Kaukauna Catholic Parishes

“It’s not fair!” is a cry parents often hear from their children when they are disappointed with an answer from a parent. “It’s not fair!” is what we often say when we face an unexpected hardship or illness. “It’s not fair!” is how we feel when we know someone has cheated to get ahead.

In the movies, we feel good when the villain gets caught and the good guys dispense justice to triumph over those villains. It appeals to our sense of fairness when good wins out over evil. But that is the movies, not real life. The truth is that, in real life, sometimes the bad guys don’t get caught. Sometimes good does not triumph over evil. Sometimes life is not fair.

That can be hard for us to accept at times, because we think in human ways, not in the way God does. We struggle to think that God loves the good guys and the bad guys exactly the same. That is not to say that God is always pleased with what we do, regardless of the choices we make. God’s love for us never wavers.

We see that in the Gospel, both this week and last week. In the story of the Prodigal Son we heard last week, the father welcomes the wayward son back without anger or judgment. And in the Gospel this week, we see the same thing. Even though the dishonest steward has cheated his master, the master actually commends the steward for his cleverness.

What is Jesus trying to teach us? Both the Prodigal Son and the dishonest steward disrespected the authority figures in their lives. The difference between the two is that the Prodigal Son was genuinely sorry for the choices he made and sought forgiveness, while the steward was more concerned about taking care of his earthly needs after he was caught cheating, than changing his life. As Jesus points out, the dishonest steward would rather be a child of the world than a child of the light.

But what about fairness? Is it fair that the dishonest steward gets away with cheating his master? We need to always remember that we are not the judge of others; that is reserved for God. And, as the first reading reminds us, those who treat others unfairly will one day have to account for what they have done:

              “The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob: Never will I forget a thing they have done!”