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In This Issue
Parish Notes
Youth Activity Calendar
The Propers
This Sunday's Altar Flowers
Sermon
Đại Ý Kinh Văn

Upcoming Events

Sunday, September 15:

 

Sunday School begins 

 

Tuesday,September 10:

Commissions, 6:30 PM
Vestry, 7:30 PM


Saturday, Sept. 14:

Clean-up Day, 9 AM-2 PM

Saturday, Sept. 21:

 

Canning Class, 1-5 

 

Feed the Homeless,  

3:30 PM at the shelter 

 

Sunday, Sept. 22:

Odeon Concert, 4 PM

 

Saturday, Sept. 28:

 

Dental Clinic Registration, 9-5 

 

Saturday, Oct. 5:

PYM Volunteer Day, @ St. Thomas', McLean

10 AM - 2 PM

 

Cookies for the Coeds, 2:30 PM

Sunday, Oct. 6:

Blessing of the Animals, 4 PM

 
Sunday, Oct 13:

UTO Sunday

 

Confirmation Class, after church

Saturday, Oct. 19:

Feed the Homeless, time TBA.

 

Free Dental Clinic at Saint Patrick's, 9 AM-4 PM -- Hope For Tomorrow Mission 

 

Sunday, Oct. 20:

 

Odeon Concert, 4 PM

 

 

Saturday, Oct. 26:

 

Acolytes' and Young Lectors' Training

 

 

Sunday, Oct. 27:

 

Confirmation Class, after church

 

Harvest Day's Service and Dinner for Youth and Adults, 5:30 PM

 

 

Nov. 8th-10th:

PYM Senior High Weekend @ Shrine Mont

 

Sunday, Nov. 10 

 

Confirmation Class, after church 

 

Sunday, Nov. 17:

 

Odeon Concert, 4 PM 

 

 

Sunday, Nov. 24:

 

Stewardship Sunday

 

Confirmation Class, after church

 

Saturday, Nov. 30:

 

Confirmation Class

(at the National Cathedral) 

 

Sunday, Dec. 1:

(First Sunday of Advent)

 

ANNUAL MEETING

 

Thursday, Dec. 5:

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM

 

Friday, Dec. 6:

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM 

 

Sunday, Dec. 8:

 

Bishop Visitation, 2 PM  

 

Tuesday, Dec. 10:

 

Commissions, 6:30 PM

Vestry, 7:30 PM

 

Thursday, Dec. 12

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM

 

Friday, Dec. 13

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM

 

Thursday, Dec. 19

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM

 

Friday, Dec. 20

 

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM  

 

Sunday, Dec. 22

 

Greening of the Church

 

Wednesday, Dec. 24

 

Christmas Eve Worship, 7:30 PM 

 

Saturday, Dec. 28

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM

 

Sunday, Dec. 29

Hypothermia, 8:00 PM  

 

Wednesday, Jan 1

 

New Year's Day Celebration at the Rectory 

 

 

Altar at Easter 2013      

Birthdays

  

September

8   Lucille Selby

8   Nghia Dao

10   Rachel Burgess

11   Oanh Phan

13   Debbie Clark

13   Doan Huynh Tucker

13   Michael Knowles

14   Thanh Nguyen

18   Pauline Leonard

19   Mark Houston

23   Hannah Knowles

24   Deani Coker

28   William Houston

29   Justice Lebo

30   Michael Spinelli

  

October

 2   Charles Hiller

4   Nghia Nguyen

6   Catherine Leonard

12   Jean Wetrich

12   Viet-Long Tran

14   Hong Van Phan

16   Joe Hiller

17   Natalie Dang-Ellis

17   Jorden Benjamin

22   Emmeline Pizzola

22   Matthew Pizzola

22   Tess Miller

23   Paul Los, Jr.

27   Victoria Coker-Gunter

28   Harriette Benjamin

30   Carolyn Gawarecki

31   Margaret Mills

Our Prayer List

We remember in our prayer:

