A woman anoints Jesus' feetLuke 7:36-50
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table. And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him-- that she is a sinner." Jesus spoke up and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." "Teacher," he replied, "Speak." "A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon answered, "I suppose the one for whom he canceled the greater debt." And Jesus said to him, "You have judged rightly." Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little." Then he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
1 comment:
A couple of things struck me as I heard this read on Weds. eve ...
if Simon was forgiven little, was it because he had fewer sins than the woman, or because he was less vulnerable than she was...in other words because he was blind to his own sinfulness, and so unable to make himself open to forgiveness.....so, little is forgiven because little was available to be forgiven.....and so, too, he loves little...
And "who is this that he forgives sins?" but - are these questioners missing the point?? Jesus states the fact "your sins are forgiven," observable because of the love she has shown - he does not so much forgive her sins as point out that she is obviously forgiven, because so much is the love she pours out. Forgiveness opens the floodgates of love - so it happened before....Kind of like Crossan & Borg point out in Mark's gospel, the people around Jesus are missing the point, eh?
So what does that mean for us? Ah, Michael, we wait to hear what you have to say on Sunday!
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