2019년 9월 1일 연중 제22주일
오늘의 복음 : http://info.catholic.or.kr/missa/default.asp
제1독서
집회서. 3,17-18.20.28-29
17 얘야, 네 일을 온유하게 처리하여라. 그러면 선물하는 사람보다 네가 더 사랑을 받으리라. 18 네가 높아질수록 자신을 더욱 낮추어라. 그러면 주님 앞에서 총애를 받으리라. 20 정녕 주님의 권능은 크시고, 겸손한 이들을 통하여 영광을 받으신다.
28 거만한 자의 재난에는 약이 없으니, 악의 잡초가 그 안에 뿌리내렸기 때문이다. 29 현명한 마음은 격언을 되새긴다. 주의 깊은 귀는 지혜로운 이가 바라는 것이다.
제2독서
히브리서 12,18-19.22-24ㄱ
형 제 여러분, 18 여러분이 나아간 곳은 만져 볼 수 있고, 불이 타오르고 짙은 어둠과 폭풍이 일며, 19 또 나팔이 울리고 말소리가 들리는 곳이 아닙니다. 그 말소리를 들은 이들은 더 이상 자기들에게 말씀이 내리지 않게 해 달라고 빌었습니다.
22 그러나 여러분이 나아간 곳은 시온 산이고, 살아 계신 하느님의 도성이며 천상 예루살렘으로, 무수한 천사들의 축제 집회와 23 하늘에 등록된 맏아들들의 모임이 이루어지는 곳입니다. 또 모든 사람의 심판자 하느님께서 계시고, 완전하게 된 의인들의 영이 있고, 24 새 계약의 중개자 예수님께서 계십니다.
복음
루카 14,1.7-14
1 예수님께서 어느 안식일에 바리사이들의 지도자 가운데 한 사람의 집에 가시어 음식을 잡수실 때 일이다. 그들이 예수님을 지켜보고 있는데, 7 예수님께서는 초대받은 이들이 윗자리를 고르는 모습을 바라보시며, 그들에게 비유를 말씀하셨다.
8 “누가 너를 혼인 잔치에 초대하거든 윗자리에 앉지 마라. 너보다 귀한 이가 초대를 받았을 경우, 9 너와 그 사람을 초대한 이가 너에게 와서, ‘이분에게 자리를 내 드리게.’ 할지도 모른다. 그러면 너는 부끄러워하며 끝자리로 물러앉게 될 것이다.
10 초대를 받거든 끝자리에 가서 앉아라. 그러면 너를 초대한 이가 너에게 와서, ‘여보게, 더 앞자리로 올라앉게.’ 할 것이다. 그때에 너는 함께 앉아 있는 모든 사람 앞에서 영광스럽게 될 것이다. 11 누구든지 자신을 높이는 이는 낮아지고, 자신을 낮추는 이는 높아질 것이다.”
12 예수님께서는 당신을 초대한 이에게도 말씀하셨다. “네가 점심이나 저녁 식사를 베풀 때, 네 친구나 형제나 친척이나 부유한 이웃을 부르지 마라. 그러면 그들도 다시 너를 초대하여 네가 보답을 받게 된다. 13 네가 잔치를 베풀 때에는 오히려 가난한 이들, 장애인들, 다리저는 이들, 눈먼 이들을 초대하여라. 14 그들이 너에게 보답할 수 없기 때문에 너는 행복할 것이다. 의인들이 부활할 때에 네가 보답을 받을 것이다.”
September 1, 2019
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Daily Mass : http://www.catholictv.com/shows/daily-mass
Reading 1
My child, conduct your affairs with humility,
and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.
Humble yourself the more, the greater you are,
and you will find favor with God.
What is too sublime for you, seek not,
into things beyond your strength search not.
The mind of a sage appreciates proverbs,
and an attentive ear is the joy of the wise.
Water quenches a flaming fire,
and alms atone for sins.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (cf. 11b) God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.