 

Dee Bailey, Kari Boeskov, Brandon, Jane Chapman, Marie Cosimano, Tim Clary, Dorothy Connelly, John Davis, Donald DeVaughn, Michael Dickinson,  Loretta Dougherty, The Edsall Family, Dotty Eisenhour, Nance Finegan, Luis Garay, Louise Gibney, Anne Goodwin, Jean Graham, Katie Grosse, Nick Giuliani, Katherine Hafele, Anne & Thomas Edsall, Margaret Ellis Harris, Alek Hensley, Leslie Hogan, Cindy Hogman, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Michael Horn, Mary Isibel, Sarah Jackson, Lindsay Johns, Gray Johnson, Jamie Kaplon, Robert Kelley, Geoff Kent, Quinn Kimball, Jeffry King, Michael Knowles, Peter Kosutic, Susan Lawrence, Lois Magrogan, Colleen Mavrikas, Gregory McGinnis, Margaret Mills, Evelyn Morgan, Danielle Morgan, Ed+ and Margaret Morgan, Que Nguyen, Chick Nixon, Christine Nolan, Olive Oliver, Jim Owens, Gary Owens, Faith Poole, Mandy Rothenhoefer, William Ross, Bill Sitler, Ron Sipes, Irene Skowron, Josh Smithers, Inez StantonCandi Stewart, Barbara Stefl, Kara Stryker, Walter Sushko, Steven Talbert, George Thomas, Clara Torres, George Torres, Elizabeth Trigg, Tammy Vanphung, Nhon Thanh Vo, Michael Weekes, Warren Weinstein, The Crowley Family, The Westfall Family, Paula Wiech, Meredith Wiech, Bernard Williams, Donna Wolfe, Rudy Zimple.

 

    

____ 

 

Note: If you have a loved one or friend who needs prayer please call the church and leave a message at 703-532-5656, or write to Tinh+ at

stpats3241@gmail.com  or call him at 703-405-9571.  Also, should a name need be removed from the list, please let Tinh+ know promptly, and give the reason.  

 

 

Saint Patrick's Ministers 

The Ministers of Saint Patrick's Church are the People of this Parish

 

supported by

 

The Reverend  

Tinh Trang Huynh, Rector

 

Ms. Mariko Hiller,  

Music Director

 

Ms. Rachel Burgess,

Nursery Care

 

We serve our Lord as part of the Diocese of Virginia

 

led by

our chief pastors

 

The Rt. Rev. Shannon Sherwood Johnston, Bishop

 

The Rt. Rev. Susan Goff

Bishop Suffragan 

 

and  

The Rt. Rev. Ted Gulick,

Assistant Bishop 

The Vision of St. Patrick's

Saint Patrick's Episcopal Church is a community of care, called to be Christ-centered and multicultural in worship, Christian education and action to proclaim  Christ's love to the world.

   

Previous Issues of the Epistle
Please click here if you wish to see the previous issues of The Epistle

St. Patrick's Organized for Missions and Ministry 

 

SAINT PATRICK'S ORGANIZED

FOR MISSIONS AND MINISTRY

 
Vestry Committee:
Senior Warden: Tom Auld; Junior Warden:  Bill Houston;
Registrar: Winnie Lebo;
Treasurer:  Kathy Oliver; 

Other members of the Vestry:   Elisabeth Nguyen, Milton Thomas, Jocelyne Miller, Pierre Chanu, Chris Nicholson. 

