October 2010 - Bible Diary
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BIBLE DIARY 2010
Liturgical Readings and Reflections
| October 2010 |
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January ♦ February ♦ March ♦ April ♦ May ♦ June ♦ July
August ♦ September ♦ October ♦ November ♦ December
26th Week in Ordinary Time
Thérèse of the Child Jesus
►1st Reading: Job 38:1, 12–21; 40:3–5
Then Yahweh answered Job out of the storm:
Have you ever commanded the morning,
or shown the dawn its place,
that it might grasp the earth by its edges
and shake the wicked out of it,
when it takes a clay color
and changes its tint like a garment;
when the wicked are denied their own light,
and their proud arm is shattered?
Have you journeyed to where the sea begins
or walked in its deepest recesses?
Have the gates of death been shown to you?
Have you seen the gates of Shadow?
Have you an idea of the breadth of the earth?
Tell me, if you know all this.
Where is the way to the home of light,
and where does darkness dwell?
Can you take them to their own regions,
and set them on their homeward paths?
You know, for you were born before them,
and great is the number of your years!
Job said:
How can I reply, unworthy as I am!
All I can do is put my hand over my mouth.
I have spoken once, now I will not answer;
oh, yes, twice, but I will do no further.
►Gospel: Lk 10:13–16
Jesus said, “Alas for you Chorazin! Alas for you Bethsaida! So many miracles have been worked in you! If the same miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would already be sitting in ashes and wearing the sackcloth of repentance. Surely for Tyre and Sidon it will be better than for you on the Judgment Day. And what of you, city of Capernaum? Will you be lifted up to heaven? You will be thrown down to the place of the dead.
“Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me; and he who rejects me, rejects the one who sent me.”
REFLECTION
“God will show more mercy to Tyre and Sidon than to you.”
Miracles have been performed for us
just as they were for the Israelites:
Life is a miracle, for instance.
The fact that we know Jesus is also miracle.
The only question is whether or not we, like Jesus,
We also make our lives a miracle for others.
26th Week in Ordinary Time
Guardian Angels
►1st Reading: Ex 23:20–23
See, I am sending an Angel before you to keep you safe on the way and bring you to the place I have made ready.
Be on your guard in his presence and listen to him; do not resist him for he will not pardon your wrong-doing, for my name is in him.
If you listen to him and do what I say, I will be enemy to your enemies and the opponent of your opponents. My Angel will go before you and bring you to the land of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites; all these I will destroy.
►Gospel: Mt 18:1–5, 10
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Then Jesus called a little child, set the child in the midst of the disciples, and said, “I assure you that unless you change and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes lowly like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and whoever receives such a child in my name receives me.
“See that you do not despise any of these little ones, for I tell you: their angels in heaven continually see the face of my heavenly Father.”
REFLECTION
“See that you don’t despise any of these little ones. Their angels in heaven,
I tell you, are always in the presence of my Father in heaven.”
To struggle with sin ourselves is only human.
To lead another into sin–especially a child
who, imprinted by adults gone wrong,
is too young to choose for itself,
is to shake heaven to the foundations of justice.
Beware that that justice does not fall on you.
27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Hb 1:2–3; 2:2–4
Yahweh, how long will I cry for help while you pay no attention to me? I denounce the oppression and you do not save.
Why do you make me see injustice?
Are you pleased to look on tyranny? All I see is outrage, violence and quarrels.
Then Yahweh answered me and said,
“Write down the vision, inscribe it on tables so it can be easily read, since this is a vision for an appointed time; it will not fail but will be fulfilled in due time. If it delays, wait for it, for it will come and will not be deferred. Look:
“I don’t look with favor on the one who gives way; the upright, on the other hand, will live by his faithfulness.”
►2nd Reading: 2 Tim 1:6–8, 13–14
I invite you to fan into a flame the gift of God you received through the laying on of my hands. For God did not confer on us a spirit of bashfulness, but of strength, love and good judgment. Do not be ashamed of testifying to our Lord, nor of seeing me in chains. On the contrary, do your share in laboring for the Gospel with the strength of God.
Follow the pattern of the sound doctrine which you have heard from me, concerning faith and love in Christ Jesus. Keep this precious deposit with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives within us.
►Gospel: Lk 17:5–10
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” And the Lord said, “If you have faith even the size of a mustard seed, you may say to this tree: ‘Be uprooted and plant yourself in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
“Who among you would say to your servant coming in from the fields after plowing or tending sheep: ‘Come at once and sit down at table’? No, you tell him: ‘Prepare my dinner. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink; you can eat and drink afterwards.’ Do you thank this servant for doing what you commanded? So for you. When you have done all that you have been told to do, you must say: ‘We are no more than servants; we have only done our duty.’”
REFLECTION
“The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Make our faith greater.’
The Lord answered, ‘if you had faith as big as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Pull yourself up by
the roots and plant yourself in the sea,’ and it would obey you.’”
Faith, real faith, is simple: it says, God is.
Funny, isn’t it, how we say we have faith
but trust everything on earth
–money, connections, power, and status–
more than we do God to sustain us.
