Gospel Reflection Aug 31 – Kim VanHuffel
Sunday, August 31
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 14: 1, 7-14
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.”
Gospel Reflection:
The link to the three readings this Sunday is how to live a moral life. Specifically, that we should be humble and put others before ourselves. The setting for Jesus’ parable is a meal where he tells us not to take the place of honor, but to be humble and take a lower place; and also to include the poor and marginalized.
At the expense of not sounding humble, I’ll share a couple of experiences in my life that have brought great joy, even though at first they sounded daunting. One year when our daughters were very little, we had three painters at our house who worked well into the evening. When it came time to feed the kids dinner— spaghetti — these men were right outside our windows and it just didn’t seem right to eat in front of them. So, we invited them in. I still remember the happiness that brought to our girls! We couldn’t even communicate very well with each other, but their appreciativeness was evident, everyone was smiling and enjoying each other, and it was a humbling experience for me and my husband.
Fast forward to our girls’ college days and there have been numerous times that one or more of their friends could not afford to fly home for a holiday, or just simply had no place to go. At first it made me very nervous to have others stay with us over a holiday weekend, but again, it really helped them, and the joy it brought to our household was amazing. Sharing our traditions and helping them feel at home became the mission of the whole family and was such fun!
Now none of these things are extraordinary. We haven’t given our lives to be missionaries, or housed the poor, or even adopted a child in need. God bless those that do these extraordinary things! But most of us are called to little acts of kindness throughout our ordinary lives and these can be very meaningful.
In Dublin, Ohio it is difficult to invite the poor, crippled, lame or blind into our homes. But the point is really to invite in the marginalized who are in front of us. That might be a co-worker or neighbor or peripheral friend who never gets included or invited to anything. Reaching out in humility to show care for others, expecting nothing in return, is a gift we give to them, to ourselves, and to God. And, if we live our lives in this way, Jesus tells us our repayment will be at the “resurrection of the righteous.”
Kim VanHuffel
Pastoral Associate