Date: 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Scripture Text: James 2:1-5
My brothers and sisters, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here, please, ”while you say to the poor one, “Stand there, ” or “Sit at my feet, ”have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs?
Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?
Breaking the text open – background and summary:
The second reading for this Sunday reminds us that the LORD judges differently than we do and invites us to reconsider how we encounter others and value them – with the vision of the LORD who created us all.
Meditating on the text with personal questions:
Do I treat others differently according to my “valuation” of them? Who am I to do such evaluation?
Praying:
LORD, I lift my heart, my mind, my voice to You in love, in thought, in praise and thanksgiving. I beg that You send your Spirit to guide me on my journey this day so that I might walk more closely and perfectly in the footsteps of your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, who sacrificed himself for my salvation even though I am a sinner. Help me always and everywhere to love with His love those I encounter and to refrain from judging others on earthly criteria. I ask this in the name of Jesus, your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Spirit, one LORD, forever and ever. Amen.
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