One has only to recall the astonishment of Mary and Joseph who glimpsed for themselves the divinity of God in the wisdom of the child Jesus: “...all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers . . . . And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor”. [Lk 2:47, 52]
The Divine Word is the very human Jesus who tells parables and stories. Although captivating for their entertainment value, stories and parables are a healing art in the oldest sense. Some, like Jesus, are called to this art. The best storytellers are those whose stories are, in essence, their “children”. And good storytellers, like mothers and fathers who love their children, come to understand without fully apprehending a parable’s complexities or exhausting its themes or the mysteries it invokes.
When a believer nourishes himself with the wisdom and parables of Jesus, he enfleshes the soul of the scriptures, accepting cheerfully all its possibilities. The highest possible activity for the disciple and the greatest honor to Christ—who from the beginning is the Word, and who was with God and is God [cf. Jn 1:2]—is to evangelize the truths of scripture to willing hearts.
Let no one, however, instruct in the sacred mysteries if he has not put on the mind of Christ [1Cor 2:16]: "And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who possess the Spirit." [1Cor 2:13]
While dining in the home of a prominent Pharisee, Jesus notices how several guests contend for choice seating. Better to hope for a social promotion at table, says Jesus, than to experience a shameful eviction from a conspicuous seat by a host seeking to please a more prestigious guest. Self-exaltation destroys the potential of being genuinely appreciated by someone else. The pompous exhibitionist is a mere ant whose exaggerated trumpeting is an empty show. Under the glare of his own self-magnification, he risks being consumed in the heat of day. A respectful demeanor, however, preserves—indeed enriches—the generative potential of the humble person and his experiences of life.
Lest Jesus’ fellow guests are oblivious of this point, and turn to fighting for the second-best seat, he offers a parable. Lest his fellow guests view Jesus’ parable as a mere point of social etiquette regarding the avoidance of embarrassment, Jesus turns up the heat and drives home the unsettling surprise: "But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind." [Lk 14:13]  What has Jesus done but yank the chair away from swinish people?
Is it  just possible, that all of those ambitious guests and the whole of humanity are —in the presence of the merciful and bountiful God— utterly impoverished in their human nature: wounded , broken and unable to perceive where they are or in what direction they should go? Alone and unaided, man is incapable of offering God recompense for any good thing, let alone his very existence and self-awareness. Without God, what can any person do? How can he save himself in this life and for the next?
Through Christ, man receives everything. With Christ he inherits everything. In Christ he offers recompense to God in everything! Don’t grasp for the limelight. Take up your cross and follow Jesus Christ. And take to heart this very short parable of Our Lord! "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life?" [Mt 16:24-26]  Sincerely in the hearts of Jesus and Mary. Your pastor, Reverend Richard Barker.

Aug 25 gsc