Sunday October 25th. to Saturday October 31st.
Sunday October 25th. to Saturday
October 31st. Reflections
on the Readings at Daily Mass.
Sunday October 25th. Thirtieth Sunday in Year One.
Readings
Exodus 22/20-26 :
Paul’s First letter to the Thessalonians 1/5-10 :
Matthew 22/34-40
Recently we have read one of Jesus’ parables as
the Sunday Gospel reading each Sunday and they have challenged us and left us
thinking and trying to reason out how they might apply to us. In today’s Gospel
reading Jesus leaves us in no doubt as to what his teaching is and what it is
asking of us.
We are reminded today, however, that Jesus’
teaching was not a novelty. It was based firmly on the teaching of the Jewish
faith which he had inherited. Although Jesus enlarges on the faith of Judaism,
his teaching is always firmly grounded in that faith and in today’s Gospel
reading we have an exceptionally clear example of that.
What Jesus has to say in today’s Gospel reading
is very well known to us. It is that we
should love God with our whole being and that we should love our neighbour as
ourself. In fact, to the Pharisees’ question about which of the commandments
was the greatest, Jesus replies that the whole Law and the Prophets hang upon
these two commandments.
Jesus’ answer is not just a summing up of the
Law. He is quoting the Hebrew Scriptures.
In the first instance he quotes Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse 5 which is
the first part of the Shema, the Jewish confession of faith. It is this text
with two others which is worn in the phylacteries with which Jewish men bind
their heads and their arm before praying and which is placed in a container on
the doorpost of every Jewish house. It is required to be said every morning and
evening by every Jewish man. This first text begins with word ‘Hear!’ which is
‘shema’ in Hebrew and here it is ‘ Hear, O Israel. The Lord is our God, the
Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all
your soul and with all your might’.
In the second instance, Jesus is quoting
Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18 which states ‘but you shall love your neighbour
as yourself. I am the Lord!’
As always, the Pharisees were seeking to trap
Jesus by their question, hoping that he would single out one of the ten great
commandments as the most important. Had he done that they could have entered
into dispute with him about his choice. Jesus demonstrates his familiarity with
the Hebrew Scriptures by quoting these two texts which sum up the whole of the
Law and in this way he thwarts the Pharisees in their plot to trick him into
giving an answer which they could dispute.
This passage is followed in Luke’s Gospel by
Jesus telling the parable of the Good Samaritan in answer to the question ‘But
who is my neighbour?’. Matthew does not give us this parable but in the first reading
today we have a passage from Exodus which comments on today’s Gospel reading in
a similar way. Through Moses, the Lord points out that the people of Israel
have a particular duty to care for the most vulnerable in their society, the
widow, the orphan, the stranger, the foreigner and the poor. These are all to
be treated as Neighbours the Lord says.
It is very important that we recognise the
Jewish roots of Jesus’ teaching and his familiarity with the Law and his living
by it. Jesus, of course, interprets the Law and makes it applicable to real
life. He reminds people always that the Law was made for them, not them for the
Law. In other words, the Law is there to help them fulfil the two great
commandments to love God and to love the neighbour as oneself.
Jesus will take the Law even further when he
teaches his disciples and followers that in loving their neighbour they are, in
fact, loving God. Jesus makes this very clear in the parable of the Last
Judgement (Matthew 25/31-46). The two commandments are, in fact, one! As we
read in John First letter (1 John 4/20-23) ‘Those who say “I love God” and hate
their brothers and sisters are liars for those who do not love a brother or a sister
whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment
we have from him is this, those who love God must love their brothers and
sisters also’.
The reading from Paul’s First letter to the
Thessalonians follows on from that which read last Sunday in which Paul greeted
those to whom the Letter is addressed. Paul congratulated them for their faith
in action, their love and their perseverance through hope. In today’s extract
Paul goes on to comment on how the Thessalonian Christians have started to
imitate him in their way of life and how fully they have taken to the Gospel in
spite of the difficulties with which they are surrounded. Paul tells the
Thessalonian Christians how they have become an example to all the churches
around them. In a beautiful phrase Paul says that he doesn’t have to tell other
people about them, other people tell him! Paul praises them for having broken
with false gods and having given themselves wholly to the service of the living
God. Paul reminds them that they are living in expectation of the return of Jesus.