 

GROUPS AND ACTIVITIES

 

Altar Guild:  Lois Cascella;  
Bell Choir:  Mariko Hiller; 
Church Office:  Lois Cascella
;  Offering Counters:  Bob Cascella; Diocesan Council Delegate: Kathy Oliver (Amelia Nicholson, alternate delegate);
St. Margaret's Circle:  Ann Nelson; Telephone Chain:
Alice King; Feed the Homeless:  Elisabeth Nguyen;
Odeon Chamber Music Series:  Mariko Hiller;
Westlawn Elementary School:  Winnie Lebo;
Falls Church Community Services: Catherine Dubas;
Hypothermia Shelter Program:  Hao Nguyen; 
The Epistle Newsletter Editors: Winnie Lebo and Cindy Rhoad; Flea Market:
Chris Nicholson; Prison Ministry: Nancy Burch;
Meals-on-Wheels: Amelia Nicholson;Sunrise/Bluemont:
Michael Knowles   

Church

 

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September 5, 2013
Parish Notes
 
Calling all St. Patrick's children:  This Sunday, September 8, Fr. Tinh will give a children's sermon! Sunday School will begin the following Sunday, September 15, at 10:30 AM.

Box Tops -  Would you like to support Westlawn Elementary School field trips and other activities?  Please consider bringing to church the box top cut offs and put them in the jar at the kitchen window.  The school will use these box tops to raise funds for its educational programs.

- Saint Patrick's needs a representative at Region VIII Council.  Region VIII includes St. Patrick's, St. Barnabas', St. Alban's, Santa Maria, the Falls Church and St. Paul's. The Council meets once every three months to discuss how best to support the ministries of the churches in the region. If you feel called to serve as St. Patrick's Region VIII representative, please let Tinh+ know.

Coffee Cup
- We need people to serve coffee hour every Sunday.  Everyone is invited to stay after church  to visit with our friends and catch up on what has been going on in each others lives.  Please sign up to help! The sign-up sheet is in the kitchen.

-  Come help us clean up the church!  Saturday, September 14th, will be our Clean-up Day, from 9 AM to 1 PM.  Please come to help.  Work will be done inside the church building and the office wing. 

  

Feed the Homeless 3 -  Would you like to participate in feeding the homeless?  Please come join our volunteers at Bailey's Crossroads Community Center on Saturday, September 21st.  Cooking will start in the kitchen of the Center at 3:30 PM and serving at 6:00 PM.  We will feed about 70 people.  We also welcome your donation.  Checks may be made payable to Saint Patrick's, with "Feed the Homeless" on the memo line.  Thank you for your generosity.   If you would like to be a volunteer, please speak with Elisabeth Nguyen when you see her at church, or write to her at elisabethnguyen@gmail.com.

We need three volunteers on Saturday, September 28, to register patients for the October 19's free dental clinic.  Registration hours will be from 9 AM to 2 PM, and each volunteer will be working 1.5 hours.  This is also an opportunity for students to earn credit for community service.  Please let Tinh+ know if you wish to volunteer.

 - Mark your calendar: Cookies for Coeds Packing Party -- 2:30 PM on Saturday, October 5th.  We need lots of help gathering *homemade* goodies and packing boxes for our church members who are attending college, to remind St. Pats' Coeds of God's love, and ours.  Further announcements will be made on when the donated cookies should be brought to the church. Please contact Catherine Dubas (catherine_dubas@cox.net or 703-207-0424) to let her know you will be able to provide cookies and/or that you will join in packing the boxes, or for any questions you may have.  Thank you!

 

-  Fr. Tinh will train acolytes and young lectors on Saturday, October 26, at 11 AM.   Youth and parents are welcome to lunch with Vietnamese sandwiches following the session. 

 

What's For DinnerCalling all the talented cooks of Saint Patrick's:  We need your help to make the October 27th's Harvest Day's Dinner for Youth and Adults a success!!! Amelia Nicholson has agreed to coordinate the event and she will soon contact you all.  The event will begin with Evening Prayer at 5:30 PM;  dinner starts at 6:00 PM.