The just rejoice and exult before God;
they are glad and rejoice.
Sing to God, chant praise to his name;
whose name is the LORD.
R. God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.
The father of orphans and the defender of widows
is God in his holy dwelling.
God gives a home to the forsaken;
he leads forth prisoners to prosperity.
R. God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.
A bountiful rain you showered down, O God, upon your inheritance;
you restored the land when it languished;
your flock settled in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided it for the needy.
R. God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.
Reading 2
Brothers and sisters:
You have not approached that which could be touched
and a blazing fire and gloomy darkness
and storm and a trumpet blast
and a voice speaking words such that those who heard
begged that no message be further addressed to them.
No, you have approached Mount Zion
and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,
and countless angels in festal gathering,
and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven,
and God the judge of all,
and the spirits of the just made perfect,
and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant,
and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel.
Gospel
On a sabbath Jesus went to dine
at the home of one of the leading Pharisees,
and the people there were observing him carefully.
He told a parable to those who had been invited,
noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table.
“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet,
do not recline at table in the place of honor.
A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him,
and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say,
‘Give your place to this man,’
and then you would proceed with embarrassment
to take the lowest place.
Rather, when you are invited,
go and take the lowest place
so that when the host comes to you he may say,
‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’
Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table.
For every one who exalts himself will be humbled,
but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Then he said to the host who invited him,
“When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or your brothers
or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.
Rather, when you hold a banquet,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;
blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.
For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
http://evangeli.net/gospel/tomorrow
«He had noticed how they tried to take the places of honor»
Fr. Enric PRAT i Jordana
(Sort, Lleida, Spain)
Today, Jesus teaches us a masterly lesson: do not choose the best seat: «When you are invited to a wedding party, do not choose the best seat» (Lk 14:8). Jesus knows we like to look for the best places: in official acts, informal gatherings, at home, at the table. He knows our trend to overrate ourselves out of vanity, or worse still, out of a poorly hidden pride. So let us therefore be careful with honors, for «the heart remains chained where it finds the possibility of delight» (St. Leo the Great).
Haven't we ever been told that there were no colleagues with more merit or better personal values than us? It is not, therefore, a question of a sporadic feat, but of an assumed attitude of considering ourselves the smarter, the most important, the most deserving, the always rightful ones; an aspiration supposing a narrow vision of ourselves and of those around us. In fact, Jesus invites us to practice the perfect humility, consisting in not judging ourselves or the others, and to be conscious of our individual insignificance, in the global cosmic and of life concert.
Thus, Jesus, proposes us, by precaution, to always choose the lowest seat, because, while we may not know the intimate reality of the others, we are fully aware that in the great show of the Universe we are totally irrelevant. Therefore, to place us in the last position is to be on the safe side. Lest the Lord, that knows us well intimately, did not have to tell us: «‘Please give this person your place’. What shame is yours when you take the lowest seat!» (Lk 14:9).
In the same line of thought, the Master invites us to place ourselves with humility beside those chosen by God: the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind, and to be at the same level than them to find ourselves amidst those God loves with special tenderness, and to overcome the repugnance and shame to share with them table and friendship.
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
Sirach Chapter 3
My child, conduct your affairs with humility,
and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.
Humble yourself the more, the greater you are,
and you will find favor with God.Luke 14 7-14
”When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or your brothers
or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.
Rather, when you hold a banquet,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;
blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.
For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
Humility is at the heart of this weeks readings both in Sirach Chapter 3 and Luke 14 7-14. Humility defined from Merriam Webster is “freedom from pride or arrogances ….. humble has its origin in the Latin word humilis, meaning “low."
Father Andy Alexander defines it beautifully in a previously written reflection (August 29, 2010 archives) “humility rarely just comes naturally. It is often born and nurtured in an environment of faith and respect for others, and, quite often, it has come from some suffering.”