We know, of course, that this return, much anticipated at that time proved not
to be as imminent as they had thought. What mattered for them and, indeed, for
us is that we must be always waiting for the coming of the Lord and we and they
have come to realise that he does come to us in so many ways and constantly. Here we return to the Gospel
reading and how the Lord comes to us in all who need our love and our care.
Today’s readings invite us to look at ourselves
and our Christian faith and to ask ourselves how much we do keep these two
great commandments. There is still the danger that we separate these two loves
and think that by going to Mass, saying our prayers and so on we are loving God
but, unless these help us to love our neighbours, we are deceiving ourselves.
The two are one. There can be no exception. We are called to love absolutely
everyone. At this time, especially, this must apply to those who are refugees
and all who are suffering through warfare since the present pandemic can easily
make us forget these, our neighbours.
As you know, some of us are involved in trying
to r=house a Syrian refugee family and we will most surely need your help in
this in the days to come. But it is also close to home that there are those who
need our love and care, the lonely, the elderly, the single parent and so on.
Don’t let’s wait, let’s cross the road to meet them and befriend them.
Today is also a day to remember our Jewish
brothers and sisters to whom we owe so much and who are one with us in our
faith in the one God. We give thanks for their faithfulness throughout the
centuries in spite of persecution and suffering. We give thanks for the Holy Scriptures
which they have handed on to us and which we still share with them. Whenever we
take up the Bible to read we might well pray for our Jewish sisters and
brothers and for a greater understanding between us and, of course, for peace
in that land which for them and us is Holy.
Monday October 26th.Monday Week
Thirty Year Two. Memory Chad and Cedd (+672 and +664)
Readings
Letter to the Ephesians 4/32-5/8 :
Luke 13/10-17
In today’s extract from the Letter to the Ephesians,
after speaking about God’s great plan which we read of on Saturday last, the
writer went on to remind the non-Jewish Christians how they had to give up their former way of
life which was the result of their living in ‘dark ignorance’. The rules of the
new life reflect the commandments of the Old Law and are about how to treat
others.
Now in today’s extract after telling the
Ephesian Christians that they are to be ‘friends with one another and kind,
forgiving each other as God forgave them in Christ, the writer goes on to say
that they are to ‘imitate God’ as they have come to know him in Christ. They
must behave as the children that he loves and they must ‘follow Christ by
loving as he loved them’. The writer sees this as either ‘walking ‘ in the
darkness of their previous life or ‘walking’ in the ‘light of their new life in
Christ’.
The writer emphasises the loose morals of the
pagans who live around these new Christians and the corruption of the society
in which they live. Their way of life must make them ‘children of the light’ so
that others will see how they live and be led to imitate them. The writer among
many other failings, condemns ‘bad conversation’. All too often we go along
with what is being said around us rather than standing up for what we believe
to right. Racist comments, unkindness, sexist remarks and so, we ought to be
ready to speak out.
In today’s reading from Luke’s Gospel, after
the warning that we heard in last Saturday’s extract today’s reading might come
as a surprise. It does, however, tie in well with the gradual build up of
opposition to Jesus from the Scribes and the Pharisees. The story in today’s
Gospel reading is unique to Luke’s Gospel but it serves well as an opportunity
for the conflict between Jesus and the religious authorities to develop.
Instead of just recounting the healing of a woman, this episode leads to a
dispute about whether it was lawful for healing to be done on the Sabbath day.
Jesus shows his opponents how hypocritical they are since they would be willing
to untie their ox or their ass to take them to water on the Sabbath day but
would criticise him for unbinding this woman from an ailment with which she had
been afflicted for eighteen years. It is not just possible to heal the woman on
the Sabbath day, Jesus says, it is an absolute necessity.
This episode reflects the way in which Luke
brings women into the picture and shows Jesus to be especially concerned for
them and their needs. Sexism is still rampant in our society today and, as the
followers of Jesus, we ought always to be on the look out for it so that we may
combat it with the same compassion that Jesus showed this afflicted woman.
We remember today all who are physically
handicapped with chronic conditions, especially those who have to live in
institutions and we remember all who care for and support them.
Memory of Chad (+672) and Cedd (+664), bishops
and missionaries.
Chad and Cedd were brothers, educated at Lindisfarne
under the great saint Aidan who we remembered on August the thirty first.