Bishop Shannon will visit Saint Patrick's on Sunday, December 8, 2013. The service on that day will be held in the afternoon.  This will be an opportunity for baptism, confirmation, reception and affirmation of faith.  Fr. Tinh+ will teach a confirmation class that includes four after-church sessions on Oct. 13, Oct. 27, Nov. 10 and Nov. 24, and a visit to the National Cathedral on Saturday, November 30.  Parents and Sponsors of the confirmands are invited to join the class.

-  Many thanks to Winnie Lebo for the beautiful covers for the handbell tables.


2013-2014 Calendar for Youth and Youth Leaders  

-- Diocese of Virginia  

  

Parish Youth Ministry Events:

                                                                                      

PYM 'Volunteer Day'  

- October 5th, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM  

(For junior AND senior high school aged youth @ St Thomas, Mclean. No fee.  Free lunch.  Contact our Bobby Dubas for more information)

 

PYM Senior High Weekend

- November 8th -10th @ Shrine Mont  (For all High School aged youth and their youth leaders, $150 per participant -- scholarship available for St. Pat's youth) 

 

PYM 6th & 7th Grade Weekend

- March 28th - 30th, 2014 @ Shrine Mont  (For all 6th &7th grade youth and their youth leaders, $150 per participant -- scholarship available for St. Pat's youth) 

 

PYM 8th Grade Weekend

- May 16th - 18th, 2014 @ Shrine Mont (For all 8th grade youth and their youth leaders, $150 per participant -- scholarship available for St. Pat's youth) 

 

Provincial Events:

 

Province 3 Junior High Weekend - October 18th-20th @ North Bay, MD  (For all Junior High aged youth and their youth leaders.   http://www.northbayadventure.com/)  

 

 

Province 3 Senior High Weekend - March 2014 (TBD) @ North Bay, MD  (For all senior high aged youth and their youth leaders.  http://www.northbayadventure.com/

 

National Events:

 

Episcopal Youth Event

- July 9th -13th, 2014 @ Villanova University (Philadelphia, PA)  (For all senior high aged youth and their youth leaders. Sponsored by the National Church. Contact church office for more information)

The Propers 

Sunday, September 8, 2013
This Sunday is the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost     
(Proper 18)

 

Texts:   

Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Psalm 1:1-6
Philemon 1: 1-20
Luke 14:25-33 

Collect:    Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength, so you never forsake those who make their boast of your mercy;  through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

This Sunday's Altar Flowers  

The flowers on the altar this Sunday
are to the glory of God,
and are given
in loving memory of
Roselle Parrish

Last Sunday's Sermon 

Proper 17 -- Year C -- September 1, 2013

Text:  Luke 14:7-14                             Tinh Huynh+ 

--------------------------------------

 

"When you are invited to a wedding banquet

do not sit down at the place of honor..."

---------------------

Sound like words spoken at a wrong place and wrong time,  

don't they?

The Pharisee and his friends at the dinner   

must have frowned as Jesus spoke.

---------------------

What would you feel like if you heard words like those while eating at a banquet?

No wonder why those men hated Jesus so much. 

The guests in the Pharisee's house  

must have quietly fought with each other  

over spaces at the dinner table.   

Location meant status,

and perhaps some among them were exchanging dirty looks. 

------------------

Anyhow, there are two parts in the Gospel we read this morning.

The first part is the advice to the guests.

The second part is the advice to the host.

What Jesus says about inviting the poor to the table,

in the second part,

did not sound right. 

------------------

Bread matters in the Gospel of Luke.

Jesus and his disciples broke bread together.

Jesus ate with the outcast.

Jesus deigned to be one with them.

-------------------

What is at stake here?

The issue is not about where to sit at a banquet,

or about whom you should invite to a meal.

It is about self-seeking

and about fear.

-------------------

In 1955 I was a first grader in the elementary school  

in Dalat, Vietnam.

I excelled in class,

and when the school year ended

I was awarded a box of colored pencils

and a leather school case.

My father was the pastor of the Evangelical Church in that town,

and my family lived in the parsonage that was in the same building with the sanctuary.

