Urge Him

Tonight Malis and I went out for dinner. It was a simple meal... a mid-week excuse not to shop, cook and clean up. We ordered a vegetable dish, an omelet and two plates of steamed rice.

As we were eating in the open-front restaurant, a kid came up begging. He said he was hungry. I invited him to eat with us, saying, "Sit down and I will order another plate of rice." He hesitated for a moment. Then he walked away. It wasn't until later that it became clear; he'd walked away from the table hungry.

When we finished, the same boy came up asking for money to buy food. We were standing at the front of the restaurant and the waitress was already clearing our plates. I replied, "Little brother, I'm sorry, I won't give you money. Next time eat with us." Seeing a scrap of omelet leftover, the kid grabbed it and took off before the waitress had time to throw it away. Then I believed he was hungry.

In Luke's gospel, there's a story about a guy who holds a dinner party. He invites the rich but they don't turn up. So he commands his servants to go and invite the poor instead. Luke speaks not just of inviting but actively persuading the poor to come to the feast. "Urge them," says one translation. "Make the people come in." "Constrain them to yield and come." "Drag them in." After reflecting on this tonight, I realise that my efforts to invite this young stranger to share our table were pretty weak. I only asked one. Next time I will ask several times. I'll try to compel him. Hopefully I'll remember that a plate of rice and some basic food is good news for the poor.