Sunday 22nd Sept ~ Gospel Economics

One of the most scandalous economic stories in the Gospels is the teaching in today’s parable. A manager is about to get fired by the CEO because he has not made the highest profit. But is Jesus really condoning using money to buy friends and stealing from employers?! What is the manager doing? He is telling his debtors to falsify their bills so that they can be free from their debt. Some owe huge amounts. The manager is using the position he is in to recklessly release people from debt, to even up the tables. This will of course win him everlasting friends, their hearts and minds.

The manager is praised for his astuteness, he has his priorities straight, he is happy to let debt go, to redistribute the load. Ok there is still some self-interest there but Jesus is telling us that the only value the money really has is in the way it is disposed of – to make friends with the poor. The manager won’t be the most successful man on the planet compared to the ‘children of the light’ who are more concerned with accounts than with real people. He can be trusted to value what is really important. Yes he is a bit of a scoundrel, but Jesus liked scoundrels, once their efforts were put to good use.

“If a white-collar criminal is smart enough to pull off this sort of stunt, imagine what the children of God can do! It is an invitation to holy mischief.” (Shane Claiborne)