We shall reflect on verses 40-42 in the Gospel today: Jesus said, “He who receives you, receives Me; and he who receives Me, receives the One who sent Me.”
In the history of salvation, there is a certain process. God first loves us. He provides for our needs. He protects us from harm. He listens to our needs and our prayers. In the first reading, we begin to see the cry of the Israelites as the new Pharaoh persecutes them. Responding to their need, God sends Moses, the baby whom the Pharaoh’s daughter rescues from the
Verses 40-42 give the principle of hospitality. In the past, they believe that receiving the messenger or emissary of the person is the same as welcoming the person who sent them. We often call them, representatives because they make present the one who sent them. It is the same way when we receive a visitor. The visitor may be a stranger to us; it may be the first time we met them. But, we would receive them wholeheartedly because the visitor is a friend of our friend. We would still treat them as we would our friend. We define hospitality when we say, “Feel at home”.
Jesus said that receiving Jesus, becoming a disciple, can be done in the simplest of things like a drink of cold water. The stress on simple things is prominent in the passage of the day. Therefore, service, as menial as home chores, are great in God’s eyes. We should not look down on these simple tasks. Washing clothes will not demean your professorship. Going to the wet market will not undermine your status as a doctor or a mayor of the town. It also tells us that a Christian condescend any one whose job is to do the ‘dirty work’ --- our janitors, maintenance staff, or our house helps.
St. Alphonsus Rodriguez was a Jesuit brother whose assignment was a doorkeeper (receptionist or porter in modern language) at the
The simple duties at home can make us saints.
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