Be Modest in what You do

Readings for September 1, 2013

Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time 

It-22 Ħadd matul is-Sena – Sena 'Ċ'

Messalin C pp378

Reading 1                             SIRACH 3:17-18, 20, 28-29

My child, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.  Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favour with God. What is too sublime for you, seek not, into things beyond your strength search not. The mind of a sage appreciates proverbs, and an attentive ear is the joy of the wise. Water quenches a flaming fire, and alms atone for sins. This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Ewwel Qari     --   Bin Sirak 3, 17-20, 28-29

Ibni, kun ġwejjed fix-xogħol li tagħmel, u tkun maħbub iktar minn wieħed milqugħ min-nies. Akbar m'int, iktar għandek iċċekken, ruħek, U  ssib grazzja  quddiem il-Mulej. Ħafna huma l-imkabbrin u l-imsebbħin, imma l-Mulej jikxef lill-umli l-misteri tiegħu. Għax kbira hi s-setgħa tal-Mulej, imma msebbaħ min-nies umli. M'hemmx duwa għall-bniedem kollu kburija, għax din ħaxixa ħażina b'għeruqha mxenxla fih. Min għandu l-għerf jifhem il-proverbji u l-għaref ħerqan li jkollu min jisimgħu. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej         

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Responsorial Psalm                           PSalms 68:4-5, 6-7, 10-11

R. (cf. 11b) God, in your goodness,

you have made a home for the poor.

The just rejoice and exult before God;
they are glad and rejoice.
Sing to God, chant praise to his name;
whose name is the LORD.                                                                  R/

The father of orphans and the defender of widows
is God in his holy dwelling.
God gives a home to the forsaken;
he leads forth prisoners to prosperity.                                             R/

A bountiful rain you showered down, O God, upon your inheritance;
you restored the land when it languished;
your flock settled in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided it for the needy.            R/

Salm Responsorjali            (Salm 67)

                R/   O Alla, int ħejjejt dar għall-fqajjar.

Il-ġusti jithennew quddiem Alla,

jifirħu u jaqbżu bil-ferħ.

Għannu lil Alla, faħħru ismu,

Tgħaxxqu fil-Mulej, aqbżu bil-ferħ quddiemu!        R/

Missier l-iltiema u difensur tar-romol,

hekk hu Alla fl-għamara mqaddsa tiegħu.

Alla jagħti d-dar lil dawk li huma weħidhom,

U lill-ħabsin bir-riżq joħroġhom.                                R/

Xita bil-kotra inti bgħatt, O Alla, fuq l-art, wirt tiegħek,

U meta kienet bil-għatx inti ħjejtha.

Il-poplu tiegħek għammar fiha;

fi tjubitek o Alla, għall-fqajjar ħejjejtha,.                   R/          

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Reading 2                             HEBrews 12:18-19, 22-24A

Brothers and sisters:  You have not approached that which could be touched and a blazing fire and gloomy darkness  and storm and a trumpet blast and a voice speaking words such that those who heard begged that no message be further addressed to them. No, you have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and countless angels in festal gathering, and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven, and God the judge of all, and the spirits of the just made perfect, and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel. This is the Word of The Lord.

It-Tieni Qari                -   -Lhud 12, 18-19, 22-24

Ħuti,  intom ma rsaqtux lejn in-nar materjali u jħeġġeġ tas-Sinaj; lejn dak is-swied u d-dlam u r-riefnu; lejn dak id-daqq tat-tromba u l-ħoss ta' kliem, li dawk li kienu jisimgħuh talbu bil-ħerqa biex ma jkellimhomx aktar. Imma intom ersaqtu lejn il-muntanja ta’ Sijon u lejn il-belt ta’ Alla l-ħaj, li hi Ġerusalem tas-Sema; ersaqtu lejn eluf ta’ anġli f’ġemgħa ferrieħa, lejn il-ġemgħa tal-ulied ewlenin li isimhom hu miktub fis-sema,  lejn Alla, l-imħallef ta’ kulħadd; lejn l-erwieħ ta’ nies tajba u perfetti; lejn Ġesu’, il-medjatur ta’ patt ġdid. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

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Gospel                                   LuKe 14:1, 7-14

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honour at the table. “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honour.  A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him, and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place. Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” Then he said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your wealthy neighbours, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Evangelju           Luqa 14, 1, 7-14