Humility can come from experiences in life in which suffering has occurred. Job demotion or termination, failure of a class, dismissal from high school or college, arrests with time in jail, lost friendships, failed marriage, and more. Processing and reflecting on these failures provides rich, humbling learning experiences and major opportunities for personal and professional change. Recently I watched a movie made from a non-fiction book Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall. The major theme of the book/movie revolved around a millionaire art dealer Ron Hall who had made mistakes in his marriage, had lived a life of self-centeredness with a ‘blind eye’ toward others who were less fortunate. With his wife’s encouragement he begins to volunteer in a shelter and befriends an ex-felon and murderer Denver “Suicide” Moore. His wife is diagnosed with a terminal illness and dies. These life events, a new friendship with Denver and suffering with his wife’s death leads to a transformation in Ron Hall. This transformation includes a change in his focus, assumptions, how he spends his time and spends his money. His life has changed. I pray for myself and for others who suffer to recognize the value of humility in this experience of suffering and to have my/our hearts and eyes opened to learn, be humbled and to be changed.
http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp
THE JOYS AND MYSTERY OF HUMILITY | ||
| "My son, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved." �Sirach 3:17 | ||
Decide to "conduct your affairs with humility." Decide to clothe your whole life from top to bottom in humility (see 1 Pt 5:5). Then "you will be loved more than a giver of gifts" (Sir 3:17). God will give kindness, favor, and grace to you (Sir 3:18). In addition to being loved and graced, your humility will keep you from repeatedly embarrassing yourself, for the proud often make fools of themselves (see Lk 14:9). In the early stages of humility, we receive many wonderful benefits. As we grow in humility by repeatedly seeking the lowest place (see Lk 14:10) in life, lifestyle, conversation, relationships, employment, etc., we lose some of the fringe benefits of humility. Like Jesus, we are no longer loved in our humility but hated. In humility, we are embarrassed even to death on the cross (see Phil 2:8). Like Jesus, we even feel that we have lost God's grace (see Mt 27:46). By God's grace and by faith, grow from the blessings of humility into the terrifying mystery of humility. | ||
| Prayer: Jesus, gentle and humble of heart, make my heart like Yours (Mt 11:29). | ||
| Promise: "For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled and he who humbles himself shall be exalted." �Lk 14:11 | ||
| Praise: Jesus was glorified after suffering and so shall we be. Praise You, risen Lord Jesus. You are the perfect Teacher and humble Example for each of us. All glory be to You forever. | ||
http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/readings/
"He who exalts himself will be humbled"
Who wants to be last? Isn't it only natural to desire respect and esteem from others? Jesus' parable of the guests invited to the marriage feast probes our motives for seeking honor and position. Self-promotion is most often achieved at the expense of others! Jesus' parable reinforces the teaching of Proverbs: Do not put yourself forward in the king's presence or stand in the place of the great; for it is better to be told, "Come up here," than to be put lower in the presence of the prince (Proverbs 25:6-7).
True humility frees us to be our true selves as God sees us
What is true humility and why should we make it a characteristic mark of our life and action? True humility is not feeling bad about yourself, or having a low opinion of yourself, or thinking of yourself as inferior to others. True humility frees us from preoccupation with ourselves, whereas a low self-opinion tends to focus our attention on ourselves. Humility is truth in self-understanding and truth in action. Viewing ourselves truthfully, with sober judgment, means seeing ourselves the way God sees us (Psalm 139:1-4). A humble person makes a realistic assessment of himself or herself without illusion or pretense to be something he or she is not. The humble regard themselves neither smaller nor larger than they truly are.
True humility frees us to be our true selves and to avoid despair and pride. A humble person does not have to wear a mask or put on a facade in order to look good to others, especially to those who are not really familiar with that person. The humble are not swayed by accidentals, such as fame, reputation, success, or failure.
