Twenty Second Sunday    September 2, 2007

Sirach 3 :17-29  Psalm: 68 Hebrews 12: 18 -19, 22-24 Luke 14 : 7-14

Theme: Humility leads to Trusting in God

1.  Dorothy Day: the co founder of the Catholic Workers Movement. She was an extraordinary woman, but did not take her importance, or her fame too seriously. On one occasion at a convention where she was the Keynote speaker, Dorothy Day met a Drunken woman, with a vivid birth mark. The woman was overbearing and loud. Yet Dorothy Day listened as if the woman was the only one in the world. And when she was interrupted, she asked, “Do you want to speak to ONE OF US”. Never for a moment did she presume that she was the one that was the more important of the two.

in one simple phrase she cut

• through all our deep layers of self importance.
• our lifetime of privilege and cutting corners.
• right to the hard bone of our pride.

She did not give herself any importance, that is why others did.

2.  That story of Dorothy Day pretty well illustrated the theme of our readings today. You have HUMILITY mentioned in our First reading and in the Gospel today.

The first reading is taken from the Book of Sirach. It is classified among the Wisdom Writings. Jesus ben Sirach was a learned teacher who lived in Jerusalem around two centuries before Jesus.  The Book of Sirach may be found under another name: Ecclesiasticus or the Church Book. However, if you look for the Book of Sirach in Hebrew Scriptures or in the Anglican Bibles, you will not find it there. It is only found in the Catholic and Orthodox Bibles.

This book contains 60 or more wisdom themes. How to get along at home, at work. How to deal with family, friends, enemies. Pretty interesting and practical stuff. For those of you in hospitals, in senior homes, or living by yourself and coping with old age, sickness, pains and aches: you can read Chapter 38.

 Today a father is giving his son some practical advice on work. If you succeed and honour and glory do not be puffed up. On the other hand if you fail, do not get discouraged, take a look at your job description and take a look at your skills. Perhaps you have bitten off more than you can chew.  However, this passage from the BOOK OF SIRACH has been chosen because it is a natural background to the practical teaching of Jesus in the Gospel.

3. Jesus tells us not to grab for glories and honours that you think are due to you. You may not be worthy of that honour, or someone else has a better claim than you do. You may as a result be humiliated before all. It is not an embarrassment that anyone of us wants to experience.

 Jesus gives us a practical case, which we experience even now in 2007. You visit a house, or I go to a parish rectory. When we are invited in, it is quite natural that we look for the most comfortable chair and we plonk ourselves in it.

 When I enter a Rectory, I always ask where does the bishop sit, or the parish priest sit. It need not be at the head of the table. Often when we sit by mistake in the special place, people and especially Bishops are often gracious and will not say a word about your faux pas. But there is always an Archie Bunker type of person who will simply say, “GET OUT OF MY CHAIR.” And we do not want that do we?

4.  However, if we read the Readings and Gospel of the Mass more carefully and prayerfully, we will notice that there is something deeper than the lesson of humility here. There is an invitation to faith, to trust in God, to a deeper relationship with God. Those who have done the 12 Steps or read the 12 Steps of Alcoholic Anonymous will understand this more easily. They say, “I am an alcoholic. I have a problem which I cannot deal with by myself. I need the help of a Higher Power.” We Christians call this Higher Power - God.

 The reason for humility according to Sirach and according to Jesus is a realisation that all our goodness, all our success, every honour we get is due to Talents and Skills. All these talents are from a Higher Power: God. I cannot go down to the St. Lawrence Market or the No-Frills store and buy them there.  Without these gifts from God I would be a mere “HAS BEEN” a mere nobody.  That knowledge, that wisdom that everything comes from God is the basis of my humility.

ALL THAT I HAVE AND ALL THAT I OFFER comes from the goodness and graciousness of God. It is God who loves me and thinks I am special. This Wisdom comes from the Humility that both Sirach and Jesus speak of in the first reading and in the Gospel.  With that confidence, who could ask for anything more. God bless you all.