But the God who made us is with us. Believe that.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
Francis of Assisi
►1st Reading: Gal 1:6–12
I am surprised at how quickly you have abandoned God who called you according to the grace of Christ, and have gone to another gospel. Indeed, there is no other gospel, but some people who are sowing confusion among you want to turn the Gospel of Christ upside down.
But even if we ourselves were giving you another gospel different from the one we preached to you, or if it were an angel from heaven, I would say: let God’s curse be on him! As I have said I now say again: if anyone preaches the Gospel in a way other than you received it, fire that one. Are we to please humans or obey God? Do you think that I try to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, that the Gospel we preached to you is not a human message, nor did I receive it from anyone, I was not taught of it but it came to me as a revelation from Christ Jesus.
►Gospel: Lk 10:25–37*(completed)
Then a teacher of the Law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, “Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What is written in the Scripture? How do you understand it?” The man answered, “It is written: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus replied, “What a good answer! Do this and you shall live.” The man wanted to keep up appearances, so he replied, “Who is my neighbor?”
Jesus then said, “There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, too, was going that way, and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him and treated his wounds with oil and wine and wrapped them with bandages. Then he put him on his own mount and brought him to an inn where he took care of him.
The next day he had to set off, but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper and told him: ‘Take care of him and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I come back.’”
Jesus then asked, “Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The teacher of the Law answered, “the one who had mercy on him.” And Jesus said, “Go then and do the same.”
REFLECTION
“But the teacher of the law wanted to justify himself so he asked Jesus, ‘Who is my neighbor?’”
“Charity begins at home,” we say.
“My country right or wrong,” we say.
“Let them work harder if they want
what we have,” we say about others.
But if we really think those things,
there is a lot of priest and levite in us yet.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Gal 1:13–24
You have heard of my previous activity in the Jewish community; I furiously persecuted the Church of God and tried to destroy it. For I was more devoted to the Jewish religion than many fellow Jews of my age, and I defended the traditions of my ancestors more fanatically.
But one day God called me out of his great love, he who had chosen me from my mother’s womb; and he was pleased to reveal in me his Son, that I might make him known among the pagan nations. Then I did not seek human advice nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me. I immediately went to Arabia, and from there I returned again to Damascus. Later, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to meet Cephas, and I stayed with him for fifteen days. But I did not see any other apostle except James, the Lord’s brother. On writing this to you, I affirm before God that I am not lying.
After that I went to Syria and Cilicia. The churches of Christ in Judea did not know me personally; they had only heard of me: “He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith he tried to uproot.” And they praised God because of me.
►Gospel: Lk 10:38–42
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he entered a village and a woman called Martha welcomed him to her house. She had a sister named Mary who sat down at the Lord’s feet to listen to his words. Martha, meanwhile, was busy with all the serving and finally she said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the serving?”
But the Lord answered, “Martha, Martha, you worry and are troubled about many things, whereas only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken away from her.”
REFLECTION
“Mary has chosen the right thing and it shall not be taken away from her.”
It seems that Jesus does not think that the kitchen
is the only place for women.
Just as Jesus made Mary of Bethany a disciple
so are women everywhere called to follow him..
Just as Mary of Nazareth gave Jesus to the world
so are all women expected to do the same.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
Bruno / Bl. Marie-Rose Durocher
►1st Reading: Gal 2:1–2, 7–14
After fourteen years I again went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and Titus came with us. Following a revelation, I went to lay before them the Gospel that I am preaching to the pagans. I had a private meeting with the leaders—lest I should be working or have worked in a wrong way.
They recognized that I have been entrusted to give the Good News to the pagan nations, just as Peter has been entrusted to give it to the Jews. In the same way that God made Peter the apostle of the Jews, he made me the apostle of the pagans.
James, Cephas and John acknowledged the graces God gave me. Those men who were regarded as the pillars of the Church stretched out their hand to me and Barnabas as a sign of fellowship; we would go to the pagans and they to the Jews. We should only keep in mind the poor among them. I have taken care to do this.
When later Cephas came to Antioch, I confronted him since he deserved to be blamed. Before some of James’ people arrived, he used to eat with non-Jewish people. But when they arrived, he withdrew and did not mingle anymore with them, for fear of the Jewish group. The rest of the Jews followed him in this pretense, and even Barnabas was part of this insincerity. When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Cephas publicly: If you who are Jewish agreed to live like the non-Jews, setting aside the Jewish customs, why do you now compel the non-Jews to live like Jews?
►Gospel: Lk 11:1–4
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” And Jesus said to them, “When you pray, say this:
Father, hallowed be your name, may your kingdom come, give us each day the kind of bread we need, and forgive us our sins, for we also forgive all who do us wrong, and do not bring us to the test.”
REFLECTION
“Lord, teach us how to pray.”
To ask that the existence of God be honored,
that we each and all be given what we need-
rather than simply what we want–
that our sins be forgiven as we forgive others
and that we be tried no more than our strength allows
is to ask for all we will ever need to be truly happy.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
Our Lady of the Rosary
►1st Reading: Gal 3:1–5
How foolish you are, Galatians! How could they bewitch you after Jesus Christ has been presented to you as crucified? I shall ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by the practice of the Law, or by believing the message? How can you be such fools: you begin with the Spirit and end up with the flesh!
