This happened just recently before covid time. I was in the village to visit some sick people. There were about seven old men and women in the list, sick and and old and they could not go to church anymore. I would like to talk only two of them, which I think was really touching for me.
They brought me to an old woman. She was completely bent. She had a stroke in the past, limping and could not talk properly. I waited at the small sala of her house. When she came out, as if heaven was on her side, very happy for the visit, and really prepared herself. We started our prayer, then I anointed her, gave her communion and then we closed our prayer. We chatted a bit. I never expected that she asked somebody to prepare snacks for us. Then she gave me the two bottle of two-liter soft drinks. Besides that, she gave me an offering, big enough! Of course, I refused the offering, seeing of her situation. I really thought that she would need it more than I do. But she was very insistent, saying to me: “I save it for you Father.” This act of kindness, sensitivity and generosity is just so amazing.
The other woman was also very old. Just as we were walking in the village close to her house, I saw her coming out from the door, practically crawling on the ground because her legs are already finished, no more energy. They put a mat under a tree, some chairs, and a small table. She was there on a mat, lying down as we were praying. I could still picture out her situation by now, poor lady, alone in her house. The relatives are just at the surrounding, so that they could also take a look at her.
Then after our prayer, she took something from a small pocket that she hid in her chest. She gave a little offering, and probably that was her all. This time, I did not refuse because some people told me that I should not refuse, or else they will feel offended. I always thought that they would need it more, but they always insist that they allocated that small amount for me.
The issue is not about money, but it is the generosity of the heart of these poor ladies. They think of their priests, they are sensitive and they want to help in their own little ways. It is the joy of being visited by their priest, being prayed over and given communion.
On the other hand, I also met a few times, very wealthy and financially secured people, very sociable, asking me to bless their cars or visit their relatives, but not giving even a single centavo. Again, it is not the money that I am pointing here, it is what comes out from the heart, the sensitivity and the overflowing generosity.
I am reminded of the old widow from the gospel, who went to offer at the altar and gave her all, probably the last centavo for their meal. She relied on God’s providence. That is the kind of generosity that the church needs today. We need Christians who rely on God’s providence, and also not forgetting others. This selfless gestures bring joy to God. Remember always, “The more you give, the more you receive.” “Give until it hurts, until it hurts no more.”
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