The Ladder to Heaven is Humility: 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sermon by Emmanuel Suntheni OSB – Twenty-Second Sunday In Ordinary Time
Sermon And Christian Act In The Word
Theme: Genuine Humility! Humility is manifested on the Cross! The ladder to heaven is humility!
Point of Reflection: Am I humble? All three Scriptural readings of today link humility with a genuine concern for those in need. For Sirach, a wise person acts in accordance with his or her social status, and fulfils corresponding social obligations, particularly through almsgiving. In Hebrews, we see the holy and all-powerful God who chose to bring ordinary and mortal human beings to himself through the saving death of his son.
Jesus went humbly to the cross and shed his blood for the sake of forgiveness and reconciliation, not vengeance. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches that self-exaltation leads to humiliation: good relationships and concern for the vulnerable lead to true greatness.
The faithful are thus called to the practice of humility expressed through care, imitating the one whom the Psalmist calls, “the Father of orphans and protector of widows.”
First Reading: Sirach 3:17–18, 20, 28–29
Psalm: Psalm 68:4–7, 10–11
Second Reading: Hebrews 12:18–19, 22–24
Gospel: Luke 14:1, 7–14
Sermon (Reflection): The Gospel invites us to practice kindness without expecting a reward for our deeds. Our humility should lead us to care for and serve others counting only on the reward from our heavenly Father. Jesus practised his humble service in such a way, and so must we.
The First Reading from the book of Sirach consists of two parts: exhortations and a proverb. The exhortations call the reader to practice humility in three concrete ways. First, a humble person is to perform his or her tasks in society with fidelity and conscientiousness, as opposed to those who would be negligent and lax in their commitments. Second, a humble person is not to use his or her social status as a pretext to take advantage of others. The greater the social status a person holds, the more service must he or she render to others. Finally, a humble person does not attempt to pursue the status or knowledge that is beyond his or her capacities and strengths. Here, humility is about an honest assessment of one’s abilities and fulfilling one’s potential to its fullest, rather than pursuing unachievable goals beyond one’s reach.
As Christians, we need to understand that humility is not stupidity or being quiet. True humility is defined in the Gospel of today.
The gospel reading describes Jesus’ third and final meal with the Pharisees in the Gospel of Luke. At the time, one’s place at the banquet table was strictly determined by social rank, each guest would know exactly where to sit. The guests in the story behave strangely, claiming the highest places for themselves without any consultation with the host. Jesus points out that such behaviour would only lead to public humiliation and shame, as those who took the highest seats would be asked to step down and thus lose face before all present.
The foolish behaviour of the guests serves to make a point. Jesus teaches that one’s dignity and status cannot be determined apart from others. In the story, the host at the banquet determines the position where one is to sit.
In life, what a person thinks of himself or herself must be verified on the grounds of the relationship he or she has with others. It is all about how we treat each other.
According to Jesus, how you relate to others determines where you stand in God’s eyes. Those who seek to elevate themselves by empty claims will suffer humiliation. Those who assume the humble position of servants will be recognised and elevated.
The second part of the gospel presents an example of actions that befit a humble servant. Appealing to the social conventions of the time, Jesus alludes to the custom of reciprocity. When invited to a banquet, a guest would be obliged to reciprocate and invite the host in his turn. It made sense to invite the wealthy because one would be invited by them in turn to an even more sumptuous meal. Instead, Jesus calls for inviting those who cannot repay in any manner the poor and the ill. This would indeed be an act of disinterested concern for the less fortunate and vulnerable members of the community. Such disinterested concern provides the basis for judging a person’s true standing before God and is an example of what that humble service entails.
The second reading invites us to look at Christ who, out of his humble love for fallen humanity, shed his blood for us. His humility showed itself through his self-sacrifice, it was humility through care.
Jesus’ caring humility teaches us that we are also called to care for others. When we see the needs of others, humility teaches us to give ourselves to meet them, at least in some measure. As Jesus wanted us to experience the God of the new covenant, the non-terrifying and approachable God, we too are to help others experience the closeness and care of God the Father through our reaching out to them.
Christian Act in Word of God “Genuine Humility”
The warning about making false assumptions, which today’s liturgy presents, sounds very relevant in our times. We all like to imagine things about ourselves and about how the world should be.
Why do other people point fingers at others and say, you are not humble! The finger needs to be reversed, because most of the people who judge others as not humble, by doing so, themselves also become more un-humble. Mostly people look at failures and strengths. But the first reading portrays a person of integrity who knows and acknowledges the truth about himself. In this reading, humility is well defined as an honest assessment of one’s strengths and weaknesses, without pretence or vain pursuit of unattainable goals.
Many of us become frustrated when we do not achieve our goals. Sometimes, even though aware of our capabilities, we still aim for unreachable goals. Doing so we engage in futile pursuits, becoming like a person who imagines seeing ocean waves while standing in the middle of a desert.
To prevent such mistakes, we must honestly acknowledge our capabilities.
Such humility will enable us to make the best use of what we already have and walk the path of life that will be most fruitful for ourselves and others. It will also allow us to be of service to others through humble service. Our ability to use God’s gifts to best effect rests on a humble acknowledgement of what they are.
The Gospel clearly describes the rewards of humility. When a person is humble, others esteem him or her and respect them for what they are. They are seen as people of integrity who are at home with themselves and with others. When people realise that you are genuine, they esteem you even more and want to associate with you.
On some level, we all desire to be acknowledged and respected by others. The way to such esteem is generosity and self-sacrifice. However, acts of kindness, if not reciprocated, can easily lead to frustration and disillusionment. Indifference to what we do can discourage us from seeking respect in the right way. Instead, we might be tempted to seek recognition and esteem by showing others that we are more capable or better than they are. This is the wrong way.
A beautiful summary of genuine humility is best described by St Benedict in his rule for monks and nuns. St Benedict in chapter 7 of his rule has given twelve degrees of humility with the title of which is ‘Concerning Humility’. Its second paragraph runs thus: ‘Brethren, if we wish to arrive at the highest point of humility and speedily to reach that heavenly exaltation to which we can only ascend by the humility of this present life, we must by our ever-ascending actions erect such a ladder as that which Jacob beheld in his dream by which the Angels appeared to him descending and ascending. This descent and ascent signified nothing else than that we descend by self-exaltation and ascend by humility. And the ladder thus erected is our life in the world which if the heart be humbled, is lifted up by the Lord to heaven. The sides of the same ladder we understand to be our body and soul, in which our divine vocation hath placed various degrees of humility or discipline which we must ascend.
As Christians, we need to climb the ladder to heaven through genuine humility by treating well others.
Action: I will practice genuine humility
Prayer: Almighty God, teach us to be humble as you humbled yourselves by sending your only son to redeem us. Lord, teach us to be truthful to ourselves and to reach out to others as you did, we ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.
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