Caitríona Gorman, OP

8^th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 2^nd March 2025

The Gospel of Luke 6:39-45

I knew I was struggling with the text of this Sunday’s Scripture readings, but had no idea why. Then a quotation from The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry came to mind:

 “Sometimes there is no harm in putting off a piece of work until another day.”  That was a gift to me and made me realise this is exactly what I should do.

The following day I had an experience which, I now realise, reflected back to me the core message of the Gospel text; a message which I think can be summed up in the following sentence.

Our words and actions flow out from what fills the heart.

The experience happened through a very casual, simple encounter which left a deep impression on me. When seeking help for a problem with a train ticket, nobody was available at the train station to help and nobody was available by phone. I asked a security man, working for the company, why no one was available. From that moment on I was witness to and beneficiary of his extraordinary undivided, selfless attention, going way beyond the call of duty, not worrying about time, inconvenience or anything that would distract him from helping. Eventually, he discovered that he couldn’t do anything about the situation there and then.  However, he immediately promised to keep working on it, though I was strongly encouraging him not to worry, as after all it wasn’t a life and death situation!  He insisted saying, “Leave it all to me!” I didn’t hesitate to do so as it became obvious, he was a man with a mission!

He promised to give me an update by phone the following morning.  True to his word, he phoned and told me all I had to do was to go to the station for the early afternoon train, a co-worker of his would meet me. On meeting this second person I was immediately struck by his welcome, his knowledge of the situation, though that was never mentioned, his innate generosity, kindness, and utter selflessness throughout the journey.  I can truthfully say the experience provided me with a lot of fruit for thought!  It became very clear to me from both encounters, that the genuine disposition of these two people, to reach out to a stranger so caringly, could only have come from a place deep within themselves, it was so very easy to see it came from there.

In today’s Gospel St Luke tells us: “Each tree is known by the fruit it bears; a good person draws what is good from the store of goodness within his heart”

It was this experience that suddenly made me realise, this is what Jesus is inviting us to in today’s Gospel text; to live and act in a way consistent with being Christian.

The greater part of chapter six in St Luke’s Gospel is given over to practical ways of living out the call to discipleship, and that doesn’t change in 6:39 -45.

In fact, it goes deeper, Jesus invites us to personal conversion, to look inward; to find the blindness in ourselves and to confront our own weaknesses. This is no small challenge and maybe one of the hardest things to do. St Luke makes it clear to us in this Sunday’s text, if we want to become true witnesses to Christ and minister to those in need, we must first turn inwards to the God, who lives within us, who strengthens us in our weakness, heals our blindness and “brings forth good fruit” in us.

It is only then, we are called to open our eyes; the eyes of our heart, mind and intellect to the suffering of others, to hear their cry for help, to enter the reality of their world, never thinking of ourselves, but rather responding as Jesus would have us do. In that response we place our faith and trust in the God who journeys with us and brings forth abundant fruit in us and in those whose lives we touch. So, on this 8^th Sunday of Ordinary Time we have every reason to proclaim with the Psalmist:

It is good to give you thanks, O Lord. (Ps. 91)

“The orchard where the tree grows is judged on the qualities of its fruit”

(Sirach 27:6)