Jesus looks at the True Repentance of Heart

June 12^th, 2016 Sunday homily-Fr.Francis Chirackal CMI

2 Sm 12:7-10, 13; Gal 2:16, 19-21; Lk 7:36-8:3

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http://www.usccb.org/nab/061216.shtml

Is it not strange to see an unwelcomed, down-looked person serving a welcomed reputed guest in his host’s house? How did that woman, who was a public scandal, get free entry into the house of a Pharisee in whose house Jesus was a guest? Today’s Gospel presents a strange touching story. A publicly sinful woman does the unthinkable: she goes, uninvited, to Simon the Pharisee’s home, where Jesus is eating with self-righteous religious men. There, broken and sobbing, she lavishly worships Jesus: falling at his feet, cleaning them, anointing them with her best perfume, and kissing them. Her actions are passionate. She publicly and humbly acknowledges her sin before the most judgmental, condemning, and self-righteous men. Just as it happens many times in our day, they only saw her sins, not their own, they didn’t see her good actions, but conveniently omitted their required duties towards a guest. “Holy” Simon, did none of what this woman did. She longed for forgiveness and conversion in her heart and felt the love and forgiveness in her heart. Because, Jesus saw her heart and loved her much, and she loved Jesus in return.

Today’s first reading from the Book of Samuel, presents the sin of King David and the repentance he felt once he was reminded of his sin by the prophet Nathan. In the second reading from the Letter to the Galatians, St.Paul tells us to live by faith in God, who calls everybody through Christ to salvation. Christ has earned heaven for us without any discrimination. The Gospel story, presents the unconditional forgiveness of Jesus who reads the heart of every individual.

When we know how much Jesus loves us, and we love him back, it’s the beginning of our passionate, worshipful, generous relationship, and everything changes. It is human nature, that we may find many excuses or overlook the wrong doings and shortcomings of ourselves or of those whom we love or have some personal gains, while try to inflate even the smaller ones, of those whom we do not love or do not like. In this Gospel story, Jesus didn’t excuse the woman’s sins or overlook Simon’s omissions. He forgave her rather than excuse her sins. He reminded Simon the Pharisee of his omissions even when Jesus was receiving his hospitality in his house.

  The Pharisee, in this story is not shown in a positive light, but the point of the story is not to condemn him. He was an upstanding member of the community who invited Jesus into his home. As we see in the story, his hospitality was perhaps somewhat limited. He offered neither water for Jesus' feet, nor a kiss as per the normal custom. It shows that even when he invited Jesus into his house, he had certain prejudices regarding Jesus. For him, Jesus, was not up to his assumed level, though people were considering him as a rabbi or prophet. But this didn’t put him on the wrong side, but as merely thoughtless. While many Pharisees were continuously trying to project Jesus as a law breaker and misleading teacher, he had the good will or readiness, to invite him into his house and host a dinner for Jesus. His mistake, was rather to judge, "who and what kind of woman" she was.  

Forgiveness, is the theme of this parable. At the same time we also see that Jesus, cleverly rebukes the Pharisee, using the Pharisee's desire to make himself look better than the woman. He teaches him, and us, an important point about forgiveness and the danger of self-righteousness. For Jesus, the Pharisee should have rejoiced that "such a woman" sought him out and received forgiveness, while Jesus was his guest, instead of digging into her past and labeling her as a sinner. Jesus, was seeking, not the self-righteous, but, the humble and self-conscious hearts, not the ones who only look at others shortcomings, but, the ones who look into themselves. Not the ones who are eager to judge others, but, those who are eager to forgive others and correct themselves. When Simon and the woman found who they were, it was then they found out who Jesus was. The Gospel message, invites us to find our role in our present situations, then knowing who we are, and what we are, then, we will know who Jesus is.  

Jesus is the same and continues to be the same, even today. He forgives everyone who approaches him for forgiveness with a sincere, contrite heart. What Jesus did for that woman, he did for all including the thief on the Cross of that period and does even today. That is why even today we hear and see hundreds of stories of conversions and a total "U-turn", towards Jesus’ love and eternal life. This Jubilee year of mercy invites us in a specially way to repentance and forgiveness with a heart filled with the spirit of love and forgiveness, repentance and conversion. Let us reflect on the role we play that we see in today’s gospel. Let us experience God’s mercy and be the agents of that Mercy in our living situations. Are we passionate in our devotion and love for Jesus? If so, let us rejoice in the growth of others, while opening our hearts, wider and wider to Jesus and receiving His grace in abundance. God bless you.