The Great Equalizer

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, February 16th, 2025:
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Luke
6:17, 20-26

Jesus came down with the twelve and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon.

Then Jesus looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man.

“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the Prophets.

“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false Prophets.”

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

Have you ever experienced the joy of poverty? Your own, or the witness of another’s? Is there anything more moving than a heart that desires the good of another over its own comfort? 

Being a child after God’s own heart is evidenced in a beautiful way by the intention to give, to equalize, to enact justice; and then, in the corporal acts that follow this conviction. I know I am in the service and grace of God when I feel the freedom and joy that comes from breaking out of my cocoon of comfort in the name of comforting another. I wish I could say this was the standard by which I live my life, but that would be dishonest.

Praying with this call to social justice reminded me of one of the most humbling and convicting moments of my life. It was years ago when I was taking my kids to the Wooden Monkey to celebrate my daughter’s birthday. I was feeling pretty good about our choice of restaurant. Happy to support a local business that was resourceful and mindful about reusing materials for their décor, and providing locally and sustainably sourced products. They have lots of healthy choices, too, so I wasn’t dumping a bunch of processed food into my children’s developing bodies. As we got out of our car, there was a man sitting on the sidewalk who asked for help. I dug into my wallet and gave him a toonie. He thanked me and we went on our way to the restaurant. In the restaurant, we positively stuffed ourselves with appetizers, meals, and dessert, then paid for our meal and tipped our waitress—more, I might add, than I had given to the man on the street. We passed the man again on our way back to the car, and he again called out to me. I hesitated to turn around because I had, afterall, already given him money. I did turn, though, and astonishingly, he was holding out to me a twenty dollar grocery gift card. I thanked him for his generosity but told him I couldn’t accept it. He insisted, saying he felt I needed it more than he did.

When I got back to my car, I sat, staring at the twenty dollars he had given me in exchange for the two dollars I had given him. I felt ashamed, small, and selfish. “Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.” At this moment, my belly was full, but my soul was hungry. I hungered for peace, righteousness, and a charitable heart—to be more like the man on the street.

This Gospel reading is deeply challenging if we can allow it to become a part of us. God is not shaming the rich for their comforts, or asking us not to enjoy our riches. He is, however, calling us into dependence on Him—an act most freely enacted by the downtrodden. Our blessing is found when we release the mindset of self-sufficiency in exchange for the embrace of interdependency. Our blessing is found when we can rightly order our hearts to first trust God, then offer it to others, and lastly care for ourselves. In my experience, on the rare occasion when I get this right, the blessing far outweighs anything I could ever offer.




Lori MacDonald

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