This Sunday’s gospel is one of my
favorite Bible stories; it is the story of the sinful woman who anoints Jesus’
feet with precious oil. The righteous are indignant and wonder why would she
waste her valuable perfume, instead of selling it and giving money to the needy?
The men who had invited Jesus to
eat with them failed to see themselves in this woman who approached Jesus with
humility. They did not possess humility; they were quick to judge this woman’s behavior.
Jesus taught them that this woman’s
repentant act was an act of faith, a divine dialogue with God and we must be
slow to judge others. This woman was
moved to pour out her most valuable possession upon her encounter with God. This is how we please God, when we give the
very best of ourselves to Him, to glorify Him!
Isn’t this what the world needs
today more than ever; Less judgment and more humility? The climate we live in
is one of self-hatred, competition and division. The world tells us that our worth
lies in physical perfection or in what we do for a living, or what we drive, or
where we live, or the people we hang out with, yet God calls us to see ourselves
for who we really are: a spiritual being made for union with Him. When we learn to see each other neither with
cynism nor fear, rather with love and forgiveness, we are more in union with
God. When we learn to see ourselves as worthy of God’s love because he created
us for himself regardless of our circumstances, we become closer to knowing
God.
In this scripture reading I am
reminded to turn to prayer first. In prayer I am more able to see through the
lens of charity. God sees us as worthy of his forgiveness, even when we don’t
see ourselves that way. God wants me to run to him and offer him myself in
humility. God knows who I am. I am unclean. Yet when I go to him in faith,
He restores me. This woman understood the beauty of God’s grace; she understood
the gift of God’s forgiveness. She went to seek Christ out, knowing that a personal encounter would heal her. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is this gift that Jesus left to his Church, that allows me to go and through Grace I can know that God has healed me just like this woman was. When I go to Confession I go with humility and with joy, knowing that God loved me before I was even born. When I go before him his eyes upon me are not of anger but of love and compassion.
Humility means compassion. It means
being able to see myself and others through the eyes of true love. This story reminds me that
humility and being able to forgive others like God forgives me is what makes us
all beautiful and holy in the eyes of God.
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