The school was a short walk from home,

down the hill.

The day after I received the award,

I went to the school to loiter around with other kids.

I wanted to take along the school case with the colored pencils in it.

My mother told me to leave it at home.

She asked, "What for?"

But I took the case along anyway.

While at the school I was distracted.

I left the case on the ground, by a bush.

I ran about with the other kids.

When I came back for the school case,

I did not see it.

It had disappeared.

I came home without the things I cherished.

My mother was very upset.

I was upset.

Gone was my award.

Gone was my pride.

Dalat Church

  

Now I ask,  "Why did I want to take the award items to the school?"

I wanted to show off.

I had the "look-at-me" problem.

I was like those seeking a higher place at the dinner table.

--------------------

Jesus' teaching in Luke is on humility.  Yet how can one be truly humble while the need for recognition is always there?  

You cannot try to be humble, or do something to become humble, or pray that God make you humble.
Richard Foster, in his "Celebration of Discipline,"

says that we cannot gain the virtue of humility merely by seeking it. (1) 

Foster suggests that you may grow in humility only by serving others and caring about their needs. (2) 

--------------------  

Shall we say that humility and hospitality go together?

Once your mind and heart are fixed on the Kingdom of God,

you may overcome the subtle fears, and, therefore,  

the need for recognition may fade away.   

Perhaps the Kingdom of God is where the "look-at-me" mentality is replaced by one of sincere and attentive listening, and where fear is banished. 

--------------------

As a priest, I have met many people from the streets

who come knocking at my door for help.

No matter how used I am to seeing them,

there is always a fear in my mind  --

the fear of a stranger,

the fear of being taken advantage of,

the concern about my own safety,

the uneasiness of encountering poverty,

and the frustration of being interrupted,

and of hearing made-up stories.

---------------------

This last week I met Richard.  

Late on Sunday afternoon,

a man appeared from nowhere

to startle Kim-Anh  

as she was alone on the driveway of the rectory.

He asked whether we had a church service,

and he asked for the pastor.

After knowing that I was not available, he left. 

On Tuesday evening, at about seven,

when I was putting away my garden tools in the screen room behind the carport,

I heard from the street someone shouting at the top of his lungs,

and the person was standing near the maple tree.

He raised his arms and faced the rectory. 

I could not understand what he was saying, 

except the mentioning of "Vietnam War."

After that burst of uttering he turned around and walked away.

It was the same man who came on Sunday.

----------------------

On Wednesday, about the same time,

Kim-Anh saw the man walking  

toward the church.

I got out, called him back and said,

"Hey, what's happening?"

He turned around, smiled readily, and greeted me back.

I said I was sorry for not being able to catch up with him when he came the other day.

- "No problem."

-  "Yesterday you shouted in front of my house. 

You must have been very angry about something."

- "No. I did not shout, and I was not angry, either."

- "You've come for help?"

- "No. Actually, I'm looking for the Lord.  I have a concern about spiritual warfare,

and about salvation for the Jews,   

and I am particularly interested in the Episcopal Church."

--------------

There was a Bible in his hand.

He was surprisingly gentle. 

We sat together on the bench in front of the church,

and he did all the talking, non-stop, for about 20 minutes.

He opened the Bible at various places as he spoke to me about the Lord,

about sin,

and,

when he came to mention the CIA and its spy work,

his voice dropped to a whisper.

There was a faraway look in his eyes.

His shoes were terribly worn out. 

His smile was beautiful.

I liked the way he laughed. 

Richard said he had a five-year old daughter,

and that his wife had divorced him, and

he had not seen his daughter for a long time.

Yet that did not seem to be the main issue in his mind.

The greatest burden that he wanted to share was about salvation for the Jewish people.

That night I gave him some money for a meal,

and advised him to go to the shelter.

He would not stop talking, 

but I said I must go back to my home. 