True humility frees us to love and serve selflessly for the good of others
Humility is the queen or foundation of all the other virtues because it enables us to view and judge ourselves correctly, the way God sees us. Humility leads to true self-knowledge, honesty, realism, strength, and dedication to give ourselves to something greater than ourselves. Humility frees us to love and serve others selflessly, for their sake, rather than our own. Paul the Apostles, gives us the greatest example and model of humility in the person of Jesus Christ, who emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, ...who humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:7-8). The Lord Jesus gives grace to those who seek him humbly. Do you want to be a servant as Jesus served?
"Lord Jesus, you became a servant for my sake to set me free from the tyranny of sin, selfishness, and conceit. Help me to be humble as you are humble and to love freely and graciously all whom you call me to serve."
Psalm 68:4-8a, 10-11
4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds; his name is the LORD, exult before him!
5 Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.
6 God gives the desolate a home to dwell in; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity.
7 O God, when you went forth before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, [Selah]
8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain, at the presence of God
10 Your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.
11 The Lord gives the command; great is the host of those who bore the tidings:
Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Jesus calls us to be humble, modest, and praiseworthy, by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD)
"'When,' he says, 'a man more honorable than you comes, he that invited you and him will say, 'Give this man place.' Oh, what great shame is there in having to do this! It is like a theft, so to speak, and the restitution of the stolen goods. He must restore what he has seized because he had no right to take it. The modest and praiseworthy person, who without fear of blame might have claimed the dignity of sitting among the foremost, does not seek it. He yields to others what might be called his own, that he may not even seem to be overcome by empty pride. Such a one shall receive honor as his due. He says, 'He shall hear him who invited him say, "Come up here."... If any one among you wants to be set above others, let him win it by the decree of heaven and be crowned by those honors that God bestows. Let him surpass the many by having the testimony of glorious virtues. The rule of virtue is a lowly mind that does not love boasting. It is humility. The blessed Paul also counted this worthy of all esteem. He writes to those who eagerly desire saintly pursuits, 'Love humility.'" (excerpt from COMMENTARY on LUKE, HOMILY 101.5)
http://www.homilies.net/
22 Ordinary Time
22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle C
Luke 14: 1, 7-14
The delicious writer that is England's PD James in her novel Skull Beneath the Skin pens this line, "The sermon lasted fifteen minutes and was a learned dissertation on the Pauline theology of redemption. As they rose to sing the hymn, Ivo whispered to Cordelia, 'That's all one asks of a sermon. No possible relevance to anything but itself.'" Had Ivo heard Jesus speak today's Gospel, he would find the message had his name written all over it. So too would Cordelia. So too will most of us.
When today's Gospel opens, the Teacher was somewhere in Perea. It was a narrow strip of land east of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea twenty miles wide and sixty miles long. He was a guest at a supper party in the home of a VIP Pharisee. He must have been delighted to get a good sit-down meal after so many quick suppers at fast food counters on the road.
Some scholars feel the occasion may well have been a wedding banquet. one wonders what sort of gift He brought for the bride. And did He dance with her? Marc Chagall would say yes. In any event, it gave Him an unusually good opportunity to observe the various guests as they entered the catering hall. A number of them were anything but studies in humility.
Thus we have His timeless observations on our human condition. To paraphrase poet ee cummings, they open the eyes of our eyes. They remind us that if we are looking for faults to correct, we need but look in a mirror. We are in St Luke's debt. It is only he who tells us of this parable.
Jesus' theme is of course puffed-up pride, a vice much present in our society. No doubt the Christ would have laughed His head off at the story of the man who was awarded a gold medal for his humility. Unhappily it had to be taken away from him, for he had taken to wearing it proudly.
Recently I met two men whom I had not seen in some time. The first breathlessly exhausted himself and me with the interminable length he spent in talking about himself and his health. He never had the time to even quickly ask me, "How are you?" Given the time his monologue had consumed, I secretly was just as happy. I had another appointment.