Darba, kien is-Sibt, Ġesu’ daħal għand wieħed mill-kapijiet tal-Fariżej biex jiekol għandu, u huma qagħdu għajnejhom fih.Billi ra b’għajnejh kif il-mistednin bdew jagħżlu  l-postijiet ta’ quddiem fil-mejda,   qalilhom din il-parabbola: “Meta wieħed jistiednek għall-festa tat-tieġ, tmurx toqgħod fil-post  ta’ quddiem,  li ma jkunx hemm xi mistieden aqwa minnek mistieden minnu, u dak li jkun stieden lilek u lilu jiġu fuqek igħidlek, "Agħti l-post lil dan,"  u int imbagħad, b’regħxa ta’ mistħija fuqek, ikollok tieħu l-post ta’ l-aħħar. Għall-kuntrarju, meta tkun mistieden, mur inxteħet fil-post ta’ l-aħħar, biex meta jiġi dak li stiednek, jgħidlek,  "Ħabib, itla’ f’post ‘il fuq."   U dan ikun ta’ ġieħ għalik quddiem dawk kollha li  jkunu fil-mejda miegħek. Għax kull min jitkabbar, jiċċekken; u min jiċċekken, jitkabbar.” Imbaghad qal ukoll lil dak li kien stiednu:  “Meta tagħti ikla jew pranzu, tistedinx lil-ħbiebek jew lil ħutek jew lil qrabatek, anqas ġirien għonja,  għaxn għandhom mnejn imbagħad jistiednu lilek huma, u hekk iroddulek il-pjaċir li tkun għamiltilhom.Għall-kuntrarju,  meta tagħmel ikla, stieden il-foqra, Il-magħtubin, iz-zopop u l-għomja, u ħieni int, għax dawn ma għandhomx minn fejn iroddulek pjaċir bi pjaċir, imma jroddhulek   Alla meta l-ġusti jqumu għall-ħajja!” Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

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COMMENTARY

Father Cantalamessa on Modesty

Here is a translation of a commentary by the Pontifical Household preacher, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, on the readings from this Sunday's liturgy.

Be Modest in What You Do!

The beginning of this Sunday's Gospel helps us to correct a widely diffused prejudice: "One Sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him." Reading the Gospel from a certain angle we have ended up making the Pharisees the prototype for all vices: hypocrisy, duplicity, falsity; Jesus' enemies par excellence. The terms "Pharisee" and "Pharisaical" have entered into the vocabulary of many languages with negative connotations.

Such an idea of the Pharisees is not correct. There were certainly many among them who corresponded to this negative image and it is with these that Jesus has serious problems. But not all of them were like this. Nicodemus, who comes to see Jesus one night and who later defended him before the Sanhedrin, was a Pharisee (cf. John 3:1; 7:50ff.). Saul was a Pharisee before his conversion and was certainly a sincere and zealous person then, if misguided. Gamaliel, who defended the apostles before the Sanhedrin, was a Pharisee (cf. Acts 5:34ff.).

Jesus' relationships with the Pharisees were not only conflictual. They often shared the same convictions, such as faith in the resurrection of the dead and the love of God and neighbour as the first and most important commandment of the law. Some, as we see in Sunday's Gospel, even invited Jesus to dinner at their house. Today there is agreement that the Pharisees did not want Jesus to be condemned as much as their rival sect, the Sadducees, who belonged to Jerusalem's priestly caste.

For all these reasons, it would be a very good thing to stop using the terms "Pharisee" and "Pharisaical" in a disparaging way. This would also help dialogue with the Jews who recall with great respect the role played by the Pharisees in their history, especially after the destruction of Jerusalem.

During the dinner that Sabbath, Jesus taught two important things: one directed to those who were invited and the other to their host. To the host Jesus says (perhaps privately or only in the presence of his disciples): "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbours ..." This is what Jesus himself did when he invited the poor, the afflicted, the meek, the hungry, the persecuted -- the persons named in the beatitudes -- to the great banquet of the kingdom.

But this time I would like to focus on what Jesus says to the invitees. "When you are invited to a wedding feast, do not take a place of honour ..." Jesus does not intend to give a lesson in good manners here. Neither does he wish to encourage the subtle calculation of those who take a lower place with the secret hope of gaining a more honourable place from the host. The parable could deceive us if we do not think about the banquet and the host that Jesus has in mind. The banquet is the most universal one of the kingdom and God is the host.

In life, Jesus wants to say, Choose the last place, try to work more for the benefit of others than for your own benefit. Be modest in evaluating your merits, allow others to do this instead ("No one is a good judge of his own case"), and already in this life God will lift you up. He will lift you up in his grace; he will make you rise in the ranks of Jesus' friends and true disciples, which is the only thing that really matters.

He will also exalt you in the esteem of others. It is a surprising fact but a true one: It is not only God who "comes to the humble but holds the proud at a distance" (cf. Psalm 107:6); men do the same, whether or not they are believers. Modesty, when it is sincere and not affected, conquers, makes those who practice it loved, makes their company desirable, their opinion appreciated. True glory flees from those who seek it and seeks those who flee from it.

We live in a society that has an extreme need to hear this Gospel message of humility again. Running to take the first seats, perhaps without scruple using others as steppingstones, being opportunistic and viciously competitive -- these are things that are universally condemned but, unfortunately, they are also universally practiced. The Gospel has an impact on society, even when it speaks of humility and modesty.

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