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22ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME- YEAR C
A Message from the
Pastor...
Dear Friends,
“My friend, move up higher...”
The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary defines ‘Humility’ as: “The quality of
being humble; unpretentiousness.” What better setting can there be to
describe this elusive quality than at a high powered banquet. In fact the
literary convention of having philosophical discussions taking place at
table in the Hellenistic world dates from the time of Xenophon and Plato
with the ‘Symposium.’ Philosophical conflict over a good meal was not
exclusive to the Greek tradition; Jewish literature such as the ‘Letter to
Aristeas’ has the philosophers replaced by Jewish teachers and their wisdom
is devotion to the Torah. Luke presents Jesus as both philosopher and
prophet, and so we often find him at table and engaged in
‘table-fellowship’. The highest expression of this is the Last Supper (22:
14-38).[1]
That the fellow diners with Jesus are Pharisees, indeed the ‘chief Pharisee’
and Scribes and the occasion happens to be a ‘Sabbath day’ all the signs of
trouble are flagged. The healing of the man with the dropsy has been edited
out of our Gospel today, and so the reason for Jesus’ parabolic teaching of
table manners, is somewhat missed. Common sense wisdom like that contained
in Proverbs advised “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.” (25:6-7). But Jesus is
not interested in the appropriate etiquette for the upwardly mobile, as he
is in the frame of mind those who seek exaltation at any cost. The teaching
of Jesus is ‘parabolic’ because it ‘parodies’ the good advice of worldly
wisdom only to subvert it by the more radical demand of the kingdom. “For
all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves
will be exalted." The Lukan theme of divine reversal is found throughout his
Gospel, especially in the Magnificat “The hungry he has filled with good
things, the rich sent empty away.” (Lk 1:53). In the Eucharist we are
constantly challenged to render authentic worship to God by our service of
the poor and outcast; the desperate and the lonely. The more we do this the
more we come to the heavenly Jerusalem, with the “Whole Church in which
everyone is a ‘first-born child’ and a citizen of heaven” (Heb 12:23).
God bless,
Fr George.
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