22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, year ’C’ 28th August 2016
“Now it happened that on a Sabbath day he had gone to share a meal in the house of one of the leading Pharisees ; and they watched him closely.”
Jesus who is observed, watches those guests who push themselves to the front to get a good place at table! In our relationships the attitude of humility expresses an essential truth. To enter the Kingdom of Heaven we need to make ourselves little.
Jesus is invited tot his meal and it is He who is the poorest person. He doesn’t even have a stone on which to rest his Head. And yet He is at ease with all present and takes his place at the table of the one who invites him.
Jesus indicates a way of service to his disciples. This is the path He wants them to take : the one and only criteria of greatness in the Kingdom of Heaven is the service of our sisters and brothers. It is fitting to think of others, of those men and women who are the weakest and in need.
Service is welcome, sharing, gift, generosity
Service is the benevolent gaze and the helpful hand.
We know just how much we appreciate a visit when we are ill, when we are elderly. A phone call does us so much good. There is such happiness when we think of others, and don’t close up on ourselves.
"He then told the guests a parable for he had noticed how they pick the places of honour.
He said this : ’When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take your seat in the place of honour. A more distinguished person than you may have been invited, and the person who invited you both may come and say, ’Give up your place to this man.’ And then to your embarrassment you will have to go and take the lowest place.
No, when you are a guest, make your way to the lowest place and sit there, so that, when your host comes, he may say ’My friend, move up higher.’ Then everyone with you at the table will see you honoured.“’Guest’ is a lovely word and we can let it resound within us. This word can get our identity moving, we can feel our identity very well when we are a guest and hope takes hold of us. We are concerned, honoured, put on the move by the will of someone else, we no longer live in the same manner. We exist because we are recognised by another person and we try to open up to them. We remain available, our heart remains faithful to the wording of the invitation. We remain available for the encounter, taking up a place of expectation. This Word of God is so well adapted to our ordinary life, we ask for the grace to understand it and to put it into practice.” For everyone who raises himself up will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be raised up.“Then Jesus said to his host ’When you give a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers, or your relations or rich neighbours, in case they invite you back and so repay you. No; when you have a party, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind ; then you will be blessed, for they have no means to repay you and so you will be repaid when the upright rise again.”
Jesus manifests the solidarity of his heart with the poor and little ones. He identifies Himself to them. When the poor person is received in this way it is as if he were received by God for He needs to be welcomed.
God is in need of our hands, our hearts, of what we are, so as to bring a bit of happiness to those who are in need of it.
The poor person has nothing to give back, he is happy for when he is invited it is as if Jesu is invited.
In this way the overflowing Mercy of God is announced. This is how Jesus invites us to the Wedding Feast. He comes, greets all present, he comes to me, he greets me too, he gives me a place. It I the place He has kept for me, with others. I am with Him, I am with te others, I discover how they too have waited, that they receive their place from Him. I discover that having plunged into a time of waiting, in an trail of confidence, has born a fruit, I am free, available.