30th Sunday Year C 2025

" for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." ( Luke18:14 )

There is a story about Two Windows in a small village nestled between two hills in which every home had wide, open windows. From them, neighbours could see one another’s joys, sorrows, and all too often, their mistakes.

Old Marta lived in one house, a woman whose eyes were sharp and her tongue sharper. Across the street lived Jonah, a young man who once cheated others in trade but now worked honestly, hoping to make peace with those he had wronged.

Each morning, Marta would sigh as she looked out her window. “There goes that Jonah, pretending to be good,” she’d mutter. She remembered none of his kindness, only his past errors and mistakes.

One afternoon, a sudden storm tore through the valley. The wind screamed, and Marta’s roof began to lift. In panic, she cried out for help — and through the rain came Jonah. He climbed up and patched her roof, and then stayed beside her until the storm had passed over.

That night, Marta lay awake while words from biblical book of Sirach echoed in her heart: “The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds” (Sirach 35:17). She realised all too well that Jonah’s simple prayers had reached God, while her proud ones had gone nowhere.

Jonah, meanwhile, sat by his lamp, remembering St. Paul’s words: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7). He knew he wasn’t perfect, but he was trying.

The next morning, Marta baked a warm loaf and crossed the street. “Forgive me,” she said softly. “I judged you too quickly.” Jonah smiled. “We both need mercy,” he said, “and thankfully God is very generous with it.”

Pope Leo XIV once wrote, “Mercy is not weakness but the strength of love bending down to lift the fallen.” Marta felt that truth in her bones. And later she would tell her neighbours, “When I forgave Jonah, I felt lighter, It was as if God Himself had opened my window.” Another reflection of the Pope is also helpful here, “When we only see the worst in others, we close the door through which grace might enter.” 

So, from then on, Marta kept her window spotless—not to peer at others’ faults, but to let the light in.

In that little village between two hills, the people learned what the tax collector in Jesus’ parable had known all along: God’s mercy waits for the humble heart—and through forgiveness, we become our truest selves.

By Fr. Thomas O'Brien a.a.