So you have experienced all this in vain! Would that it were not so! Did God give you the Spirit and work miracles among you, because of your observance of the Law or because you believed in his message?
►Gospel: Lk 11:5–13
Jesus said to his disciples, “Suppose one of you has a friend and goes to his house in the middle of the night and says: ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine who is traveling has just arrived and I have nothing to offer him.’ Maybe your friend will answer from inside: ‘Don’t bother me now; the door is locked and my children and I are in bed, so I can’t get up and give you anything.’ But I tell you, even though he will not get up and attend to you because you are a friend, yet he will get up because you are a bother to him, and he will give you all you need.
“And so I say to you, ‘Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For the one who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to him who knocks the door will be opened.
“If your child asks for a fish, will you give a snake instead? And if your child asks for an egg, will you give a scorpion? Even you evil people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more then will the Father in heaven give holy spirit to those who ask him!”
REFLECTION
“Those who ask will receive, and those who seek shall find,
and the door will be open to anyone who knocks.”
It is seeking a spiritual life
that is the essence of a spiritual life.
The fact is that God is always
present to us.
The question is only
whether or not we are present to God.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Gal 3:7–14
Understand then that those who follow the way of faith are sons and daughters of Abraham.
The Scriptures foresaw that by the way of faith, God would give true righteousness to the non-Jewish nations. For God’s promise to Abraham was this: In you shall all the nations be blessed. So now those who take the way of faith receive the same blessing as Abraham who believed; but those who rely on the practice of the Law are under a curse, for it is written: Cursed is everyone who does not always fulfill everything written in the Law.
It is plainly written that no one becomes righteous, in God’s way, by the Law: by faith the righteous shall live. Yet the Law gives no place to faith, for according to it: the one who fulfills the commandments shall have life through them.
Now Christ rescued us from the curse of the Law by becoming cursed himself for our sake, as it is written: there is a curse on everyone who is hanged on a tree. So the blessing granted to Abraham reached the pagan nations in and with Christ, and we received the promised Spirit through faith.
►Gospel: Lk 11:15–26
When Jesus was casting out a devil some of the people said, “He drives out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the chief of the demons.” So others wanted to put him to the test by asking him for a heavenly sign. But Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every nation divided by civil war is on the road to ruin, and will fall. If Satan also is divided, his empire is coming to an end. How can you say that I drive out demons by calling upon Beelzebul? If I drive them out by Beelzebul, by whom do your fellow members drive out demons? They will be your judges, then.
“But suppose I drive out demons by the finger of God; would not this mean that the kingdom of God has come upon you? As long as the strong and armed man guards his house, his goods are safe. But when a stronger one attacks and overcomes him, the challenger takes away all the weapons he relied on and disposes of his spoils. “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me, scatters.
“When the evil spirit goes out of a person, it wanders through dry lands looking for a resting place. And finding none, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ When it comes, it finds the house swept and everything in order. Then it goes to fetch seven other spirits even worse than itself. They move in and settle there, so that the last state of that person is worse than the first.”
REFLECTION
“They asked Jesus to perform a miracle to show that God approved of him.”
Testing God with ‘signs’ is a desire
for magic, not for God.
Faith does not test God;
Faith trusts that what happens,
in God’s good time,
will bring us closer to God’s will for us.
27th Week in Ordinary Time
Denis and Companions / John Leonardi
►1st Reading: Gal 3:22–29
But the written Law has imprisoned all things under the power of sin, so that what was promised through faith in Jesus Christ, would be accomplished in those who believe.
Before the time of faith had come, the Law confined us and kept us in custody until the time in which faith would show up. The Law then was serving as a slave to look after us until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. With the coming of faith, we are no longer submitted to this guidance.
Now, in Christ Jesus, all of you are sons and daughters of God through faith. All of you who were given to Christ through baptism, have put on Christ. Here there is no longer any difference between Jew or Greek, or between slave or freed, or between man and woman: but all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Christ, you are of Abraham’s race and you are to inherit God’s promise.
►Gospel: Lk 11:27–28
As Jesus was speaking, a woman spoke from the crowd and said to him, “Blessed is the one who bore you and nursed you!” Jesus replied, “Surely blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it as well.”
REFLECTION
“Rather how happy are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
The Jesus life is a relationship
that is personal and dynamic.
Once I create and cultivate it,
it is mine alone and totally.
A relationship with Jesus is based
on living the life of the One I seek.
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: 2 K 5:14–17
Naaman went down to the Jordan where he washed himself seven times as Elisha had ordered. His skin became soft like that of a child and he was cleansed.
Then Naaman returned to the man of God with all his men. He entered and said to him, “Now I know that there is no other God anywhere in the world but in Israel. I ask you to accept these gifts from your servant.”
But Elisha answered, “I swear by Yahweh whom I serve, I will accept nothing.” And however much Naaman insisted, Elisha would not accept his gifts.
So Naaman told him, “Since you refuse, let me get some sacks of soil from your land—the amount that two mules can carry. I shall use it to build an altar to Yahweh, for I shall not offer sacrifices to any other god but him.”
