Lk 15:1-10
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So he told them this parable: “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’
Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. “Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’
Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Loving One Another Enough
Jesus seeks to save all of creation, not just the righteous believers. He shows this by meeting the tax collectors and sinners where they are, in their element. He doesn’t shy away from the sickness of their sin, but rather loves them into wellness and ultimately saves their souls.
Do we shy away from the misguided and lost we encounter in our friends, family and even strangers? Or do we follow the example of our savior and meet people where they are? In love, do we give of ourselves for the sake of our brothers and sisters? Let us remember that St. Ignatius uses the example of Mary, the woman who washed the feet of Jesus and anointed him with oil. She was considered the most repugnant of sinners by Judas Iscariot, yet Jesus loved her into spiritual wellness. Let us love one another enough to do the same.
—Terresa Ford, M.Div. is a Resident Spiritual Health Clinician (Chaplain) at Emory University Hospital Midtown in Atlanta, GA and a Resident Spiritual Director in the Spiritual Direction Formation program at Ignatius House Jesuit Retreat Center in Sandy Springs, GA.
Prayer
Merciful God, you call us to love you and our brothers and sisters without limits. Let the misguided we encounter see you in us. Heal your people through us. Teach us to move out of your way so that you can have your way with the world through us. In your sacred and holy name we pray Jesus. Amen.
—Terresa Ford