Homily for September 19, 2019

Most people would never even consider showing up at a meal unless they were invited. Yet, the woman in today’s Gospel passage does just that. It is important to note that she did so, not out of selfishness, but because she so anxiously wanted to be near Jesus and to show Him a service of hospitality and love. This uninvited guest showed Jesus the hospitality that His host should have shown Him, but he failed to do so. The woman honored Jesus in an overstated way in return for what she had already received from Him. She had felt God’s forgiving love through Jesus, and such was her gratitude for this gift that she wanted to offer love in return.

The woman should be an example to all who wish to be true followers of Jesus. Like her, all of us have received abundant gifts and, as John’s Gospel tells us, “from His fullness we have all received grace in place of grace.” [1] And like her, if we have a sense that we have been greatly gifted with grace, it will, hopefully, prompt us to do something great in return. 

The woman in the house of the Pharisee shows us how to receive from the LORD and how to love Him in return, not only in our prayers of praise, but also in the ways that we serve Him in our service to the least fortunate among us.

 

[1] John 1:16