►2nd Reading: 2 Tim 2:8–13
Remember Christ Jesus, risen from the dead, Jesus, son of David, as preached in my Gospel. For this Gospel I labor and even wear chains like an evildoer, but the word of God is not chained. And so I bear everything for the sake of the chosen people, that they, too, may obtain the salvation given to us in Christ Jesus and share eternal glory. This statement is true:
If we have died with him, we shall also live with him;
If we endure with him, we shall reign with him;
If we deny him, he will also deny us;
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful for he cannot deny himself.
►Gospel: Lk 17:11–19
On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus was passing along the border between Samaria and Galilee, and as he entered a village, ten lepers came to meet him. Keeping their distance, they called to him, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” Then Jesus said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” Now, as they went their way, they found they were cured. One of them, as soon as he saw he was cleansed, turned back praising God in a loud voice, and throwing himself on his face before Jesus, he gave him thanks. This man was a Samaritan.
Then Jesus said, “Were not all ten healed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God but this alien?” And Jesus said to him, “Stand up and go your way; your faith has saved you.”
REFLECTION
“He threw himself on the ground at Jesus’ feet and thanked him for healing him.
The man was a Samaritan.”
The Samaritans were enemies of the Israelites.
But Jesus has no enemies.
And yet, in the name of religion,
we have made so many of our own.
It’s time for us to heal the wounds we’ve made.
It’s time for us to be Jesus to the whole world.
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Gal 4:22–24, 26–27, 31—5:1
It says that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman, the other by the free woman, his wife. The son of the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but the son of the free woman was born in fulfillment of God’s promise.
Here we have an allegory and the figures of two covenants. The first is the one from Mount Sinai, represented through Hagar: her children have slavery for their lot.
But the Jerusalem above, who is our mother, is free. And Scripture says of her: Rejoice, barren woman without children, break forth in shouts of joy, you who do not know the pains of childbirth, for many shall be the children of the forsaken mother, more than of the married woman.
Brethren, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
Christ freed us to make us really free. So remain firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
►Gospel: Lk 11:29–32
As the crowd increased, Jesus began to speak in this way, “People of the present time are evil people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins, and here there is greater than Jonah.”
REFLECTION
“On judgment day the people of Nineveh will stand up and accuse you,
because they turned from their sins when they heard Jonah preach,
and I assure you that there is something here greater than Jonah.”
We follow so many false gods in life–
money, power, heroes of one ilk or another.
But so often we miss the Way itself,
the One who shows us what it is
to live life immersed in the spirit of justice
and concentrated in the heart of God.
28th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Gal 5:1–6
Christ freed us to make us really free. So remain firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. I, Paul, say this to you: if you receive circumcision, Christ can no longer help you. Once more I say to whoever receives circumcision: you are now bound to keep the whole Law. All you who pretend to become righteous through the observance of the Law have separated yourselves from Christ and have fallen away from grace.
As for us, through the Spirit and faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. In Christ Jesus it is irrelevant whether we be circumcised or not; what matters is faith working through love.
►Gospel: Lk 11:37–41
As Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to have a meal with him. So he went and sat at table. The Pharisee then wondered why Jesus did not first wash his hands before dinner. But the Lord said to him, “So then, you Pharisees, you clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside yourselves you are full of greed and evil. Fools! He who made the outside, also made the inside. But according to you, by the mere giving of alms everything is made clean.”
REFLECTION
“How happy is the woman who bore you and nursed you!”
In a society in which the very act
of bearing a child, especially a son,
was the essence of womanhood,
Jesus says back that it is not simply
the act of birthing Jesus that makes us special,
it is the act of following him that brings us honor.
28th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Gal 5:18–25
But when you are led by the Spirit you are not under the Law.
You know what comes from the flesh: fornication, impurity and shamelessness, idol worship and sorcery, hatred, jealousy and violence, anger, ambition, division, factions, and envy, drunkenness, orgies and the like. I again say to you what I have already said: those who do these things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is charity, joy and peace, patience, understanding of others, kindness and fidelity, gentleness and self-control. For such things there is no Law or punishment. Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its vices and desires.
If we live by the Spirit, let us live in a spiritual way.
►Gospel: Lk 11:42–46
Jesus said, “A curse is on you, Pharisees; for the Temple you give a tenth of all, including mint and rue and the other herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. This ought to be practiced, without neglecting the other. A curse is on you, Pharisees, for you love the best seats in the synagogues and to be greeted in the marketplace. A curse is on you for you are like tombstones of the dead which can hardly be seen; people don’t notice them and make themselves unclean by stepping on them.”
Then a teacher of the Law spoke up and said, “Master, when you speak like this, you insult us, too.” And Jesus answered, “A curse is on you also, teachers of the Law. For you prepare unbearable burdens and load them on the people, while you yourselves don’t move a finger to help them.”
REFLECTION
“Woe to you Pharisees! You tithe mint and rue and herbs of all kinds
and neglect justice and the love of God; it is these you ought to have practiced
without neglecting the others.”
Tithing and fasting, prayer and temple sacrifice
are all part of the spiritual journey,
the life of the soul.
But unless we are also just in our dealings with people
and begin a personal rather than a formal relationship with God,
all the religious practices in the world are for nothing.
28th Week in Ordinary Time
Callistus
►1st Reading: Eph 1:1–10
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
to the saints in Ephesus, to you who share Christian faith:
receive grace and peace from God our Father and from Jesus the Lord.