Cedd founded many monasteries and was sent to
bring the Gospel to the East Saxons. His preaching was so successful that Finan
of Lindisfarne ordained him bishop and he established himself at
Bradwell-on-Sea and Tilbury.He founded numerous monasteries there and on a
visit to Northumbria in 658 he was given land for the foundation of a monastery
at Lastingham in North Yorkshire.
Cedd took part in the great Synod of Whitby in
663-4 but shortly after that he died of the plague at Lastingham where he was
buried. His relics were later taken to Lichfield to join those of his brother
Chad. The ancient church at Bradwell shows the influence that Rome had on Cedd.
It has very Roman character and is still standing today.
Chad was abbot of Lastingham when he was chosen
to be bishop of Northumbria but his ordination was contested by Wilfred. Chad
withdrew to his monastery but he was then chosen to be bishop of Mercia and
founded the see of Lichfield. During his short life Chad was already revered as
a saint because of his holiness, his outstanding humility and his commitment to
preaching the Gospel. Chad died on March 2nd., 672 and was buried at
Lichfield where his shrine still remains. We celebrate these two brothers today
because it is the anniversary of the death of Cedd.
We remember today the churches of the North of
England and we pray for their growing together and their eventual unity. We
pray for the diocese of Lichfield and its bishop who is Chad’s successor and we
pray for all who visit the shrine of these two saints.
Tuesday October 27th. Tuesday in Week Thirty in Year two.
Readings
Letter to the Ephesians 5/21-33 :
Luke 13/18-21
Today’s reading from the letter to the Ephesian
Christians speaks of the life of the Christian household. This does not make
for easy reading because the writer compares the relationship between husband
and wife with the relationship between Christ and the Church. Because the
writer is comparing this relationship of husband and wife to that between the
Church and Christ, its head, the wife is seen to be subject to the husband as
the Church is to Christ.
This extract begins with the injunction that
Christians ought to give way to one another out of reverence for Christ and
this is then applied to husband and wife. The lyrical language of verses 25 to
27 is thought by some to have come from a hymn for Baptism and it puts Christ
and the Church into the relationship of husband and wife so that both the love for and the subjection
of the wife to the husband are given a uniquely Christian stamp.. The
obligation of the husband to love his wife is actually treated more extensively
than the obligation of the wife to be subject to her husband! This reflects the
reality that Christ’s love for the Church is infinitely greater than the
Church’s response to him.
This is essentially a passage about Christ and
the Church and only then about the relationship between husband and wife and we
must always remember that. Though this is rooted in and understanding of God’s
original plan for the union between man and woman, it elevates the relationship
to a higher level than the understanding of marriage which was current at the
time even among the Jewish people. We must also take into account that this
thinking was a development of what was accepted as normal in the world of that
time, that women were naturally subject to men. We can retain the imagery of
marriage being applied to the Church and its Lord but can we, perhaps, go
further and ask whether any relationship of friendship and love does not
reflect that relationship?
The Gospel reading follows that of yesterday
and Luke places this episode here quite deliberately. The Kingdom of God
proclaimed by Jesus is like the seed planted and hidden that grows into a tree.
It is like the yeast lost in the flour that leavens the whole of the dough. So
it is that with small and hidden acts of liberation, like that which Jesus had
just worked with the woman in the Synagogue, the Kingdom of God grows slowly
and silently. By freeing the woman from her eighteen years of physical
handicap, the victory over the Kingdom of evil had been won and Jesus’
prophetic mission to ‘proclaim liberty to captives’ was fulfilled.
We must be on the lookout for these small and
often hidden occasions when the Reign of God’s love is growing silently and
quietly among us springing up in unexpected ways and places and how true that has
been during these months of the pandemic when so many small acts of heroism
have been quietly happening among people of every faith and none.
For all of this we must give God thanks for the
Spirit who is at work among us.
Wednesday October 28th. Feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude.
The scriptures tell us very little about these
two Apostles and after the resurrection we hear no more of them.
In Luke’s Gospel Simon is called ‘the Zealot’
which may mean merely that he was a man of strong beliefs and actions who took
the Jewish Law and customs very seriously. It is though also possible that
Simon had belonged to a radical group among the Jews who were known as Zealots,
who hated the Roman overlords for taking their land from them and who wanted to
use force to remove them.
An Eastern tradition has it that Simon met his
death in Edessa but the Roman tradition has him proclaiming the Gospel in Egypt
and then, joined by Jude, who had been in Mesopotamia, they journeyed together
to Persia where they were martyred together.
