16th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year c
Genesis 18:1-10; Colossians 1:24-28; Luke 10:38-42
The readings of this Sunday can be reflected upon under the heading of openness. Abraham was open to receive the heavenly visitors; Martha opened her home to Jesus; Paul was open to the sufferings he endured for the sake of the church.
On the 14th Sunday, we heard Jesus sending the seventy disciples out to preach and the to heal. We heard Jesus tell them to accept the hospitality offered to them. In today’s reading the circumstances are reversed. Here we see the people of God offering the hospitality rather than receiving it, first Abraham and then Martha. We see how important openness is, for in each case those to whom the hospitality was offered were divine visitors in human form.
Lesson: We can never be sure under what form or guise God will come to us. It could be the person on the street who asks for directions, or the one who comes to our place of work to engage the service we provide. It may be the friend who comes to dinner or the co-worker who acts in a way we did not expect. God comes into our lives in unexpected ways, and we must have an open attitude of hospitality if we are to receive the blessings that might come with such visits.
If our hospitality is genuine, we will share the best we have to offer. We will give our time, and we will do what we can to meet the needs of those who come to us.
Martha in the gospel was more concerned about her duties than her guest. With all the responsibilities we carry today, it is so easy to lose sight of the people involved. Parents can be so overwhelmed with the demands of making a living that they have little time for those for whom they are making the living. How hospitable are we to the people who come to us?
Fr. Alex Osei
SSC-USA Spiritual Director