Blessed be God, the Father of Christ Jesus our Lord,
who in Christ has blessed us from heaven with every spiritual blessing.
God chose us in Christ before the creation of the world
to be holy and without sin in his presence.
From eternity he destined us in love
to be his adopted sons and daughters through Christ Jesus,
thus fulfilling his free and generous will.
This goal suited him:
that his loving-kindness which he granted us in his Beloved
might finally receive all glory and praise.
For in Christ we obtain freedom, sealed by his blood,
and have the forgiveness of sins.
In this appears the greatness of his grace,
which he lavished on us.
In all wisdom and understanding,
God has made known to us his mysterious design,
in accordance with his loving-kindness in Christ.
In him and under him God wanted to unite,
when the fullness of time had come,
everything in heaven and on earth.
►Gospel: Lk 11:47–54
Jesus said to the Pharisees, “A curse is on you, for you build memorials to the prophets your ancestors killed. So you approve and agree with what your ancestors did. Is it not so? They got rid of the prophets, and now you can build!”
(The Wisdom of God also said,) “I will send prophets and apostles and this people will kill and persecute some of them. But the present generation will have to answer for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was murdered between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, the people of this time will have to answer for them all. “A curse is on you, teachers of the Law, for you have taken the key of knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you prevented others from entering.”
As Jesus left that place, the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees began to harass him, asking him endless questions, setting traps to catch him in something he might say.
REFLECTION
”How terrible for you! You make fine tombs for the prophets
–the very prophets your ancestors murdered.”
The great sin of every age and every institution
is the destruction of those who bring
the Good News of the word of God in new ways,
arguing that the past is better than the present,
that the old is holier than the new.
But God and the laws of God are not museum pieces,
they are meant for now always.
28th Week in Ordinary Time
Teresa of Jesus
►1st Reading: Eph 1:11–14
By a decree of Him who disposes all things
according to his own plan and decision
we, the Jews, have been chosen and called
and we were awaiting the Messiah,
for the praise of his glory.
You, on hearing the word of truth,
the Gospel that saves you,
have believed in him.
And, as promised, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit,
the first pledge of what we shall receive,
on the way to our deliverance as a people of God,
for the praise of his glory.
►Gospel: Lk 12:1–7
Such a numerous crowd had gathered that they crushed one another. Then Jesus spoke to his disciples in this way,
“Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered that will not be uncovered, or hidden that will not be made known. Whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in daylight, and what you have whispered in hidden places, will be proclaimed from the housetops.
“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who put to death the body and after that can do no more. But I will tell you whom to fear: Fear the One who after killing you is able to throw you into hell. This one you must fear. Don’t you get five sparrows for two pennies? Yet not one of them has been forgotten by God. Even the hairs of your head have been numbered. So do not fear: are you not worth more than a flock of sparrows?”
REFLECTION
“Even the hairs of your head have been numbered.”
Beware when you think you finally have it all.
That is the invariable sign that you may not even have begun
to get what is really important in life.
October 16
Saturday
28th Week in Ordinary Time
Hedwig / Margaret Mary Alacoque
►1st Reading: Eph 1:15–23
I have been told of your faith and your affection towards all the believers, so I always give thanks to God, remembering you in my prayers.
May the God of Christ Jesus our Lord, the Father of Glory, reveal himself to you and give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation, that you may know him.
May he enlighten your inner vision, that you may appreciate the things we hope for, since we were called by God.
May you know how great is the inheritance, the glory, God sets apart for his saints;
may you understand with what extraordinary power he acts in favor of us who believe.
He revealed his almighty power in Christ when he raised him from the dead and had him sit at his right hand in heaven, far above all rule, power, authority, dominion, or any other supernatural force that could be named, not only in this world but in the world to come as well.
Thus has God put all things under the feet of Christ and set him above all things, as head of the Church which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
►Gospel: Lk 12:8–12
Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before people, the Son of Man will also acknowledge before the angels of God. But the one who denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God.
There will be pardon for the one who criticizes the Son of Man, but there will be no pardon for the one who slanders the Holy Spirit.
When you are brought before the synagogues, governors and rulers, don’t worry about how you will defend yourself or what to say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you have to say.”
REFLECTION
“The Holy Spirit will teach you what you should say.”
Just because we do not know the history
of a theological idea
doesn’t mean that we don’t know God.
The Spirit of God dwells in those who seek
and speaks to those who listen.
It is discerning God’s voice from mine that matters.
29th Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Ex 17:8–13
When the Israelites were at Rephidim, the Amalekites came and attacked them. So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites in the morning. As for me, I will stand with God’s staff in my hand at the top of the hill.”
Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had directed, while Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. It happened that when Moses raised his hands, the Israelites would win but when he lowered them, the Amalekites would have the advantage.
As Moses’ arms grew weary they placed a stone for him to sit on while Aaron and Hur on either side held up his arms which remained steadily raised until sunset. For his part Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the sword.
►2nd Reading: 2 Tim 3:14—4:2
As for you, continue with what you have learned and what has been entrusted to you, knowing from whom you received it. Besides, you have known the Scriptures from child-hood; they will give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, refuting error, for correcting and training in Christian life. Through Scripture the man of God is made expert and thoroughly equipped for every good work.
