Give me your tired, your poor

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel:

John 1:5 - 2:2 Psalm 103:1-4, 8-9, 13-14, 17-18 Matthew 11:25-30

Matthew 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

The world tends to move towards those who are successful, charismatic, wealthy, energetic etc...

Jesus calls those who are burdened and heavy laden. That is those who the world rejects, or ignores.  These are the ones who need a savior.  They need someone to comfort them and give them hope. They need someone to give them justice and freedom.  

The words of the poet Emma Lazarus are engraved on the Statue of Liberty:   

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

This is what America is supposed to stand for, very similar to what Jesus says.  Seek to help those in need rather than to exploit those who have plenty.  Contrast the words of this poem and the words of Christ with the vision of Nazi Germany and the Aryan race, or any other nation that has sought to "purify" it's people.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to see the needs of others and to rid myself of the selfish desire for those who have the favor of this world.  Help me to truly see your will and to embrace it.

Amen