My Dear Brothers and Sisters:
I would like to welcome all of you back from summer vacation. I hope you had a wonderful, rested and peaceful one. Now, the first week of September means the end of the summer holidays and the beginning of another fruitful school year. For many working parents, it means returning to their regular routine and less worries about finding responsible babysitters. I pray that by the grace of the Heavenly Father and the power of the Holy Spirit, that all of you, children and parents, may successfully achieve your short-term and long-term goals in the coming months for the joy and peace of Christ to reign in your families.
When I meditate on today’s readings, there is only one word that comes to mind: “Humility.” The first reading from the Book of Sirach teaches us that if we perform our tasks with humility, we will be loved by those whom God accepts. The greater we are, the more we must humble ourselves, so we will find favor in the sight of the Lord. In the Gospel reading, we hear Jesus talking about where the guests should sit at the table when invited. As a general rule in a fixed system, the most distinguished guest sits at the right hand of the host, where he receives the highest honor. The second most important guest sits at the left side of the host, and so on. While Jesus was aware of this fixed system, he was not presenting a lesson in social etiquette. He used this example of good manners at the table to draw attention to how honor is accredited in the Kingdom of God. When Jesus pointed out that it is up to the host to invite the guest to come and move to a higher position at the table, He was saying something else. The attendance of the guest at the table depends on an invitation from God. And the reward lies in the growing likeness of God Himself, who tells the least worthy to come up higher.
Therefore, the spiritual lesson that we should learn this week is: “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart.” We are encouraged to persevere in our living faith. We are encouraged to persevere in humility so we may be humble as Jesus was humble. So this week, let us reflect upon these words and ask ourselves if we are humble as we should be. Let us pray for each other, asking God to grant us true humility so we may find favor in His sight.
With love,
Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen