Jesus Calls Us To Be Humble To Serve Those In Need!

Like Jesus’ parables on honor, respect and humility in St. Luke’s Gospel today, it is interesting to note that regular church goers often have favorite seats in which they sit.  Others like to sit at the ends of a pew rather than move toward the center when other people enter so they have to step over them to be in “their” pew.  I have been in some churches that actually have a plaque with someone’s name where they sit and in others where initials are carved in certain pews to mark a place where someone sits.

Often I will jokingly chide parishioners about “their” seats in a specific pew, suggesting they sit elsewhere to meet people they see but have not yet met at that Mass.  It also is a reminder that no matter who we are, we all come to worship God so seating in a particular spot is not the focus we should have.  Sharing our love of God and one another in a Eucharistic setting is the primary reason.

Humility is a difficult virtue to embrace in a society which constantly reminds us to survive we need to amass wealth, be powerful and become famous.  By taking control of our life in this way, we are in charge of our destiny.  Any other path puts us at the mercy of others and denies us the happiness we want and deserve.

As Baptized Catholics, we commit to follow the Gospel teachings Jesus gave us while He was on earth and is continued by the Holy Spirit who lives in our heart, mind, soul and strength.  To do this, we are called to honor, respect and be humble.  With the practice of these named virtues and others Christ has taught, our promise to obey the will of God is intact.

Another aspect of humility is that it is a wonderful teaching tool to help one another when we stray from a path of being in relationship with God.  It sharpens our behavior, especially in difficult situations when we get confused about which direction we should take to solve a dilemma.  It brings a perspective that provides us with a calm that helps us give thought to how best act and to work toward a solution that is best for all concerned.

Too often our principles get in the way of how we react and we forget that the problem involves more than just us.  Others think and feel much the same way and we need to acknowledge that our relationships with them are just as important and possibly at stake if we don’t look at all the areas of concern.

One of the greatest aspects of humility is that it Mirrors Jesus in both His humanity and Spirit.  Jesus came to serve so that we can understand the importance about the love with which God created us in our relationships with God and all He created.  Without humility, we tend to lose sight of things in our life that need to be addressed such as the poor, hungry, homeless, sick, dying, incarcerated, widows and orphans to name a few.

Let us take this week to assess our activity in these areas of our life.  Are we doing something to reach out to those in need by our presence just as Jesus is present to us in the Eucharist?  We are called to help those who are suffering not only with monetary donations, which many of us do often, but to be there in the flesh. 

The Church works with many organizations both internally and externally that aid those in need.  Consider reaching out to one of them to ask how you can participate.  It may be humbling, but it is what God has asked us to do.  It is honorable and respectful, as well as the humble thing to do.

Reading 1: Sirach 3: 17-18, 20, 28-29
Reading 2: Hebrews 12: 18-19, 22-24
Gospel: Luke 14: 1, 7-14