In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, Jude is called Thaddaeus and is
usually identified as the brother of James and on of ‘the brethren of the
Lord’. He is also said to be the author of the Epistle of Jude in the New
Testament and legend has it that he suffered martyrdom with Simon.
The supposed relics of these Apostles were
taken to Rome in the seventh or eighth century and the date of their feast
today may be due to the fact that their relics were buried in Saint Peter’s
Basilica on this day.
In more recent times Jude has become the patron
saint of ‘hopeless cases’. The only reason for this must be that since Jude’s
name is so close to that of Judas, the traitor, no one prayed to him and so he
was more available to help those in dire need!
Readings
Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians 2/19-22 :
Luke 6/12-16
Since there is virtually nothing about these
two Apostles in the New Testament the two readings are about Apostles in
general. In the extract from the letter to the Ephesians the writer reminds us
that the Church is built upon the foundations of the prophets and the Apostles
since it was they who bore witness to the risen Lord and who want far and wide
to proclaim his Gospel.
The Gospel reading reminds us of how Jesus
chose the Twelve after spending the night in prayer to the Father.
We remember and give thanks to day that we are
part of that Church built upon the Apostles. Their role was to bear witness to
the risen Lord and to proclaim him everywhere they went. In this way they laid the foundations of many
Christian communities from which sprang the Church as we now know it. It is an
awe-inspiring thought that we are part of that movement begun by them two
thousand years ago and it is something for which we must always be grateful.
We remember those who have inherited the task
laid on the Apostles, our Bishops, and we pray that they and we may be faithful
to that Apostolic faith which they passed on to us.
We might also remember all those who believe
themselves to be ‘hopeless cases’ and pray for them.
Thursday October 29th. Thursday in Week Thirty in Year Two.
Readings
Letter to the Ephesians 6/10-20 :
Luke 12/31-35
Today we come to the last of our extracts from
the Letter to the Ephesians. The writer uses the language of armour and weapons
in a final exhortation about the ongoing battle with the principalities and
powers of this world. Earlier in the Letter the writer told us that Christ is
seated above all such powers (Ephesians 1/20-21) and God’s mysterious plan for
all has been made known through the Church (Ephesians 3/9-10). Now we are
brought to recognise that the divine struggle with the powers of evil continues
even though we know the outcome. It is this struggle in which are also engaged
to make the world the Kingdom, the Reign of God’s love. Finally Paul asks for
prayers for himself that in this struggle he may be allowed to proclaim the
mystery of the Gospel.
The magnificent self-description of Paul ‘an
ambassador in chains’ brings to an end the theme of Paul triumphing with God’s
help, so that no human hindrance can prevent him from pursuing his
vocation which was announced at the
beginning of the Letter, of being ‘an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of
God’.
The Gospel reading today is again a passage
that is unique to Luke’s Gospel. It is a difficult because it seems to contain
contradictions. Jesus was, in fact, moving away from Herod’s territory of
Galilee to go up to Jerusalem so why should the Pharisees seem to be telling
him to move on? The whole episode needs to be seen as part of Luke’s design to
show how the Pharisees are putting Jesus to the test. If Jesus seeks to save himself from Herod
then he must be a false prophet but if he insists in going on to Jerusalem
where he says he ‘must’ go, then they will have to treat the matter more
seriously. The reference to Jesus’ attaining his end on the third day will be
read by the Christians for whom Luke’s Gospel was being written as a reference
to his resurrection.
The whole passage ends with Jesus mourning over
Jerusalem where prophets have been killed in the past and the messengers of God
stoned to death, the punishment for blasphemy because their message has not
been accepted but seen as blasphemy. Jesus uses the beautiful image of the hen
gathering her chicks under her wings to show how his care for Jerusalem is like
that of God caring for his people, an image used frequently in the Hebrew
Scriptures. Their refusal to accept Jesus will mean however that they are left
abandoned and desolate.
The passage ends with Jesus quoting psalm 117,
the great psalm of the resurrection which we sing every Sunday during Morning Prayer
or Prayer during the Day. This psalm will be used by the crowds as Jesus enters
Jerusalem and looks forward to his achieving his purpose with his death and his
resurrection.
What does this passage say to us today? Above
all it shows Jesus’ determination to achieve his purpose and, finally, to offer
himself in death on Calvary. Can we draw inspiration from Jesus’ determination
to persevere when the going gets difficult and to let nothing deflect us from
what we know to be the right course of action.