In the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by the hope I have of his coming and his kingdom, I urge you to preach the Word, in season and out of season, reproving, rebuking or advising, always with patience and providing instruction.
►Gospel: Lk 18:1–8
Jesus told them a parable to show them that they should pray continually and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor people. In the same town was a widow who kept coming to him, saying: ‘Defend my rights against my opponent.’ For a time he refused, but finally he thought: ‘Even though I neither fear God nor care about people, this widow bothers me so much I will see that she gets justice; then she will stop coming and wearing me out.”
And Jesus explained, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Will God not do justice for his chosen ones who cry to him day and night even if he delays in answering them? I tell you, he will speedily do them justice. Yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
REFLECTION
“Will God not judge in favor of his own people who cry to him day and night for help?”
Life with God is one long continuous dialogue.
When we cry for help to conquer ourselves,
to heal our world, to bear the burdens of life,
we must not despair.
God, our constant companion, waits for us to call
and will not fail us in our efforts to grow.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
Luke, Evangelist
►1st Reading: 2 Tim 4:10–17b
You must know that Demas has deserted me for the love of this world: he returned to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia and Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke remains with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is a useful helper in my work. I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
Bring with you the cloak I left at Troas, in Carpos’ house and also the scrolls, especially the parchments. Alexander the metalworker has caused me great harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. Distrust him for he has been very much opposed to our preaching.
At my first hearing in court no one supported me; all deserted me. May the Lord not hold it against them. But the Lord was at my side, giving me strength to proclaim the Word fully, and let all the pagans hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.
►Gospel: Lk 10:1–9
Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place, where he himself was to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is rich, but the workers are few. So you must ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to his harvest. Courage! I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Set off without purse or bag or sandals; and do not stop at the homes of those you know.
Whatever house you enter, first bless them saying: ‘Peace to this house.’ If a friend of peace lives there, the peace shall rest upon that person. But if not, the blessing will return to you. Stay in that house eating and drinking at their table, for the worker deserves to be paid. Do not move from house to house.
When they welcome you in any town, eat what they offer you. Heal the sick who are there and say to them: ‘The kingdom of God has drawn near to you.’
REFLECTION
“I am sending you like lambs among wolves.”
Jesus does not want us to impose him on others.
Our task is to face an indifferent, even ravenous, world
gently but courageously.
We are to be in the world as Jesus was in the world..
Jesus does not conquer by the sword;
Jesus conquers by love.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
Isaac Jogues and John de Brebeuf and Companions / Paul of the Cross
►1st Reading: Eph 2:12–22
At that time you were without Christ, you did not belong to the community of Israel; the covenants of God and his promises were not for you; you had no hope and were without God in this world. But now, in Christ Jesus and by his blood, you who were once far off have come near.
For Christ is our peace, he who has made the two peoples one, destroying in his own flesh the wall—the hatred—which separated us. He abolished the Law with its commands and precepts. He made peace in uniting the two peoples in him, creating out of the two one New Man. He destroyed hatred and reconciled us both to God through the cross, making the two one body.
He came to proclaim peace; peace to you who were far off, peace to the Jews who were near. Through him we—the two peoples—approach the Father in one Spirit.
Now you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the holy people: you are of the household of God. You are the house whose foundations are the apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ Jesus. In him the whole structure is joined together and rises to be a holy temple in the Lord. In him you too are being built to become the spiritual sanctuary of God.
►Gospel: Lk 12:35–38
Jesus said to his disciples, “Be ready, dressed for service, and keep your lamps lit, like people waiting for their master to return from the wedding. As soon as he comes and knocks, they will open to him. Happy are those servants whom the master finds wide-awake when he comes. Truly, I tell you, he will put on an apron and have them sit at table and he will wait on them. Happy are those servants if he finds them awake when he comes at midnight or daybreak!”
REFLECTION
“Be ready for whatever comes, dressed for action and with your lamps lit.”
Discipleship is not a part-time option.
The world is waiting for the ministry of Jesus.
But this time, we are the ones
who have been sent to see that it is done.
The poor, the lost, the suffereing are, then,
waiting for us to be the presence of Jesus to them.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
Paul of the Cross
►1st Reading: Eph 3:2–12
You may have heard of the graces God bestowed on me for your sake. By a revelation he gave me the knowledge of his mysterious design, as I have explained in a few words. On reading them you will have some idea of how I understand the mystery of Christ.
This mystery was not made known to past generations but only now, through revelations given to holy apostles and prophets. Now the non-Jewish people share the Inheritance; in Christ Jesus the non-Jews are incorporated and are to enjoy the Promise.
This is the Good News of which I have become minister by a gift of God, a grace he gave me, when his power worked in me.
This grace was given to me, the least among all the holy ones: to announce to the pagan nations the immeasurable riches of Christ and to make clear to all how the mystery, hidden from the beginning in God, the Creator of all things, is to be fulfilled.
Even the heavenly forces and powers will now discover through the Church the wisdom of God in its manifold expression, as the plan is being fulfilled which God designed from the beginning in Christ Jesus, our Lord. In him we receive boldness and confidence to approach God.