The second told me that he was flattered that I had remembered his name. I told him the college where he taught still talks about the numbers of students who chose to take his course. The eager pupils sat on the floor when there were no more desks. He turned away the praise by telling me how much he had enjoyed some articles I had published.
The second man was hardly in need of today's Gospel. The first decidedly was. More importantly, which one of them is a type for our own selves?
Some years ago I was introduced to Mother Teresa by a friend. She refused to talk about herself. She wanted to know of the work I was involved in for New York's Catholic Charities in Harlem tenements. The same modus operandi was followed by Dorothy Day and Archbishop Helder Camara of Brazil when I met with them. The word "I" did not seem to be in their vocabularies. All three were walking studies in humility. They had learned the lessons of today's Gospel. But have I? I fear not. Have you? You must answer that question for yourself.
If you too must answer in the negative, none of us should despair. Life's challenges, said a sage, are designed not to break us but to bend us toward God.
Perhaps we would all do well to reflect on this piece of wisdom I found in the Christopher notes. The sage said, "Let me tell you of the most important words in life. The six most important are, `I admit I made a mistake.' The five most important are, `You did a good job.' The four most important are, `What is your opinion?' The three most important are, `If you please.' The two most important are, 'My gratitude.' The least important is `I.'
Glue this prophet's advice on your bathroom mirror. "Knowing God makes us humble. Knowing ourselves keeps us humble."
Frjoeshomilies.net
22 Ordinary Time
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time: Humility
Today's reading call us to consider the topic of humility. Humility is a virtue we all struggle to obtain. Its opposite, pride, is the fundamental flaw of all human beings. Consider the beginning of Genesis and the story of the first sin. There is a far deeper element to the story of original sin than the mere decision of Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. This was the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
If they ate this fruit they would experience evil. But Adam and Eve decided that they were not going to be told what to do or not do by God. The serpent said to them, "Eat this and you will be like God." He appealed to their pride. They didn't eat the apple because they were hungry and there was nothing else to eat. They ate the apple because they decided that they did not need God. The original sin of mankind was disobedience occasioned by pride.
We have to make war on our own pride. When we think about it, all of our sins are rooted in our own pride. There is that "nobody is going to tell me what to do," element of every sin, the ｅxpression of pride. "You gotta problem with that," the sinner says be he or she a bully, an adulterer or what have you. They are really not just saying that to their victims or to society; they are saying that to God.
Pride manifests itself when we are concerned about our status in this or that group, at work, in the neighborhood, at school, etc. Sometimes we ask in exasperation, "Who does he think he's talking to?" Well, who do we think that we are? We forget that we are nothing without God, and everything only because of God.
We need humility. We need people of humility to show us how to live in proper relationship to God. We have been given many great examples. St. Teresa of Calcutta was certainly a humble little lady who was a giant before God. She knew what God had called her to do, and was not concerned what people said about her. St. John Paul II was a kind man who did not think so highly about himself that he would not sit on a stage during the World Youth Day entertainments and laugh with the young people.
We have particularly been blessed with the experience of our present Holy Father, Pope Francis, who is a man of humility. He knows his position before God is Vicar of Christ and, as we have learned, he protects his office, refusing to let others run the Church around him. Many bishops and cardinals are still licking their wounds after attempting to circumvent Pope Francis. He protects the papacy, but when it comes to himself as the pope, he is extremely humble.
Priests and bishops who are sent to work in Rome used to see the Holy Father rather infrequently, only if they were needed to present something directly to the Pope regarding their ministry. The Holy Father's rooms were in the Apostolic Palace. His meals were taken there. Well, that was all before Pope Francis. Pope Francis doesn't live in the Apostolic Palace.
He lives with the priests working in the Vatican. His apartment is one of the rooms available for any of the Vatican clergy. He takes his meals as one of the many who line up for the buffet. Can you imagine being on line for lunch, turning around, and there is the Pope on line behind you? That is exactly what is happening most days in the Vatican. When it comes to himself, Pope Francis is a humble man before the Lord. After he became Pope, a reporter asked him, "Who is Jorge Bergoglio?" The Pope responded, "A sinner." He knows that who we are before the Lord is due to the Lord's grace and mercy, not due to our own innate qualities.
