“Amen, I tell you that any and everywhere the Gospel is declared throughout the whole of Creation, this woman’s action shall be remembered” (Matthew 26:13).
I doubt this woman expected such a reaction when she picked up this container off the bedroom shelf. Yes, it was something quite expensive and extravagant, but she felt moved to do it. And it was hers to what she desired. She also never expected this act of generosity would give birth to words that have been used against the poor and needy for the next two-thousand years (and counting).
After snapping at the guys to leave this woman alone (I’m sure she was feeling like dirt having these eleven dudes yelling at her), Jesus says that the poor’s always gonna be here. Least, that’s how it’s traditionally been translated.
And oh how badly that’s been used by kings, princes, congressmen, and presidents. We can’t afford to give people money for food when they’ve fallen on hard times. Personal responsibility, you know. Can’t just give people hand-outs. Why Jesus himself said the poor was just a fact of life. No sense doing anything.
Familiarity with even a smidge of Jesus’ teachings should be enough to call false to this sort of interpretation. On the contrary, he argues for it. Jesus, as we’ve talked about in the past weeks, believed there was enough to go around, for everyone.
So what’s this response all about? What did Jesus mean if he wasn’t just offering us a way to shrug our shoulders at the unfairness of life that leaves people living in their cars or going hungry so their kids can eat?
First, let’s acknowledge that Jesus knew how fancy and expensive this perfume running down his head, beard, and collar was. He could feel it. The strong, earthy scent of it filled his senses. Jesus, like any of us, knew the good stuff when he encountered it. There’s no doubt he knew that the dollar value of this ointment could have probably fed several families, maybe paid off someone’s hospital bills or got them up to date on their rent.
Jesus also didn’t think that it was somehow futile to give money to the least of these. This is the same man who told one wealthy would-be follower that all he needed to do was sell everything and give the proceeds to those in need. So, don’t mistake that these words are some sort of out when dealing with the issue of those who have no part in society’s riches.
But he is telling them it’s going to take more than one container of fancy oil to solve the problem.
Jesus taught that there was this Reality in our reach where there was enough. It’s something people then and now have a hard time imagining in a world where prices rise but never come down and the grocery store always seems to be out of something. A world where some people have way, way more than they need and find ways to acquire even more.
This is what Jesus is telling his Disciples—and us—about when he describes the poor as being here with us: it’s not a statement of resignation at something immutable. It’s a declaration that it’s going to take more than the trade-in on one jar of perfume to solve the problem. It’s a difficult truth that the very foundation of our world and its economy will have to be shaken to address the problem of those who have so little in a world that seems so rich.
Yes, Jesus declared that this Reality of the Divine is right here with us, as present as the one we experience each and every day. But in this statement regarding the least of these, he tells us that it is no simple task to overturn the systems and structures that support those who have too much and fail those who have next to nothing.
That work of overcoming the world will not make us popular amongst the powerful. They’ll drag us before councils and committees and label us troublemakers, socialists, or un-American. But we’ll know what to say when the time comes.
We’ll tell them about Jesus, a woman, and her extravagant gift.
Anointed One, as we proclaim your Gospel, let us not forget one woman’s extravagance.