Gospel Lectio Divina for Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time - September 11, 2022
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.
O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.
READ
Lk 15: 1-10
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them he addressed this parable.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”
MEDITATE
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
The Pharisees and scribes overlooked something important. Jesus did not love only sinners. He loved everyone in the specific way they needed to be loved, and still does, because that’s what love does. We have to know someone in order to love them, and it’s the getting to know part that bothered the scribes and Pharisees. For Jesus, perhaps he already did know them since he is God and knows everything (although we should not forget the mystery of his human nature when it comes to getting to know people.) Evenso, these “sinners” did not know him, and that is perhaps the harder part when it comes to loving someone. They have to let us into their hearts, and to do that we have to let them get to know us. That may be what Jesus is doing here, when he sits with those who are apparently of ill repute in his community. Other people kept their distance, but Jesus came close to them because he knew how the human heart works. Confiding in someone isn’t just about being comfortable opening up to them. To reach that level of trust, they have to open up to you too. What words did Jesus share as he sat with those shunned by his society? Did he share what was on his mind, his concerns, his interests, his humanity? Sometimes it seems inappropriate to meditate on Jesus’ humanity, but I think we have to in order to understand what he is doing in this scene. He had to show them that he is like them in all ways but sin, otherwise his effort to reach them would not have succeeded. We do not believe in a God who only lives in a world outside of our own, who simply looks down upon us and pities our state. Jesus was one of us. While he was the holiest man who ever lived, this did not infringe upon his ability to relate to sinners. In fact, it may have made his ways of relating even more effective because he was probably able to see exactly what these people really needed, since he was in such perfect conformity with the divine will. And those he spoke to probably saw in him everything they longed to be. In seeing this desire in them, Jesus saw that these sheep are simply lost, and he knew exactly how to find them.
Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep
God desires for everyone to come back to him, even those who were never part of the Body of Christ, the Church. In today’s culture, there is a crisis of fallen away Catholics. They are lost sheep, but so are those who never believed. Rejoice, Christ says, not only when a fallen away Catholic comes home but also rejoice when someone who never believed comes to the Church, since they also were lost and now are found. A nonbeliever may have never had a home in the Church, but Jesus still calls nonbelievers his lost sheep as well. We all are his sheep and we all belong to him. We all belong to the one true shepherd, who wills for all of us to be saved.
Light a lamp
After reading this passage dozens of times, only now am I seeing what the lamp symbolizes, and what it means to light it. The lamp’s light is the light of truth. You may be thinking, this little parable relates to finding our lost brethren and bringing them back to God, and doesn’t have much to do with light. But won’t searching for truth help bring lost sheep back to God? In fact, that’s the only way to help lead them home. If we are not truthful with them, if we are not earnest and honest in our search for the truth of their situation and what’s in the way of them finding the truth, the lost sheep will sense that we are not genuine. It’s the search for truth that should make us search for lost sheep, as we ask ourselves, “Where are they?”, “What’s keeping them from seeing it?” So often when I try to evangelize, I admit, I assume I know where the nonbeliever is coming from. I assume that I know where they are in their life journey. But evangelization is a search for the person to whom we are evangelizing. It’s a mystery that challenges us to find out what’s going to reach them, what’s going to help them see the truth. Until then, we are just as much in the dark as they are. We need to use the lamp to find them. What is the lamp? It’s God’s word, the Bible, it’s Jesus himself–who is the Truth and the Word of God. Jesus is the Light we light to find the lost coin, the lost sheep. Without him, we will be just as lost as anyone else when we try to reach others and help bring them home.
PRAY
Dear Lord,
As I aim to be a good witness for you and your kingdom for others, keep me humble. We all need you. My goal in sharing you with others is to simply show them the great nourishment and blessings I’ve received from you, so they can share in them. Like a sheep who has found greener pastures, inspire and teach me how to show people the way to those pastures. Thank you for all you have given me, and show me how to share it with others. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
LISTEN
Sheep are not very smart, but they do have one thing going for them at least. They are relatively obedient. They go where they are led. They listen. Jesus said his sheep know him and hear his voice. They recognize him. In order to discern God’s voice, we have to listen for it and familiarize ourselves with it. It’s in moments like this, after reading his Word, when it’s best to stop and listen to what he may be saying to us now.
Kilby is a freelance writer from New Jersey and managing editor of Catholic World Report.
