The story of the prostitute woman with Jesus is one of the most striking passages in the whole Gospel. It is a story that should not just be read but we should make ourselves present there as the whole incident unfolds. Jesus' host, Simon the Pharisee, was utterly shocked at what was going on and so I imagine would many of us. Here is a woman of the street who bursts into a private and 'respectable' house, falls on her knees at the feet of Jesus. She starts crying and making his feet wet, then dries his feet with her long hair, and then starts kissing Jesus repeatedly. Through it all, Jesus remains perfectly calm and unruffled. If it happened to us, how would we react? Simon could only see a woman who led a totally immoral life (helped, of course, by many male clients) and was shocked and disgusted - as we, too, might be. Jesus, on the other hand, sees a woman who is deeply repentant of her sinful life. Simon saw a stereotype of a class; Jesus saw an individual and unique person. In the end, Jesus said a person so full of love could not be in sin. Sin and love are incompatible. So he sent her away reassuring her that her sins were no more. How would I react in that situation? Do I generalise about certain kinds of people based on their occupation, class, race, religion..? Let me learn to see and love Jesus in every individual.