“‘… every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.'” … “… an attentive ear is the joy of the wise” … “God, in Your Goodness, You have made a home for the poor” … “God, in Your Goodness, You have made a home for the poor.”
MASS READINGS 8.28.16 – FIRST READING: Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29 – PSALM 68:4-5, 6-7, 10-11 – SECOND READING: Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24a – GOSPEL: Luke 14:1, 7-14
FIND A MASS: MassTimes.org – FIND A MASS: TheCatholicDirectory.com
SUNDAY TV MASS: Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
SUNDAY TV MASS: Heart of the Nation (Wisconsin)
LINKS & RESOURCES
- FAITHLINK DailyGospel.org; Saint Gregory Nazianzen Gospel commentary: “When you give a banquet, invite the poor”- On love for the poor, 8, 14 ; PG 35, 867, 875
- FAITHLINK News.va: “Pope Francis: Angelus catechesis on humility, generosity”
- FAITHLINK St. Anselm’s Abbey/Father Gabriel: Homily, 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Sept. 1, 2013
- FAITHLINK St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology: “To Go Up Higher: Scott Hahn Reflects on the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time”
FIRST READING
FIRST READING: Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29
The Holy Prophet Sirach exhorts us to act with humility, including being a good listener and giving to those who in need.
… conduct your affairs with humility,
and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.
Humble yourself the more, the greater you are,
and you will find favor with God.
… and an attentive ear is the joy of the wise.
… and alms atone for sins.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
God, in Your Goodness, You have made a home for the poor.
SECOND READING
SECOND READING: Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24a
The Letter to the Hebrews notes, implicitly, that we are not like the Israelites at Sinai, who shrank back from God’s Awesome Presence. Rather, we will be invited to personally encounter the wondrous glories of Eternal Life.
… you have approached Mount Zion
and the City of the Living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem,
and countless Angels in Festal Gathering,
and the Assembly of the Firstborn enrolled in Heaven,
and God the Judge of all,
and the Spirits of the Just made Perfect,
and Jesus, the mediator of a New Covenant,
and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel.
GOSPEL
Jesus calls us to humility. In a wedding banquet parable, Jesus suggests taking a seat at a humbler spot, so that, if the host asks one to move later, it will be to move to a place of greater honor. He explains that both God and man will be appreciative of the humility.
‘… every one who exalts himself will be humbled,
but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.’
Additionally Jesus suggests doing things to serve those who are in greatest need, rather than those who could more easily reciprocate.
‘When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or … relatives or … wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back ….
… 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.’
Christ specifically promises that kindness to those in need will, indeed, be repaid, and apparently repaid infinitely more robustly and in a more lasting manner. Rather than receiving an earthly lunch in response to another earthly lunch, we will receive Eternal Rewards at the time of the Final Resurrection.
More Resources
- Find a Mass: MassTimes.org
- Find a Mass: TheCatholicDirectory.com
- VIDEO: Sunday Mass – Basilica in Washington, D.C.
- VIDEO: Sunday Mass – Passionists (New York)
- VIDEO: Diocese of Sioux Falls, including Sunday Masses
- VIDEO: Sunday Mass – University of Notre Dame
- VIDEO: Daily Mass – Toronto
- VIDEO: Daily Mass – Boston/Catholic TV
[Scripture passages excerpted or adapted from the NABRE, available online from the USCCB, which provides the following rights statement:
Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.]
[featured image is file photo]