Friday October 30th. Friday in Week
Thirty in Year Two. Martyrs of
Winchester (+1582-1593)
The Martyrs of Winchester are only commemorated
in the diocese of Portsmouth and so if you live outside the diocese you will
not find them mentioned.
Among the many who died for the adherence to
the ‘old’ church, five suffered in Winchester which is in the Portsmouth
diocese and the reason for our remembering them.
John Slade was a schoolmaster and was arrested
in June 1582 and imprisoned with John Body, another schoolmaster who was
executed at Andover on November 3rd., 1582. John Slade was put to
death in Winchester on October 30th., 1582.
Roger Diccinson was ordained priest abroad in
1583 and returned to work in Winchester. After a short while he was arrested
and deported but came back to England again and worked in Worcestershire. He
returned to Winchester in 1591 and was arrested while presiding at Mass. He was tried for his priesthood and was
executed in Winchester on July 7th., 1591.
Ralph Milner was a Hampshire man and was
reconciled with the Roman church in middle age. He was arrested the day after
he had received his first Communion as a Roman Catholic but his imprisonment
was such that it allowed him to continue to do a lot of charitable work in the
county. He was arrested again with Roger Diccinson and was executed with him on
July 7th., 1591.
Lawrence Humphreys was also a Hampshire man and
was reconciled with the Roman church at the age of eighteen and worked then as
a catechist. He was arrested after falling ill and seeming to utter insulting
language about the Queen in his delirium. He was condemned and on the scaffold
made a public confession of his faith before being executed. The exact date of
his death is uncertain but it was certainly between 1589 and 1593.
James Bird was born in Winchester where his
father held public office. James was reconciled to the Roman church in 1584. He
was arrested in 1592 and condemned for his faith. He was put to death on March
25th. 1593, which that year was the Vigil of Easter Day.
Remembering these five men reminds us of the
bloody days of the Reformation when Christian people believed it right to put
each other to death because of their differences of faith. It is good to
remember this because in our own day we are faced with atrocities committed in
the name of religion. We Christians cannot adopt the high moral ground since we
too have done terrible things in the name of God.
We pray for a better understanding between
Christians of different churches and for a willingness to set aside our
differences in order to work together to proclaim the love of God in the world
together.
There are proper readings for the Martyrs but
almost certainly those of the day will be used
Readings
Letter to the Philippians 1/1-11 :
Luke 14/1-6
We begin to read the Letter to the Philippians
today and we shall be reading it for the next week.
Paul had crossed over the sea with Silas and
Timothy from the Province of Asia, present day Turkey, to Macedonia, present
day Northern Greece in the year 50-51 C.E.
They landed at the port of Neapolis where the great Roman highway, the
Via Egnatia, ran down to the sea. Since
the roads were not always well maintained, Philippi, some ten miles inland,
depended heavily on commerce coming up the short stretch of the road from the
Mediterranean. This was where
Paul and his companions immediately went since
it was a major Roman city with many veterans of earlier army campaigns. It was
here that Paul proclaimed the Gospel and founded the first Christian community
in Europe. (Acts of the Apostles 16/11-15). Though their stay was probably quite
brief they had considerable success among both Jews and non-Jews and a century
later, Polycarp was able to speak of the strength of their faith which was
still flourishing. at the beginning it was a merchant woman, Lydia, a seller of
purple goods and a sympathiser towards Judaism, who was baptised with all her
household and who offered her house for Paul’s use during his stay.
It would seem that the position of women in
Philippi was quite prominent and later in his letter Paul refers to two other
women, Evodia and Syntyche, who had been co-workers with him. Their names and
the names of Epaphroditus and Clement would seem to indicate that there was a
high proportion of non-Jews in the Christian community there.
Another incident in Philippi caused Paul and
Silas to be hauled before the magistrates as troublesome Jews and so it is no
wonder that Paul says that they suffered and were shamefully treated
there. (1 Thessalonians 2/2). After this
episode Paul and Silas left for Thessalonika.
Scholars do not dispute that this Letter was
written by Paul himself, probably about the year 56 C.E. though some would put
it later in 58-60 C.E. if written from Caesarea
or 6-63 C.E. if written from Rome.
Some scholars suggest that his letter is made up of two or even three
letters oput together but most agree that it is all one piece.