The next day he came again,

with a list of Jewish names for me to pray for.

I prayed with him and let him go,

with money for another meal.

------------------

You wish to proclaim Christ's love,

and yet you just can't be fearless.

Hospitality demands sacrifice.

Yet, the things love calls for do have boundaries. 

Jesus might have wanted to say:

Allow the lame, the crippled and the blind  

a space at your table,

and you will be liberated.

Who can do that?  

--------------- 

Jean Vanier wrote in his "Tears of Silence":

"Two prisons divided by a gulf:

the miserable man......

and, imprisoned in the cell next door,

the man of means

comfortably installed.....

---------------- 

two worlds that never meet

divided by a gulf called fear.....

who can assuage this fear

who can heal the wounds of this fear

-------------

where to find this strength

springing from hope

which will conquer fear?" (4) 

----------------------

I, too, need liberation.

---------------------- 

Jesus spoke about hospitality as  

allowing a person a space at the table.

The idea may suit our thoughts on  

offering an ear to the person who needs to speak out.

Oftentimes we find ourselves  

not willing to listen to each other.

Listening attentively to someone  

who is desperate to speak

is setting him or her free.

Listening is also liberation  

to the one who listens.

Listening with humbleness  

can be like choosing to seat yourself  

at a less important place. 

This may also be what our Lord meant in today's lesson.

May God graft in our hearts

the love of his Name, which can cast out fear,

and bring us to the "messianic feast"

where all are welcome,

and all are liberated.  Amen.

_______________

(1) Richard Foster,

Celebration of Discipline -- The Path to Spiritual Growth, Harper & Row, SF, 1988, page 130. 

(2) Ibid

(4) Jean Vanier, Tears of Silence, Darton, Longman and Todd, ltd., London, 1982, page 77.
(5)  The Collect for today reads, "Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of your Name; increase in us true religion; nourish us with all goodness; and bring forth in us the fruit of good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen."

 

Đại Ư Kinh Văn Chúa Nhật Vừa Qua

Chúa Nhật, 1 tháng 9, 2013

Kinh Văn:  Luca 14:7-14                             MS Tỉnh+ 

--------------------------------------

 

Trong đoạn Phúc Âm chúng ta đọc hôm nay, Đức Giêsu dạy một bài học cho khách và chủ, nhân để ư hành động cử chỉ của những người Pharisi trong bữa ăn.   Đối với khách, Người dạy rằng khi đến chỗ tiệc tùng hay hội họp th́ đừng nên ngồi chỗ cao mà phải chọn chỗ khiêm tốn, để khỏi bị hớ.  Đối với chủ tiệc, Người khuyên đừng mời người giàu và có thế lực, nhưng nên mời những người bị xă hội ruồng bỏ. 

            Lời dạy thứ nhất, cho khách, thấy như là một lời khôn ngoan cho mọi người, và thích hợp cho tất cả, dù là Việt Nam hay Âu Mỹ.  Lời dạy thứ nh́, cho chủ, thấy như là ngược đời.

