Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost – Year C (Luke 14:1, 7-14)

Even though linked together by a common setting and theme, I think it is important to examine verses 7-11 and 12-14 independently. And so I begin with 7-11. While it might be amusing to see Jesus here as a first century Miss Manners, to do so would really miss the point. On the surface, It is true that the subject of Jesus’ parable does seem to be behavior and the appropriate humility befitting his disciples. What we discover however is that the banquet is a metaphor for our life before God and that the story is not so much about behavior as it is attitude. It is the host (God) who makes the seating chart and sets the place cards, not the guests. To do otherwise is to make presumptions about God’s relationships with others and ourselves that we are in no position to make. It is no accident that most Christian worship begins with an acknowledgement of sin and complete dependence on God’s mercy poured out in Jesus Christ.
The parable does suggest a hierarchy that makes many of us uncomfortable. It appears that while there will be no “haves and have nots” at God’s table there are some who are closer and others who are farther away. Verse 11, though, does seem to imply an eventual leveling out. Perhaps the hierarchal arrangement demanded by first century dining practices (and not uncommon in the twenty-first) needs to be replaced by the image of round table. And where does the host sit in such an arrangement? We must never forget that the host at this meal is also our true food and drink.
Verses 12 -14 have a slightly different focus. In this teaching, Jesus warns his hearers that the “haves” must not exclude the “have nots”. The Church is not a social club for the successful and the Eucharist is not a reward for meritorious service or good behavior. This teaching is about an inclusive evangelism that invites everyone to the table. It is a teaching that seeks to overturn our human tendency to assume scarcity rather than celebrate abundance. Being able to give without thought of getting is the ultimate test of faith in God’s providential care.

Finally, at the risk of indicting me and most of my readers, why in this nation of churches would it ever be possible to find on Sunday morning any one on the street, anyone hungry, anyone lonely, and anyone without a share of this nation’s bounty? Where are the literalists who demand that we take the scriptures at face value? Where are the liberals who insist that the Good News is for the poor and distressed?