Franciscan Friar Fr. Paul Gallagher reflects on the Gospel readings for the Twenty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time. What were your family meals like? Do they have an unspoken structure?
The content is edited by Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity Sister Anne Marie Lom and Joe Thiel. The excerpts from the Sunday readings are prepared by Joe Thiel. To read or download the complete pdf with excerpts for your prayer, please click here: Franciscan Gospel Reflection August 31 2025. Excerpts are from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Photos: Tracy Hunter, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons; © Traumrune / Wikimedia Commons.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
On a Sabbath Jesus went to dine at the house of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him closely.
He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table: “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the places of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place. “Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Then he said to the host who invited him, “When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Background:
In last week’s gospel, Jesus was asked how many would be saved. His response focused not on how many would be saved; but rather on the quality of one’s relationship with God. The gospel concluded with Jesus stating that “Some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” (Luke 13:30) You may also remember from that gospel that Jesus had been reminded that he had eaten and drank with them, as a way of claiming a relationship with Jesus. The importance of table fellowship in this culture is an important element in the gospel for this Sunday.
Immediately after last Sunday’s text, Luke describes how some Pharisees come to Jesus and urge him to leave the area because Herod is seeking to kill him. Jesus mourns for the people of Jerusalem in a way that hints of his future rejection and death. Luke then returns to the Pharisees’ regard of Jesus, and describes an incident where a leading Pharisee has invited Jesus to a dinner at his house. That account is the gospel text for this Sunday.
The first line of the gospel sets the background for the unfolding of the rest of the text. The Sabbath dinner was an opportunity to invite non-family members to dinner and a time to engage in theological discussions. Jesus has been invited by a leading Pharisee, a group that believes in spirits and life after death. That Jesus is being carefully watched would not have been out of place. The second line of the gospel states that Jesus is also watching the guests, and how they are selecting their places.
Dinners like the one in this gospel were more formal than what most experience—perhaps more like a wedding banquet, where each guest is assigned a seat at a table. Those at the head table would be the more important guests. They would be served first and a better quality of food. Those seated further from the head table received a meal of lesser quality. The host would also provide the entertainment for the evening, that may range from some discussion, or a contest, to a presentation. Guests were expected to participate in what the host has selected as the entertainment. Accepting an invitation implied that one would return an invitation to the host. Therefore, in this culture one sought out many pieces of information before accepting an invitation.
In the gospel, Jesus’ own behavior breaks with custom and would have been considered improper. The first parable criticizes the behavior of the guests who are seeking out the places of honor and points to an unlikely practice for trying to achieve recognition from the host. In so doing, one may find themself publicly humiliated for presuming their status.
The second short parable is directed toward the host as the one who has invited those gathered. Again, Jesus suggests that the host not follow the traditionally accepted practice of inviting people with the expectation that they will return the invitation. Rather, Jesus exhorts them to invite those who have no hope of returning the gesture, and if invited would harm one’s reputation. Jesus reverses how people attempting to use these systems are to gain the esteem of their host and others. Not said but implied is the suggestion that those who believe in eternal life ought to focus on one’s status before God.
Reflection Questions:
- How important is your reputation to you? What are some things you do to protect it, enhance it, and also place it at risk?
- What were your family meals like? Do they have an unspoken structure?
- What is the most formal dinner celebration to which you have been invited? What was that experience like for you? What are some of the details you remember about that occasion?
- How many different times do you recall Jesus attending meals in the gospels? What does that suggest to you?
- How many times in the gospel do recall Jesus feeding others? What does that suggest to you?
- Here Jesus is going to dinner with a leading Pharisee. What thoughts or questions does this bring up within you?
- If you had been present at the gathering described in today’s gospel, what would have been some of the feelings going through you as this dinner unfolded?
- How would you feel about inviting Jesus to your dinner table?
- Can you take some time to talk to God about how important your reputation is with others, your family, and God? How does your approach to life strive to enhance those reputations? Or is there something else that arises within you that deserves some attention?
The post Twenty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time 2025 Franciscan Gospel Reflection appeared first on Franciscan Sisters.