I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.
So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How 5 much owest thou unto my lord?
And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.
Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.
And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.3
And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon[267] of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is 10 unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
I f therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? . . .
19. There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
steward) are often more shrewd and practical than honest, righteous people. Since the steward has not been honest, the master says, it is good that he was at least shrewd in his dishonesty. 4. Mammon: a Hebrew word meaning wealth or material goods. In this chapter, Jesus personifies "mammon" and presents it as a false god who competes with the true God for allegiance; hence, "Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: 15 moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom:[268] the rich man also died, and was buried;
And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they 20 which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they 25 be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT
Why does Jesus illustrate his point with a servant's dishonest actions? Is the steward acting righteously or simply acting wisely? How do the two kinds of actions differ?
Why does the faithless servant partially forgive the debts of his master's debtors? Why does the master commend him for doing so? Are the servant's reasons for forgiving the debts the same ones for which Jesus praises him?
What ultimate point about material wealth is made in the Parable of the Unjust Steward? What uses of wealth does the parable condemn? What uses of wealth does it encourage? What "true riches" does Jesus refer to in verse 11?
In the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, why does Lazarus end up in heaven? How does earthly lifestyle relate to eternal destination? According to these two parables, which is the more spiritually admirable and rewarding earthly condition: wealth or poverty?
What are the spiritual dangers of being wealthy, judging from Jesus's parables? Do you agree with the message that poverty is spiritually superior? Is it possible to be wealthy and be a good Christian (or even a good person)? How would one accomplish this?
How effectively do these parables argue by analogy? Where do Jesus's analogies illustrate his arguments effectively, and where do they become false analogies, employing insufficiently similar comparisons?
MAKING CONNECTIONS
Compare Jesus's portrayal of wealth with Gandhi's in "Economic and Moral Progress" (p. 560). What do Jesus and Gandhi say about the relationship between spiritual and moral "prosperity"?
How might some of the figures in Hogarth's Gin Lane (p. 548) be read as "parables" similar to those of Jesus in the New Testament? Can you imagine key stories in these characters' lives that would illustrate a moral principle?
Compare Jesus and Plato as storytellers. Does Plato use similar techniques to Jesus in "The Speech of Aristophanes" (p. 74)? What are the main differences between these two kinds of stories?
How might the Christian understanding of the evils of excess be reflected in the fiestas described by Octavio Paz in "The Day of the Dead" (p. 575), almost all of which celebrate specifically Christian themes or events?
WRITING ABOUT THE TEXT
Use a contemporary cultural setting to write a parable with the same message as the Parable of the Unjust Steward. Then write a similar parable that makes an opposite point, such as that money is more important than relationships.
The Parable of the Unjust Steward includes a very rare instance of Jesus's praising a person for dishonest actions. Discuss the possible reasons for this apparent incongruity.
Compare the teachings of the New Testament in Luke 16 and the Tao Te Ching (p. 384) as they relate to material wealth.
po-ch0-i
The Flower Market
[CIRCA 800]
MUCH AS THE PERIOD OF WARRING STATES (475-221 bce) was the high point of political philosophy in China, the Tang Dynasty (618-907 ce) was the golden age of lyric poetry. The Tang Dynasty provided a period of political stability in China that allowed art and literature to flourish. Then capital of China, Chang'an, was the largest and most advanced city in the world, from which a complex bureaucracy governed more than 50 million households throughout the Chinese Empire. Early in the Tang period, the Buddhist religion of India began to spread throughout China, supplementing the native religions of Confucianism and Taoism.
The most prolific and widely read poet of the Tang Dynasty period was Po- Chu-i (Bai Juyi in pinyin: 772-846 ce), who wrote more than 2,800 poems through his career. Like many Chinese intellectuals of the time, Po spent much of his life in the civil service, a highly organized bureaucracy that required adherence to the Confucian standards of rectitude, propriety, and duty. Po achieved distinction as a bureaucrat and was appointed to several important governorships.
Po was also a devout Buddhist, and his poetry often blends private, Buddhist devotion with a strong Confucian sense of public virtue. As a Buddhist, Po believed that he had a responsibility to address the suffering of other sentient beings; as a Confucian, he believed that the best way to do this was to write poetry capable of influencing public opinion and, particularly, public policy. Many of his best poems call attention to issues such as war, poverty, and economic inequality in the hopes of motivating those in power to address them.
"The Flower Market" is one of Po-Chu-i's best known poems. Most of the poem narrates an experience that would have seemed commonplace to most of his readers: walking through the streets of Chang'an and watching people shopping at an outdoor flower market. Po's words capture this experience elegantly while acknowledging its ordinariness for most well-to-do city dwellers. At the end of the poem, however, we are forced to confront the fact that this simple activity represents an almost unimaginable luxury for the many poor laborers outside of the city.