The Rich, the Poor, and the Kingdom Come

What Mary Still Teaches Us

He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.

 - From Luke 1

Historically, August 15, was the Feast of St. Mary. The date—mid-August—has been observed for centuries, linked to early Christian commemorations in the Eastern Church. Traditionally, it’s celebrated with processions, special liturgies, hymns from the Magnificat, and a focus on Mary’s humility and obedience.

One of those lines from the Magnificat strikes hard:

“He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.”

This is more than poetic inversion—it’s a complete reordering of human priorities.

When I was young, choosing a career, I thought about verses like this. I knew I didn’t want to chase wealth for its own sake. In fact, I dreamed of being a reformer in the corporate world—a voice for ethics in a system driven by the bottom line. I wasn’t naïve about the profit motive, but I believed it could be re-directed toward good. Life took me down different roads, but that conviction has never left me.

What troubles me now is how tightly politics and money have bound themselves together. Even when the Left criticizes the Right for greed, they’re selective—skipping over the rest of the Gospel that would discomfort them just as much. In God’s economy, wealth is not evil, but hoarding it is dangerous for the soul.

In my perfect vision of life as God intends, everyone would freely give away a minimum of 10%—and not to government programs or to keep church buildings running, but directly to those in need. That tithe would be a starting line, not a finish line. Those with abundance would choose to live at the same level as their neighbors, even if they handled millions a year. The world’s deepest problems—poverty, hunger, lack of medical care—could vanish almost overnight if generosity were the norm.

But here’s the sticking point: it can’t be legislated. The Kingdom of God isn’t built by tax policy; it’s built by transformed hearts. Until hearts change, the rich will keep leaving the table full, and the hungry will keep waiting.

Mary’s song isn’t a gentle lullaby. It’s a bold, prophetic vision: in God’s Kingdom, the empty are filled, and the full are emptied. And it’s a reminder that we, too, are meant to live as if that Kingdom is already here—because one day, we will stand in it.