►Gospel: Lk 12:39–48
Jesus said to his disciples, “Pay attention to this: If the master of the house had known at what time the thief would come, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.” Peter said, “Lord, did you tell this parable only for us, or for everyone?” And the Lord replied, “Imagine, then, the wise and faithful steward whom the master sets over his other servants to give them food rations at the proper time. Fortunate is this servant if his master on coming home finds him doing his work. Truly, I say to you, the master will put him in charge of all his property.
“But it may be that the steward thinks: ‘My Lord delays in coming,’ and he begins to abuse the menservants and the servant girls, eating and drinking and getting drunk. Then the master will come on a day he does not expect him and at an hour he doesn’t know. He will cut him off and send him to the same fate as the unfaithful.
“The servant who knew his master’s will, but did not prepare to do what his master wanted, will be punished with sound blows; but the one who did what deserved a punishment without knowing it shall receive fewer blows. Much will be required of the one who has been given much, and more will be asked of the one entrusted with more.”
REFLECTION
“Much is required from the person to whom much is given;
much more is required from the person to whom much more is given.”
There is none of us
who is forgiven the obligation
to give talent, help and support to others.
However much–however little–we have,
we are responsible for giving
to those who have even less.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Eph 3:14–21
And now I kneel in the presence of the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth has received its name.
May he strengthen in you the inner self through his Spirit, according to the riches of his glory;
may Christ dwell in your hearts through faith;
may you be rooted and founded in love.
All of this so that you may understand with all the holy ones the width, the length, the height and the depth—in a word, that you may know the love of Christ that surpasses all knowledge, that you may be filled and reach the fullness of God.
Glory to God who shows his power in us and can do much more than we could ask or imagine; glory to him in the Church and in Christ Jesus through all generations for ever and ever. Amen.
►Gospel: Lk 12:49–53
Jesus said to his disciples, “I have come to bring fire upon the earth and how I wish it were already kindled; but I have a baptism to undergo and what anguish I feel until it is over!
“Do you think that I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on, in one house five will be divided; three against two, and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”
REFLECTION
“I have not come to bring peace. I have come to bring division.”
Jesus calls us to separate ourselves
from the ruptures in our souls.
He comes to call us to make choices
not simply between good and bad in the world around us
but between what is good and what is best, as well.
He comes to divide us from the mediocre in life.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Eph 4:1–6
Therefore I, the prisoner of Christ, invite you to live the vocation you have received. Be humble, kind, patient, and bear with one another in love.
Make every effort to keep among you the unity of Spirit through bonds of peace. Let there be one body and one spirit, for God, in calling you, gave the same Spirit to all. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. One God, the Father of all, who is above all and works through all and is in all.
►Gospel: Lk 12:54–59
Jesus said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once: ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when the wind blows from the south, you say: ‘It will be hot’; and so it is. You superficial people! You understand the signs of the earth and the sky, but you don’t understand the present times.
“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is fit? When you go with your accuser before the court, try to settle the case on the way, lest he drag you before the judge and the judge deliver you to the jailer, and the jailer throw you in prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
REFLECTION
“You can look at the earth and the sky and predict the weather;
why then don’t you know the meaning of the pesent time?”
Knowing the meaning of what we see around us
is the key to living a full and purpose-driven life.
Learning to recognize what the will of God
requires of us in the world will determine
who we are and what we do.
Only keeping our eye on Jesus gives us that vision.
29th Week in Ordinary Time
John of Capistrano
►1st Reading: Eph 4:7–16
But to each of us divine grace is given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it is said: When he ascended to the heights, he brought captives and gave his gifts to people.
He ascended, what does it mean but that he had also descended to the lower parts of the world? He himself who went down, then ascended far above all the heavens to fill all things. As for his gifts, to some he gave to be apostles, to others prophets, or even evangelists, or pastors and teachers. So he prepared those who belong to him for the ministry, in order to build up the Body of Christ, until we are all united in the same faith and knowledge of the Son of God. Thus we shall become the perfect Man, upon reaching maturity and sharing the fullness of Christ.
Then no longer shall we be like children tossed about by any wave or wind of doctrine, and deceived by the cunning of people who drag them along into error. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we shall grow in every way towards him who is the head, Christ. From him comes the growth of the whole body to which a network of joints gives order and cohesion, taking into account and making use of the function of each one. So the body builds itself in love.
►Gospel: Lk 13:1–9*(completed)
Some persons told Jesus what had occurred in the Temple: Pilate had Galileans killed and their blood mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. Jesus replied, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this? I tell you: no. But unless you change your ways, you will all perish as they did.
And those eighteen persons in Siloah who were crushed when the tower fell, do you think they were more guilty than all the others in Jerusalem? I tell you: no. But un-less you change your ways, you will all perish as they did.”
And Jesus continued with this story, “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard and he came looking for fruit on it, but found none. Then he said to the gardener: ‘Look here, for three years now I have been looking for figs on this tree and I have found none. Cut it down, why should it use up the ground?’ The gardener replied: ‘Leave it one more year, so that I may dig around it and add some fertilizer; and perhaps it will bear fruit from now on. But if it doesn’t, you can cut it down.”
REFLECTION
“If the tree bears figs next year, so much the better. If not, then you can have it cut down.”
Like the fig tree, we are given
everything we need in life to grow in grace and vision.
