Reflections on Sunday’s Mass: August 29, 2010

This Sunday is the Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. Today’s scripture passages look at important qualities of discipleship and focus on the virtue of humility. How would you define humility? Humility as one commentator speaks is “putting ourselves last”. This is a challenge in our American culture. 

• Sirach 3: 17-18,20,28-29 Our posture before God must be one of humility. We must stand in truth and honesty. We need to acknowledge who we really are. It is in our humility that our God is revealed to us.
•  Hebrews 12: 18-19, 22-24a This reading contains much symbolism. The first paragraph refers to Mt. Sinai, the place where God established the covenant with the Israelites, our ancestors in the faith. Mt. Zion stands for our future encounter with God as judge and Jesus as our mediator. It is Jesus who provides us the access to God that we depend upon.
• Luke 14: 1, 7-14 In the gospel we are encouraged to sit in the last place when invited to a meal/ banquet. If we wish to invite others to our home for a meal we are encouraged to invite the marginalized of society. Who are those today that you would “not” want to invite into your home….perhaps the unemployed, the immigrant, the one suffering from aids, the homeless? Why? Is there a way you can begin to form a relationship with those individuals you consider “unimportant”. Perhaps someday you might both break bread together.

We hold in prayer this weekend our catechumens and candidates who are making a weekend retreat. They will return and join us for the celebration of the liturgy on the 29th at 11:30 a.m.