This letter is a strong confirmation of the
special relationship which the Philippian church had with Paul. There is
between them a strong bond of friendship and the human attraction of Paul is
shown by the loyalty which the Philippian Christians had towards him. Besides
the bonds of friendship which are evident in the letter, it also reflects the
thoughts which have been forced upon him by his imprisonment for preaching the
Gospel.
Paul’s motive for writing the letter is to
encourage the Philippian Christians and to try to deal with some of the
internal problems which they are facing.
In today’s extract e read both the greeting to the church of Philippi which is
followed by a prolonged thanksgiving for their faith and witness and the prayer
that they may grow in their love for one another. Paul expresses almost
passionately his love for the Philippian Christians and how much he misses
them. In touching words Paul says that his prayer for them is that their love
for each other may increase more and more and never stop improving their
knowledge and deepening their perception so that you can always recognise what
is best. In all of this short extract we can see Paul’s conviction that the
Holy Spirit is at work in the Philippian church and he is confident of their
progress in the faith of Christ.
For us today it must make us reflect on our own
communities and to ask ourselves where is that warmth and affection that was so
obviously there among those Philippian Christians.
In the Gospel reading the struggle between
Jesus and the Pharisees continues and Jesus is at a meal in one of their
houses. This time Jesus does not wait for them to make accusations but takes
the initiative in asking them whether it is against the Law to cure on the
Sabbath Day. The Pharisees remain silent because they know that whatever answer
they give, they will fall into
the trap that Jesus has laid for them. Jesus
rubs it in however by reminding them if their son or even their ox fell into a
well on the Sabbath day they would pull him out. Common sense tells them that
this must be right and also the fact that the love of neighbour overrides all
the details of the Law. How much more must it be right to heal the man with the
dropsy on the Sabbath Day.
Again Jesus is reminding them that the Law and
the Sabbath are meant to help them keep the universal Law of love whereas they
have made the Law a mine-field of rules and regulations that few could observe.
For us too we must never lose sight that what is important is love of our
neighbours and not the keeping of rules and regulations.
Saturday October 31st. Saturday in Week Thirty in Year Two.
Readings
Letter to the Philippians 1/18-26 :
Luke 14/1, 7-11
In today’s extract from the Letter to the
Philippians Paul speaks of his situation in prison and his attitude towards
death. It would seem to show that Paul’ understanding of the coming again of
Christ has changed and he has to wrestle with whether it is better to die and
be with Christ or to live and to await his coming. Paul seems to come down on the side of
surviving so that he can continue to be of use to the Philippias Christian
community when he sees them again.
This is an illuminating passage because it shows Paul struggling in his mind
with what is best both for himself and for the Philippian Christians who are so
dear to him.
Here as elsewhere in this letter we get a clear
picture of the warm affection Paul has for his brothers and sisters in Christ.
In fact, this Letter has been singled out as an example of what friendship in
Christ truly means.
In the Gospel extract we continue the account
of the meal that Jesus took in the house of one of leading Pharisees. His
fellow guests are all lawyers and Pharisees and they have invited Jesus to
share a meal with them on the Sabbath day. The invitation would seem to be
hypocritical since the Pharisees really want to observe Jesus and catch him out
if they can. As we saw yesterday, Jesus was the one to take the initiative and
to put the Pharisees on the spot.
As we continue the account of this meal today,
Jesus knows how these men believe themselves to be law-abiding and righteous,
expecting to be honoured by ordinary people. Jesus reproaches them for this and
reminds them that the truly sincere and honest person would not take the first
place but would act humbly and, perhaps, be singled out for honour by the host.
But the message for them as for us is in the last sentence, ‘Everyone who
exalts themselves will be humbled’ and ‘whoever humbles themselves will be exalted’.
Again this is God turning our human values upside down. It is not the great and
the important people in the eyes of the world who are first but the little
people and the outcasts who nobody notices.
These attitudes ought to be reflected in our
communities. Who do we treat as most important? Who are given the first places
in our meetings together? We all know the answer but have we got it the wrong
way round?
In this present time of Pandemic, we have time
to reflect on Jesus’ words and to ask ourselves whether we want our church to
continue to reflect all these false and worldly values or whether we want it to
be truly according to the mind of Jesus where the first are last and the last
first and where all are welcome, especially the most neglected and despised. Is
it time to start afresh and to build a church that is a reflection of what the
coming Kingdom of God must be like?
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