipped with anything, except their passion for mission and trust in God. At the time, there were no guidelines, no institution to consult, nor were there any best practices. These young women were invited to go for it, and they went for it. They jumped in with both feet and gave it everything they had. Their two-footed leap into service is the wholehearted equivalent to our widow’s two coins.

This leap of faith might seem like a call for the young, for those who can go all in before they’re burdened with the responsibilities and inhibitions that come later in life. However, the call to give all is not limited to the young; it’s for all of us at every age. And it’s never easy. After working with young adults for many years, I know it can be hard for them to follow a call from God, but they do it anyway, even if it’s scary. Also, there are people of various ages, my sisters included, who take risks for the Gospel all the time. Last year there was a call for women religious to go down to the border to care for unaccompanied children, and one of my sisters dropped everything and did that. There was a need to help out with adolescent boys, and no one wanted to take the second shift, so she did it. She not only offered herself for what was needed, but she enjoyed it. I also have sisters who left the ministries they were comfortable with in order to move into different ministries entirely, from classroom teaching to social service or pastoral ministry. One of our sisters, in the middle of the pandemic, moved down to Alabama and into a new ministry. That kind of willingness to give all for the sake of mission inspires me. It also challenges me to be like that too, to drop my whole life into the basket with generosity and trust.

God calls religious to live like this, but the call to give our whole selves is not limited to us. God calls everyone to do that. What that looks like for each of us, though, is different. I’ve never been a parent, but I imagine that’s a self-gift like none other, especially in these pandemic years. Those of you who homeschooled your kids last year and then supported them as they transitioned back to school this year – God bless you. I don’t know how you’re navigating that, but you are. Spouses who remain faithful to each other despite our culture that doesn’t necessarily value commitment and the work it takes to build and maintain healthy relationships — God bless you. That certainly doesn’t seem easy, but your fidelity is a witness to all of us. Also, single people who continue to build community around you, who manage to make a living to support yourselves while also volunteering and serving others – family, friends, neighbors, strangers – God bless you. That’s giving your whole life too, and your presence and friendship is a gift and a witness to everyone.

As I think about it, each one of us is called to give our lives, our whole selves, for the sake of the Gospel. And it’s all about love. A life of celibacy is not a life without love. It’s a life of expansive, big love that encompasses not just our community, friends, and families, but draws in all the people around us too. Single people can love like that as well. Some of the best community builders I know are single people, ones with and without their own children. Married people, too, live community – the communities they build with family, and in the ways their familial love reaches out to connect. So, no matter our vocation, each of us is called to love and serve and build community.

Sunday marks the beginning of National Vocation Awareness Week, and what I’m aware of is the beautiful and diverse ways that God calls us to love and serve in the world. The work of the Gospel includes each one of us, and it needs each one of us. It’s not a matter of degree, but a matter of context; each of us is called, but the context in which we love and serve varies. And we need each other too. Another thing I realize is that no one has to have a lot in order to contribute to the kingdom of God. What each one of us brings is enough. It’s adequate, not because of us but because of God’s goodness.

I feel an invitation to consider the ways that I’m living into this, and I invite you to reflect with me:

• What are your two cents – your livelihood – that God is calling you to give in generosity and trust?

• Are you offering your whole life and livelihood? How can you do so more fully?

• How is God using your vocation to invite you to love more deeply and to give more fully?

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by Sister Leslie Keener, CDP

Sister Leslie Keener, CDP is the director of God Space, a community-building spirituality ministry in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. She’s a Sister of Divine Providence with a Masters in Ministry and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Retreats from Creighton University. She directs retreats, meets with people for spiritual direction, and serves as the vocation director for her community. She also serves on the Coordinating Council of Spiritual Directors International. She enjoys music, dancing, meaningful conversations, and pumpkin spice.