Who are you, who am I before the Lord? We are sinners in continual need of God's mercy. The words that we speak immediately before communion are not just a prayer formula, but an ｅxpression of whom we are: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." We are not looking for the best seats in the banquet hall of the Lord. We are humbled that we have been invited to the meal.
We end the Eucharistic Prayer of the Mass with the proclamation of where all glory and honor belong: through Him and with Him and in Him, O God almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor are yours forever and ever.
The prophet Micah wrote, in Micah 6:8, "You have been told, O Man what the Lord requires of you: only to do right, to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God." We don't need to be full of ourselves. We can fight off the pride that ruins our lives. We can be humble.
Perhaps sometimes, you feel, perhaps sometimes, I feel, "I am not good enough--not good enough as a husband or wife, as a parent, as a priest, whatever" When we feel this way, we are right, and we are wrong. By ourselves, we are never good enough. That would be pride. But we are not by ourselves. We have the Lord. Or, better, He has us. And it is the Lord who makes us good enough, good enough to do the work of His Kingdom.
We pray today for the courage to embrace our true dignity and walk humbly with our God.
Stmaryvalleybloom.org
* Available in Spanish - see Spanish Homilies
22 Ordinary Time
Nothing More Beautiful
(September 1, 2019)
Bottom line: Humility is hard but there is nothing more beautiful or more valued.
Today we have one of my favorite Scripture verses, Sirach says "my child, conduct your affairs with humility and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts".
Now, I don't want to discourage gifts - especially with my birthday coming up! This year the Hispanic community is using the occasion to raise funds for the Called to Serve as Christ campaign. Gifts are nice especially when they embody care and love. Most of us don't need more stuff, but a well thought out gift is wonderful.
Thoughtfulness makes the gift. That's why planned giving is powerful. A guy may be in debt but if in a planned way he gives a percentage of his income his finances begin to turn around. A thoughtful planned gift ha power. Yet even greater than a gift is humility. "My child, conduct your affairs with humility and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts".
Archbishop Sartain has given a magnificent example of humility. You probably know that today the Cathedral hosts a Mass and reception to wish the archbishop well as he prepares for retirement. on Wednesday he has a luncheon with priests. These events signal his transition to retirement. According to canon law the moment Pope Francis accepts his retirement, coadjutor archbishop Etienne automatically becomes "ordinary" - the one in charge.
In his decade with us Archbishop Sartain has inspired some wonderful young men to seek the priesthood and he has cared for older priests - especially those facing major illness. A few years ago he undertook a major campaign - Called to Serve as Christ - to meet the needs of elderly priests and sisters.
As you can imagine it has involved an enormous amount of work - organizing, meeting with donors and series of dinners promoting the campaign. He could have put this off. He has a good reason - the crippling back ailment that saps his energy and stamina. Still he accepted the burden with good humor and focus on the other person. That's humility in action.
Humility doesn't mean saying, "Oh, poor me. I'm such a failure." No, humility begins with gratitude - the daily effort to recognize that what I have and what I am comes from God and that he means me to use it for his glory and the good of my brothers and sisters.
As we hear in the Gospel humility focuses on the needs of others - the crippled, the lame, the blind. You know who they are. Humility includes the willingness to take the lowest place, to stop worrying what people think about me. Instead accept the task God places before me. I might feel more comfortable with screen time enclosed in my own world, but humility means getting out where I may not be number one.
We have families and parishes so we can learn humility. Those are places where we don't always get our way. Humility is hard but there is nothing more beautiful or more valued. "My child, conduct your affairs with humility and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts". Amen.
