Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Aug. 28, 2016
Roman Fresco of a dinner, excavated from Pompeii.
Young Jeremiah has now put on the prophet’s cloak. He stands up to announce God’s words in an anguished reverie that we might imagine from a loving but disappointed parent of a child gone terribly wrong. What did God do wrong, that these once chosen people have become worthless? Did they forget that God led them from slavery through the wilderness to a fruitful land that they now have spoiled? They have forsaken God’s living water and built cracked cisterns that can no longer slake their spiritual thirst.
First Reading (Track Two): Proverbs 25:6-7
Pick up your bible some time and skim through the book of Proverbs. You’ll be amazed at the sometimes very modern nuggets of wisdom that emerge. Tradition attributes Proverbs to King Solomon, but modern theologians understand it as a broad collection of some 500 small gems of ancient wisdom about life, love and morals. Today’s very brief reading foreshadows Jesus’ parable in today’s Gospel from Luke: “… all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
This resounding hymn of praise seems to reflect Jeremiah’s words: We sing with joy to God who is our strength, and we remember God bringing the people out of slavery and feeding them abundantly. But the people were stubborn, did not listen, and God allowed them to go their own way. Now we hear a grieving God, who would feed and nurture the people again, if only they would return.
Psalm (Track Two): Psalm 112
Today’s Psalm harmonizes with our First Reading and Gospel in its reflection on God’s covenants with Abraham and Moses. We are called to follow God’s commandments to be just, to serve our neighbors, share our wealth and provide for the poor. By living generously in this way, with right hearts and trust in God, we can be secure and live without fear.
Second Reading: Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
Our four-week visit with Hebrews concludes with beautiful, poetic words describing the generosity of a Christian life rooted in the hospitality that the patriarch Abraham showed his angelic visitors in the desert: Love one another as God loves us, and remember to do good, to share with one another, to live simply and shun riches, and to hold hospitality as a virtue.
Gospel: Luke 14:1, 7-14
Like so many of Jesus’ parables, this one seems to have an obvious, simple, message … and then a sudden turn challenges us. Its simple message makes common sense: Don’t assume that the host is saving the seat of honor for you, or you might face public humiliation when you are told to move down. Choose a humble place, and be honored if the host encourages you to take a better seat. And then we hear the rest of the story: Jesus would have us invite not the wealthy but the “least of these.” Poor, disabled and oppressed guests might not be able to repay us with wealth and trinkets, but we’ll earn a greater reward at the end.