You can’t give what you don’t have

Homily for June 12, 2016 (11th Sunday in Ordinary Time, C)
2 Samuel 12:7-10, 13; Psalm 32; Galatians 2:16, 19-21; Luke 7:36-8:3

There’s an old saying that “You can’t give what you don’t have.”  Today we are reminded that this applies to the gifts of compassion and forgiveness as much as it does to other things.

Our gospel reading contrasts the responses of Simon the Pharisee and an unnamed “sinful woman” to the presence of Jesus.  As one renowned by others (and surely by himself) for his righteousness and observance of the law along with his abhorrence of sinners, Simon fell short in extending to his guest, Jesus, what were considered to be among the most fundamental elements of  hospitality.  The woman, on the other hand, extended that hospitality to Jesus—even though she was not his host—and she did so directly, personally and extravagantly:  washing his feet with her own tears, drying them with her hair, and anointing them with oil.

This was not woman begging for Jesus’ love, compassion and mercy.  She had already accepted them!  It was her acceptance of those great gifts that led her to respond with her very personal expressions of gratitude and kindness.  She freely gave back what she had received from the Lord.  Simon, on the other hand, didn’t…and couldn’t.

Perhaps she remembered the story of her ancestor, David.  He was not only a great king, but as our first reading reminds us he was also an adulterer and murderer.  Yet God forgave him.  We shouldn’t, however, confuse forgiveness with a lack of accountability.  While God spared his life, David still had to face the consequences of his sins and abuses of power.  The child that Bathsheba was carrying eventually died.  (It was common at the time to believe that the sins of parents were often visited upon their children.)  Later, David’s own son Absalom conspired against him, embarrassed him, and was eventually killed as a rebel by one of David’s trusted commanders.

As Paul would later do, the woman at Jesus’ feet put her faith in him, trusting that he did for her what she could not do for herself.   Do we have that same kind of faith in Jesus?  Do we really believe in the power of his grace or do we live under the illusion that we can save ourselves by piling up enough “credits” through our good works?  Paul knew from experience that reliance on obedience to the law as the way to salvation was a trap.  We’re all sinners, and we will always fall short of being who God created us to be.  We cannot hope to “earn” God’s forgiveness.  Instead we are called to reflect on the gift that God offers us, humbly accept it, and respond with gratitude and generosity, that is, by showing to God and others the same “great love” that the woman had. +