Daily Gospel Reflection
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August 28, 2022
On a sabbath Jesus went to dine
at the home of one of the leading Pharisees,
and the people there were observing him carefully.
He told a parable to those who had been invited,
noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table.
“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet,
do not recline at table in the place of honor.
A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him,
and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say,
‘Give your place to this man,’
and then you would proceed with embarrassment
to take the lowest place.
Rather, when you are invited,
go and take the lowest place
so that when the host comes to you he may say,
‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’
Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table.
For every one who exalts himself will be humbled,
but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Then he said to the host who invited him,
“When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or your brothers
or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.
Rather, when you hold a banquet,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;
blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.
For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
I am a month into my first year of Pediatric residency, and I have found it to be a humbling start to my career as a physician. Although my enthusiasm for learning is unabated, I am sometimes overwhelmed by the number of times I have to say, “I don’t know.”
I don’t know how to calculate maintenance fluids. I don’t know how to order this medication. I don’t know the pathogenesis of this disease, and I still don’t know where the cafeteria is. The list goes on.
Some days, this feels like an admission of ineptitude or a failure in an unconquerable pursuit of perfectionism, but it’s just a dose of humility.
Humility is one of the most challenging virtues in medicine, partly due to the cultural emphasis on confidence, excellence, and intellect. To become doctors, we need a competitive spirit in the classroom, a confident voice when “pimped by attendings,” and a compelling story to secure residency. Throughout our training, humility can be deemed weak, indecisive, or, worse, incompetent.
Saint Augustine suggests that humility is the foundation of all other virtues—patience, compassion, generosity, gentleness. As I embrace residency, I’ve come to welcome the phrase “I don’t know” as an honest pursuit of knowledge, an opportunity to encourage teamwork, and, most importantly, to provide the best patient care because it is with humility and not unquestionable perfectionism that I can truly heal my patients.
The word “humility,” similar to “human,” comes from the Latin root “humus,” meaning rich, fertile earth, suggestive of groundedness and understanding. In the Gospel today, Luke reminds us that we must seek humility because humility means being human and grounded in goodness and virtue.
Ultimately, it is up to us to decide how we fill our banquet table.
Prayer
God of all consolation, Your Son told the Pharisee that he should host not the rich and well known, but should instead invite the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Help us to be obedient to that command, so that in showing love to those whom you love, we may come to a better understanding of your Mystery. May we not be people who crave repayment, but instead make us people of charity and love for all your children wherever they may be. Through Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Among the thinkers and writers who have articulated the Christian faith, St. Augustine is a giant.
He was born in 354 in north Africa, and at 17 went to Carthage to study rhetoric. He excelled at school out of vanity and ambition, but was consumed by the pleasures of the world. He entered into a relationship with a woman there, who bore him a son.
His mother, Monica, whose feast day was yesterday, prayed without ceasing for his conversion and reform. He began to find disillusionment in his studies and worldview and sought teaching positions elsewhere, ending up in Milan. There he came to know the bishop, Ambrose, who was well-educated and eloquent. Augustine attended Ambrose’s sermons out of pure curiosity, but the preaching began to leave a mark on his heart and mind.
At the same time that he began to see truth in Christiantiy, he was intimidated by the difficulty of living a Christian life and did not have the will to convert from the pleasures of his loose living. His famous conversion experience, detailed in his work, Confessions, happened when he was filled with shame after talking with friends about the heroism of saints. He had a sudden urge to seek guidance from the Bible. Reading Paul’s encouragement to put aside drunkenness and to put on Christ, Augustine was surrounded by peace and his anxiety and hesitation disappeared. He told his mother immediately, who rejoiced and praised God; he was baptized soon after.
Augustine grew in his faith and was eventually named bishop. His contributions to religious life and the advancement of spirituality and theology cannot be overstated. His works still form the bedrock of much of theological study. He died on this date in 430 amid the political and social turmoil of the fall of the Roman empire.
Part of the human condition is the struggle to direct our will towards ultimate goodness. The good things of this world—the pleasures of the body such as good food and drink—are certainly of God, but they are limited goods. If they take a central place in one’s life, they can become a distraction, as Augustine experienced, because they replace God for us instead of pointing us to God.
Augustine finally mastered his own will after years of letting it run free among the world’s pleasures. May we find the same order in our lives and receive the same grace, that we might also love the ultimate and lasting good, God, with all of our hearts.
St. Augustine is named a doctor of the Church, a title given to 37 saints who are known for elucidating the faith by their words or example; he is known as the Doctor of Grace for his understanding and cooperation with God’s grace. St. Augustine is the patron saint of brewers, printers, and theologians.
Relics of St. Augustine rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. In the top image, St. Augustine appears in a statue above the southeast entrance to Dillon hall. He holds a quill, to signify his foundational writing, and a heart, which represents the subject of much of his thought—the nature of love. He is also depicted in the Basilica in several places, as well as in this stained glass image from the chapel in the Eck Hall of Law.
St. Augustine, you explored the depths of human and divine love--pray for us!
To learn even more about Saint Augustine, watch this video lecture from the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame.