Lenten Meditation: Monday, February 27, 2023
Matthew 25:31-46
Today, we hear Jesus tell us one of his most famous parables.
People of all sorts are brought before a king to be judged. This king does not pronounce judgement as people might expect him to. His verdict does not depend on how well the people before him treated the king or even how they treated the most important citizens. His verdict depends on how they treated those most in need. “Just as you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me… Just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.”
The Cathedral is a place where “the least of these” often come. Our ACT program and our Cathedral School care for little children, for example, and our CCC program cares for hungry, poorly fed people, both unemployed and underemployed. But the Cathedral is also a place that seems to attract people with mental illness. Maybe it’s because we promise them a place of peace and quiet, a respite from their pain and torment. Maybe it’s because they hope that in the midst of a city that often treats them so poorly and with such disdain, we at the Cathedral will treat them well and even with love.
Jesus tells us that people in need show us the face of God. When we see them, we see God. When we love them, we love God. Who in your life is most in need right now? Can you do something to care for them today? Can you do something to be part of the Cathedral’s care for “the least of these?”