Luke 14:12-14 - He said also to the man who had invited him, "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."
Meditation: Who do you honor at your table? Thinking of our dear Sister Ann, she was one who would honor everyone who came to the table at Tau House, the poor, the lost she always would find time to give her heart and ear to anyone who visited. Sister Ann and the Lord was always ready to receive anyone at the table. As far as we can tell from the gospel accounts, Jesus never refused a dinner invitation, it was at those times people could be free to just be themselves! Jesus teaches us to share the table of our hearts and the table of our love.
In the reading we can ask the questions: Did his host expect some favor or reward from Jesus? Did he want to impress his neighbors with the honor of hosting the "miracle worker" from Galilee? Jesus probes our hearts as well.
Refection question: Do you only show favor and generosity to those who will repay you in kind? What about those who do not have the means to repay you – the poor, the sick, and the disadvantaged?
The life of Sister Ann was filled with generosity at Tau House she taught us all what self-sacrifice was all about. We all can say that true generosity springs from a heart full of mercy and compassion, Sister Ann was filled with that mercy. We all know that God loved us first, and our love is a response of gratitude to his great mercy and kindness towards us. We cannot out give God in his generosity towards us, and Sister Ann was one who lived that life of generosity as a true SSND.
Prayer: "Lord Jesus, fill me with gratitude for your boundless love and mercy towards me. And purify my love for others that I may seek their good rather than my own benefit or gain. Free me to love others as you love."
May the soul of Sister Ann and all the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
Peace and all good,
Brother Ed, OFM
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Sr. Ann's funeral services will take place this coming Wednesday in Chatawa, MS beginning with a wake at 9 a.m. followed by a funeral mass at 10:30.
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