Alexmcallister.co.uk
22 Ordinary Time
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
The Gospel this Sunday is about humility. Christ urges us not to shove ourselves forward in an ambitious way trying to make ourselves out to be better or more important than we actually are. He says that the better thing for us is to be modest and unassuming; and if by doing this you have undervalued yourself, others will surely rectify the situation for you.
Jesus notices that the people attending the meal to which he had also been invited were vying for position. This is behaviour that to onlookers would appear to be somewhat unseemly. You can just imagine that there might have been a certain amount of jostling and a lot of glaring between the guests.
But there is a motive for their behaviour, for to end up with a lesser place, according to them, would result in a loss of status. In a hierarchical society status was something that was regarded as particularly important and so asserting their status is therefore uppermost in their minds. People would have expended a lot of energy all through their lives constantly trying to maintain or, if possible, to improve their social position.
Our society is a lot less class ridden now that it used to be. Right up until recent years birth in this country was considered to be vitally important. If you were born into the right family then you could expect to live a life of privilege and position even if you did not have all that much money. What mattered was the family name and who you were connected to.
This has become a lot more watered down in modern society and yet even today parents will go to extraordinary lengths to give their children a privileged start in life. They want their children to have every possible social advantage.
And all this is quite understandable. We want to make the most of what we have, we want to look good in front of others, we want to constantly improve our situation in life. And yet, here in this Gospel text Jesus proposes that we adopt a position that is the complete opposite. He tells us to act with humility and he tells us that paradoxically this will gain us even greater advantage if not in this life then most surely in the next one.
He proposes that we hold back, that we don't push ourselves forward, that we take a lesser place in life and that doing things this way will reap rich rewards in the long term.
It is true that asserting one's status often leads to arrogance and feelings of superiority. We end up believing that our privileges have come as our right without our ever having done anything to deserve them. There is a funny old saying, 'chose your parents with care.' These people believe that because they happened to be born into particular families it means that everyone else should fall at their feet. Yet we know that the history of every illustrious family is littered with buffoons and 'chinless wonders.'
As always, here Jesus is proposing the path of the virtues. We know what the seven heavenly virtues are: chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, patience, kindness and humility. The one that he is emphasising in his words that we are reflecting on today is, of course, humility, but actually we should try to embody them all as well as we can.
The true Christian constantly examines his conscience and asks themselves whether they are adhering to these virtues or not. And when they find some aspects of these virtues are lacking they try to make them a greater reality in their lives. The older we get the more we realise that it is these virtues that are the secret to living a truly fulfilling life.
There are two aspects to the virtues; the first is that by applying them we come to be gradually more and more appreciated by those around us as kind and understanding and helpful people. They help us to transform our character and enable us to become easier to live with.
The second is that the virtues are the basis for what we in the Church call moral theology; this is basically the study of how to make the moral decisions appropriate for a Christian in the world of today. We look at the various problems that face us and work out a whole sequence of different choices we could make. Then by application of the virtues we are able to work out which of these choices would be the right one in our particular circumstances.
By asking ourselves just what a chaste, temperate, charitable, diligent, patient, kind and humble person would do in the particular situation we can come to a very clear idea about what is the right and best choice to make.
As we have seen Christ focusses in his words today on humility and his remarks were certainly very pointed and directed at people who were highly ambitious and who needed to learn a lesson about a better way to proceed in life.
But he goes much further, and addresses even more challenging words to his host telling him to invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind to his parties precisely because they cannot repay him. In this way, he tells his host that if he follows these instructions, he will lay up treasures for himself in heaven.
You can imagine that the host, having managed to get this travelling celebrity to accept his dinner invitation, was delighted to invite the local worthies to the meal in the full expectation that they would have to repay him for providing such an outstanding evening. He was presuming that his little coup would mean that his status in the town was sure to rise.
But what Jesus actually says is not what any of them expects. on that splendid evening I don't believe that many of them were entertained, rather, I think that these words of Jesus put them all off their digestion and gave them a great deal to think about.
More Homilies
August 28, 2016 Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