            Về chiều sâu, lời dạy cho khách là về đức khiêm tốn.  Khi đến chỗ tiệc tùng, ta phải hiểu vị thế của ḿnh mà chọn chỗ.  Câu hỏi là khiêm tốn thế nào?  Có khi ḿnh cố t́nh chọn chỗ rất thấp để mong người ta kêu ḿnh đến chỗ cao hơn.  Và nếu trong ḷng mong mỏi như thế th́ chẳng khiêm tốn chút nào.  Đó chỉ là một cử chỉ bên ngoài che đậy cái kiêu hănh và khắc khoải bên trong.  Kiêu hănh: "Coi đây -- Tôi khiêm tốn như thế nầy đây."  Khắc khoải bồn chồn: "Hôm nay ở chỗ nầy không biết người ta có để ư đến ḿnh chăng?"  Sự khiêm tốn mà Đức Giêsu ám chỉ không phải là cái vỏ bên ngoài, mà đến từ cái ung dung tự tại bên trong, tức là sự an ninh nội tâm do ḷng tin rằng Chúa yêu ḿnh và ḿnh thuộc về Chúa.  Khi tâm hồn đă an tịnh th́ ngồi đâu cu~ng thế, và nếu có lỡ ngồi chỗ không đúng và bị người ta kêu đi chỗ khác th́ cu~ng chẳng mắc cỡ ǵ cả.  (Để ư:  người có tính t́nh khó chịu, hay chỉ trích bắt bẻ, là người có nội tâm xao xuyến.  Khi tâm hồn an thái, người ta có thể trở nên xề x̣a, sao cu~ng được, dễ tha thứ). Richard Foster, tác giả cuốn "Celebration of Discipline," viết rằng đức khiêm tốn không phải do cố gắng mà có được, mà là do phục vụ và quan tâm. Chúng ta không có thể cầu nguyện xin Chúa khiến ḿnh khiêm nhường, song bởi phục vụ người khác mà được đức tính ấy.

            Lời dạy cho chủ tiệc trong Phúc Âm là một câu nói ngược đời.  Không lẽ bày cỗ ra rồi ra đường đón mấy ông homeless về nhà mời quư ông xơi?  Vào thời của Chúa, người Pharisi trong xă hội Do Thái tự tách biệt và xem ḿnh cao trọng hơn ai hết.  Họ không ăn chung với những người tật nguyền hay trên thân thể có sẹo ghẻ.  Chuyện những người cùng một mức lợi tức và tên tuổi đ́nh đám với nhau, và những người luôn mong t́m được "nâng cấp" là chuyện thấy rất thường trong xă hội.  Chúa nh́n thấy cái thấp thỏm trong nôi tâm con người.  Sự thấp thỏm đó cu~ng do sự quan tâm về cái vỏ mà không thấy cái rỗng tuếch bề trong.  Lời dạy của Chúa không phải hiểu theo nghĩa đen, mặc dù trong thực tế ta có thể thực hiện theo một sự sắp đặt nào đó.  Khi ta tiếp đón ai ngồi bàn với ḿnh, th́ ta hiểu rằng ḿnh đặt họ ngang hàng với ḿnh, hoặc ḿnh ngang hàng với họ.  Một cách hiểu vấn đề nầy ở trong chữ "lắng nghe."  Tiếp đăi (hospitality) không phải chỉ là chuyện ăn uống, mà c̣n có ư nghĩa về sự liên hệ (relationship) giữa người với người.  Đây chính là chấp nhận sự hiện diện của một người bên ḿnh, và cho họ một vị thế, không gạt bỏ hất hủi họ.  Tiếp đăi tức là lắng nghe.  Người nầy bằng ḷng ngồi xuống lắng nghe người kia nói, mà không vội phủ nhận họ.  Xung khắc không giải quyết được v́ người nầy nhất định không chịu nghe người kia.  Lắng nghe tức là tự đặt ḿnh ở một chỗ thấp hơn hay ngang hàng với người nói tại "bàn tiệc."

            Lời dạy của Chúa trong đoạn Phúc Âm Luca kết thúc bằng câu nói hy vọng về Bàn Tiệc trong Nước Thiên Chúa và hy vọng phục sinh.  Ngay trong ư tưởng về "lắng nghe" cu~ng không thể hiểu hết được về lời dạy của Chúa.  Lắng nghe tới mức nào?  Thực hiện t́nh thương của Chúa là điều tốt, song chuyện đó vẫn có giới hạn.  Định biên cương cho sự thực hiện t́nh thương nầy là một điều chúng ta phải suy nghĩ và áp dụng theo sự khôn ngoan của ḿnh.

May God bless and keep you, and may God grant us peace. 

 

The Rev. Tinh T. Huynh

Rector of Saint Patrick's Church