The Gospel of Luke
Scribes and Widows: Lk 20,45-21,4
Jesus has concluded his first part of his teaching in the Temple. He has established his authority, now he warns the people against the authority of his opponents.
The common theme in these verses is widows. We could say that we have widows in theory (20,47) followed by a widow in practice (21,2.3).
Widows would be typical of the righteous poor, the scribes those who are wealthy now (6,24). Widows fulfil the beatitudes (6,20) and woes (6,24) of this Gospel.
Luke's distinctive phrasing has Jesus speaking directly to his disciples with the people overhearing. The warning is also a warning for disciples not to follow the same path as the scribes.
Luke has already criticised Pharisees (11,43) and scribes and Pharisees (14,7-11) in similar terms.
Deuteronomy frequently mentions widows among those who are vulnerable and need the care of society. In this Gospel, we have the widow of Nain (7,12) among others. Especially important here is the persistant widow of 18,1-8. Whereas the widow of Nain says nothing, this widow puts up a fight.
In 24,1, Jesus looks up. This binds the example closely to what preceeds. In Mark 12,41, there is a break because Jesus first sits down.
The contrast between rich and poor in 21,1-2 is evident. What is less clear is whether she is to be praised for her generosity. Given Jesus' critical comment in 21,47, she could perhaps be seen as exploited by an oppressive temple economic system.
This criticism by Jesus may have been directed at the religious leaders of his day but we can see that it raises issues for the Church of all ages.
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