Welcoming the Holy
Here we invite you to take time for yourself in personal prayer. The following spiritual reflection offers words and images which we hope will evoke for you an experience of God.
By: Sister Ruth Maier
“God in Your goodness You provide for the needy.”
Opening Prayer
Almighty God, every good thing comes from You. Fill our hearts with love for You, increase our faith and by Your constant care, protect the good You have given us. We ask this through Jesus in unity with the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen
Scripture
Luke 14, 1, 7 – 14
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 to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited and the host may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man’, and then you would proceed to the lowest place with embarrassment. Rather when you are invited take the lowest place, so that when the host comes to you, he may say, ‘Friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself shall be exalted.
Then He said to the host, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers, your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have your repayment. Rather, 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.
Reflection
God’s Word for today calls us to humility and hospitality.
Jesus has been invited to dinner at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, not as a sign of friendship, but rather, Luke tells us, to be “observed carefully” by those attending because they want to find reason to arrest Him, to get rid of him.
However, Jesus is also observing the quests as well as the host. And thus we have two parables: one about being a good guest and the second about being a good host.
In the first parable, Jesus invites the guests to consider humility as knowing themselves in relationship to others. In the second parable, the host is invited to consider hospitality in relationship to who should be invited to the banquet.
Humility is a virtue of accepting our gifts and rejoicing in them as God’s blessing to be used in service to others.
True hospitality is about offering kindness and generosity to those in need: the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind.
Jesus is likewise inviting us to consider the way we interact with others, challenging us to serve selflessly, reaching out to those in need with a Kingdom mindset.
Perhaps, this week we could “observe” how we interact with others.
Where do I choose to sit?
Who do I invite to my table?
How do I choose humility and hospitality in reflecting the love and grace of God to others?
Closing Prayer
Compassionate God, giver of all that is good, You have bestowed Your love and mercy upon us. Help us to use those gifts in humble service of others. We make our prayer through Jesus, the Christ, our Lord and Brother. Amen.
