September 22
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
“The Lord upholds my life.”
Readings
Reflection
The question that we ponder this week is this; how can we live our lives in humility and service to the Lord without getting caught up in pride and self-love? Our readings speak to the conflict between being humble servants and being so caught up in ourselves that pride and arrogance take over our lives.
In the reading from the book of Wisdom, we hear about people who are so focused on their own need to preserve their pride and arrogance that they see the very existence of someone who is a just and humble servant as an enemy; someone to be mocked and even killed. In the epistle of St. James, we hear about how selfish ambition breeds “disorder and every foul practice.” James juxtaposes this type of arrogance with the peace and joy of humble service to others, calling it peaceable, gentle and compliant. In the Gospel from Mark, Jesus cautions the apostles against their discussion of who is the greatest, telling them that true greatness in the Kingdom of God lies in serving others, especially children.
In his great book The Art of Living, Dr. Edward Sri has spoken on the sin of vanity, writing; “The vain person seeks the praise of men more than he strives to live a truly honorable life: a life recognized by God, the angels and the saints as worthy of praise.” In our society there are many people who want the spotlight on themselves at all times. It is okay for movie stars, sports legends, and musical artists and the like, to seek the spotlight. Their work is worldly and helps us to spend our downtime in pleasurable ways. But those of us who seek the Kingdom of God need to focus on the needs and sufferings of others if we want to fulfill our dream to one day become citizens of heaven. Let us humbly serve our Lord and each other, seeing others as more important than we are.
Peace,
Deacon Dare
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