Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!” Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, “What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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When I think of a sacred space, I think of this church. This altar. This pulpit. The Saints and the Stations of the Cross that line our walls.
Sacred spaces are filled with holy things that point us to God.
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In today’s Gospel, there’s a man with an unclean spirit present in the synagogue. But the synagogue was a holy place – a sacred space, so why is he there?
Surely, he doesn’t belong… Or does he?
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Perhaps he was a conflicted man, both a believer and a sinner – a man who knew he was under the power of something stronger than himself.
Maybe he went to the synagogue that day praying to be set free.
And he was.
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At times, how many of us feel the same way?
We need Jesus to set us free from something: fear, laziness, jealousy, judgmental thoughts, anger, impatience, anxiety, whatever it may be.
We approach the Lord in confidence, praying that he will say those same words to us: “Come out of him! … Come out of her!”
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Jesus can do it. He will do it. Sometimes the healing work of the Spirit is instant, as it is in the Gospel.
Most often it takes time.
We need patience with ourselves – and with others – while the Lord heals us, trusting in the words of Saint Paul: “God, who has begun this good work within you, will bring it to fulfillment.”
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Image credits: (1) ArchDaily (2) Gospelimages (3) Martins Creek Mennonite Church
Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, “Is this not the son of Joseph?” He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb, ‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.'” And he said, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Today’s Gospel passage takes place in the synagogue of Christ’s hometown, where Jesus just began his public ministry. He begins by opening the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, proclaiming, “Today this prophecy is fulfilled in your hearing.”
God has visited his people!
Filled with awe and excitement, Saint Luke tells us, “All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.”
Yet, within a matter of sentences, the same crowd who marveled at Christ’s words were ready to push him off a cliff!
What a tragic, confusing turn of events.
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In many ways, this experience of praise and near simultaneous rejection bookend Christ’s life. When he’s born in Bethlehem, the magi lay gifts at his feet in adoration, then King Herod tries killing him.
Thirty-three years later on Palm Sunday, crowds lay branches at the feet of Jesus in praise, only to shout out on Good Friday, “Crucify him!”
Such is the fragile nature of public opinion – and by extension, the fickleness of humanity.
These Gospel characters remind us how quickly people can be to judge; to draw false conclusions without having all of the facts; or to turn on others, even on God in the flesh.
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Perhaps you’ve experienced the same phenomenon of worldly praise then rejection. Or maybe you’ve found yourself in the position of the crowds, critical and quick to judge.
But the Lord reminds us today that our mission is not to seek the praise of others, or to be overly concerned by the change in tide of public opinion.
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 honor at the table. “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. 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 neighbors, 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.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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A few years ago, I traveled with a friend to Ireland. While there, we celebrated Mass in his hometown church, a tiny white chapel perched on a hill.
Walking in for the first time, I noticed something unusual… each pew had a bronze name plate. Walking down the aisle you could read them all: “O’Callaghan. O’Connor. Murphy. Duffy. Doyle.”
When I asked why, he said the pews dated back to when the chapel was built. Each pew was auctioned off as a fundraiser. The last pew went to the highest bidder – and the first pew went to the lowest bidder.
“Why would someone pay the highest price to have the last seat?” I wondered.
Referencing today’s Gospel, where Jesus instructs his disciples to take the seat of lowest honor, he chuckled and said to me, “It seems people were willing to pay for their humility.”
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What, exactly, is humility?
It can be hard to define, yet we know it when we see it and we know it when we don’t.
The word humility comes from the Latin word, humus, meaning, “earth.” Thus, a humble person is well-grounded; their feet are firmly planted, allowing them to stand – neither above nor below – but shoulder to shoulder with the rest of humanity.
Even those whom Jesus mentions in today’s Gospel – the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and those “unable to repay you.” A humble person can blend right in without making their neighbor feel uncomfortable for being poorer or less fortunate than they are.
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This is how Jesus lived his entire life.
He was born in a stable in Bethlehem. He spent his infancy as a refugee, fleeing the wrath of King Herod. He was raised by a poor teenage mother and a humble foster father in the unassuming town of Nazareth, a small dot on the edge of the Roman Empire.
As an adult, he never owned a home nor had a natural family of his own. He spent his life on the road, preaching, healing, and forgiving those caught in sin.
At the Last Supper, he had to borrow someone else’s home to celebrate a meal with his disciples. There Jesus gave them all he had left – his own Body and Blood – under the appearance of bread and wine.
Hours later, he died on a common cross and was laid in a borrowed tomb.
Although he is the Son of God, Jesus always sought the seat of lowest honor, identifying with the downtrodden in this world. As a lasting message to all who would be his followers, he reminds us, “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me.”
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How are we humble like the Lord?
Although we may have more materially than Jesus ever did, how are we humble of heart?
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Allow me to offer a few possibilities.
Humility is acknowledging our weaknesses while also trying to better ourselves. It’s the willingness to accept that other people are just as weak as we are without making them feel it.
It’s the ease with which we love; the readiness with which we forgive; the spontaneity with which we serve.
Humility is the spouse who foregoes the last word, or the need to be right in a trivial argument, in order to preserve peace in the household.
It’s the dad who sacrifices a golf game or a boy’s night out in order to attend his child’s recital… or a meeting at church.
It’s the athlete who earns the bronze or silver medal while congratulating the one who earned gold.
It’s the person who quietly drops off treats for our Sunday café, who purifies the linens for Mass, or who serves our community in any way without needing the recognition.
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Humility can also mean the ability to say, “No.”
There are so many demands placed upon our time. A humble person knows when – and how – to politely decline an invitation.
They’re also not afraid of succession at work or in ministry; they know when it’s time to let another person step forward. A humble person understands their limitations, but gives their best at all times.
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Back in Ireland, I remember asking my friend, “Why would someone pay the highest price to have the lowest seat?”
“It seems people were willing to pay for their humility,” he chuckled.
Humility is an odd thing. We know it when we see it and we know it when we don’t. May Christ’s humility guide our words and actions this week.
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Image credits: (1) The Philosophical Economist (2) iStock (3) Hillspring Church
