Luke 7:36-50
A
certain Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him,
and he entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table.
Now there was a sinful woman in the city
who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee.
Bringing an alabaster flask of ointment,
she stood behind him at his feet weeping
and began to bathe his feet with her tears.
Then she wiped them with her hair,
kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself,
“If this man were a prophet,
he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him,
that she is a sinner.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Simon, I have something to say to you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two people were in debt to a certain creditor;
one owed five hundred days’ wages and the other owed fifty.
Since they were unable to repay the debt, he forgave it for both.
Which of them will love him more?”
Simon said in reply,
“The one, I suppose, whose larger debt was forgiven.”
He said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon,
“Do you see this woman?
When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet,
but she has bathed them with her tears
and wiped them with her hair.
You did not give me a kiss,
but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered.
You did not anoint my head with oil,
but she anointed my feet with ointment.
So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven;
hence, she has shown great love.
But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”
He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The others at table said to themselves,
“Who is this who even forgives sins?”
But he said to the woman,
“Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
and he entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table.
Now there was a sinful woman in the city
who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee.
Bringing an alabaster flask of ointment,
she stood behind him at his feet weeping
and began to bathe his feet with her tears.
Then she wiped them with her hair,
kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself,
“If this man were a prophet,
he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him,
that she is a sinner.”
Jesus said to him in reply,
“Simon, I have something to say to you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two people were in debt to a certain creditor;
one owed five hundred days’ wages and the other owed fifty.
Since they were unable to repay the debt, he forgave it for both.
Which of them will love him more?”
Simon said in reply,
“The one, I suppose, whose larger debt was forgiven.”
He said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon,
“Do you see this woman?
When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet,
but she has bathed them with her tears
and wiped them with her hair.
You did not give me a kiss,
but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered.
You did not anoint my head with oil,
but she anointed my feet with ointment.
So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven;
hence, she has shown great love.
But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”
He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The others at table said to themselves,
“Who is this who even forgives sins?”
But he said to the woman,
“Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Reflection
Having great pride
in who we are and in what we do is something that we all strive for. We want to
be proud of ourselves and of the qualities that make us a unique child of God.
This is a message that we not only pass on to others, but one that others pass
back on to us.
In today’s Gospel,
Jesus shows us two different ways in which we can have and use our pride. The
women who washed Jesus feet is not only prideful, but she is also humble. She
understands that she has made mistakes, but she humbly puts herself before the
Lord to seek forgiveness. The pride of Simon the Pharisee, the man who invited
Jesus into his home, is also on display for us. However, instead of being
humble in the presence of the Lord, he allowed for his ego to control him when
he pointed out to Jesus the pervious actions of the women washing his
feet.
It is visible
through the women washing Jesus feet and Simon the Pharisee that our personal
actions can change when we combined a different character trait with our sense
of pride. When our pride causes us to think only of ourselves, we have a
tendency to bring others down to lift ourselves up. Although, when we combined our pride with humility,
we typically aspire to put others before ourselves.
When we begin to
put others before ourselves in our lives, like the women washing Jesus feet, we
enhance the greatest of all the spiritual gifts, love. Love is the gift that allows us to go beyond
our wants and needs and gives us the opportunity to serve others. The love we
feel and the love we spread will never wither away, rather it will help us know
ourselves fully, just as God fully knows us!
Allow us to be
proud of the way we serve others through our love of one another just as our
God loves us!
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