A Few Words On "The Word"

September 16, 2007
The 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

Luke 15:1-10

Finding One

The number one. Sometimes it seems so insignificant and lowly, a mathematical representation of absolutely next to nothing. As far as multiplication or division go it hardly does anything. Yet, when we change our perspective, the number one becomes our ultimate measure of what is best. The top team is ranked #1. There is only one winner of a tournament or contest. Being the first in a long line of people is the best place to be. In all of these situations, being the number that literally symbolizes almost nothing is our deepest desire.

Despite the fact that most of us strive to be number one in all that we do, we usually view the number one as a small and insignificant quantity. People in the world of business or finance would much rather see a one with a bunch of zeros after it. If you were asked to recruit new members for a club or organization, you might feel that finding only one new member would be a failure and definitely not something to rejoice about.

It is exactly for this reason that Jesus' words in today's gospel are challenging. Through some parable-like illustrations, Jesus once again shows that he comes to seek the ones who are lost. He shows that there is just as much value in finding one lost person as there is in saving a few hundred.

Through today's parables, Jesus illustrates a couple key points. The first helps us realize the extraordinary importance and value of a single human being. Jesus is concerned with each person and views each person as unique and important. He's not interested in playing a numbers game that can lead us to forget about the importance of each individual person.

Secondly, Jesus wants us to actively seek after those lost ones in our society. We see or hear about them everyday. The unemployed single mother, the illegal immigrant simply struggling to survive, the homeless stranger on the street who asks us for some change, or the drug addict determined to break free or stay clean. These are great examples but more often than not we overlook the lost ones that are physically around us every day, the ones we could easily do something about. The lonely kid in the corner of the lunchroom, a friend suffering from the recent divorce of his/her parents, the quiet overweight kid in the back of class, or a friend suffering from depression.

There's a Jewish saying that seems to sum up Jesus' teaching. It states, "He who saves one life saves the world entire." Jesus doesn't expect us to bring peace and justice to thousands and thousands of people. He does however challenge us to seek out those around us who are lost, lonely, or hurting. As peacebuilders we must continuously find ways to serve those in need, doing all we can to save just one.

Reflection Question

What are you doing to help the one lost person that you see everyday at your school or in your community?

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