The word for the day is “widow.”  In our reading of 1 Timothy 5:1-10, St. Paul gives practical instructions for caring for the widows in Timothy’s congregation who are especially vulnerable.  Paul directs that the church should support widows who do not have a family to support them (vs. 3).  But the Apostle teaches that “If any widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show piety at home and to repay their parents…” (vs. 3). Both the Old and New Testaments pay special attention to the plight of widows.  In ancient society, most often, women had no means of support besides their husbands.  The word “widow” in Greek refers to those women who have suffered loss, are…