And yet, so often, we grow slowly. Very slowly.
Then the God who created us gives us something else.
The God of patience gives us even more time
in which to try again.
30th Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Sir 35:12–14, 16–18
The Lord is judge and shows no partiality. He will not disadvantage the poor, he who hears the prayer of the oppressed. He does not disdain the plea of the orphan, nor the complaint of the widow.
The one who serves God wholeheartedly will be heard; his petition will reach the clouds. The prayer of the humble person pierces the clouds, and he is not consoled until he has been heard. His prayer will not cease until the Most High has looked down, until justice has been done in favor of the righteous.
►2nd Reading: 2 Tim 4:6–8, 16–18
As for me, I am already poured out as a libation, and the moment of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness with which the Lord, the just judge, will reward me on that day; and not only me, but all those who have longed for his glorious coming.
At my first hearing in court no one supported me; all deserted me. May the Lord not hold it against them. But the Lord was at my side, giving me strength to proclaim the Word fully, and let all the pagans hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will save me from all evil, bringing me to his heavenly kingdom. Glory to him for ever and ever. Amen!
►Gospel: Lk 18:9–14
Jesus told another parable to some persons fully convinced of their own righteousness, who looked down on others, “Two men went up to the Temple to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and said: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people, grasping, crooked, adulterous, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give the tenth of all my income to the Temple.’
“In the meantime the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast saying: ‘O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’
“I tell you, when this man went down to his house, he had been set right with God, but not the other. For whoever makes himself out to be great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be raised.”
REFLECTION
“Those who make themselves great will be humbled and those
who humble themselves will be made great.”
Greatness does not lie
in amassing what does not count in life.
Greatness lies in facing ourselves,
in admitting to ourselves who we really are
so we can become the kind of person
we know we’re meant to be.
30th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Eph 4:32—5:8
Be good and understanding, mutually forgiving one another as God forgave you in Christ.
As most beloved children of God, strive to imitate him. Follow the way of love, the example of Christ who loved you. He gave himself up for us and became the offering and sacrificial victim whose fragrance rises to God. And since you are holy, there must not be among you even a hint of sexual immorality or greed, or any kind of impurity: these should not be named among you. So too for scandalous words, nonsense and foolishness, which are not fitting; instead offer thanksgiving to God.
Know this: no depraved, impure or covetous person who serves the god ‘Money’ shall have part in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty arguments, for these are the sins which God is about to condemn in people who do not obey. Do not associate with such people. You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Behave as children of light.
►Gospel: Lk 13:10–17
Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath and a crippled woman was there. An evil spirit had kept her bent for eighteen years so that she could not straighten up at all. On seeing her, Jesus called her and said, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” Then he laid his hands upon her and immediately she was made straight and praised God.
But the ruler of the synagogue was indignant because Jesus had performed this healing on the Sabbath day and he said to the people, “There are six days in which to work; come on those days to be healed and not on the Sabbath.”
But the Lord replied, “You hypocrites! Everyone of you unties his ox or his donkey on the Sabbath and leads it out of the barn to give it water. And here you have a daughter of Abraham whom Satan had bound for eighteen years. Should she not be freed from her bonds on the Sabbath?”
When Jesus said this, all his opponents felt ashamed. But the people rejoiced at the many wonders that happened through him.
REFLECTION
“The official said...there are six days on which to work;
come during those days to be healed, not on the sabbbath.”
It is so easy to put human laws
that conform to human values and structures
above the law of God to do good
above all else–
even when it means not keeping the rules
of the officials who made them.
30th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Eph 5:21–33
Let all kinds of submission to one another become obedience to Christ. So wives to their husbands: as to the Lord.
The husband is the head of his wife, as Christ is the head of the Church, his body, of whom he is also the Savior. And as the Church submits to Christ, so let a wife submit in everything to her husband.
As for you, husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her. He washed her and made her holy by baptism in the Word. As he wanted a radiant Church without stain or wrinkle or any blemish, but holy and blameless, he himself had to prepare and present her to himself.
In the same way, husbands should love their wives as they love their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. And no one has ever hated his body; he feeds and takes care of it. That is just what Christ does for the Church, because we are members of his body.
Scripture says: Because of this a man shall leave his father and mother to be united with his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is a very great mystery, and I refer to Christ and the Church. As for you, let each one love his wife as himself, and let the wife respect her husband.
►Gospel: Lk 13:18–21
Jesus continued speaking, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? Imagine a person who has taken a mustard seed and planted it in the garden. The seed has grown and become like a small tree, so that the birds of the air shelter in its branches.”
And Jesus said again, “What is the kingdom of God like? Imagine a woman who has taken yeast and hidden it in three measures of flour until it is all leavened.”
REFLECTION
“What is the kingdom of God like?”
When we build the Kingdom of God on earth
the poor will be housed,
the hungry will be fed,
the nations will keep peace with one another.
The values of this world will turn upside down.
The only question is what are we doing to bring it?
30th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Eph 6:1–9
Children, obey your parents for this is right: Honor your father and your mother. And this is the first commandment that has promise: that you may be happy and enjoy long life in the land. And you, fathers, do not make rebels of your children, but educate them by correction and instruction which the Lord may inspire.
Servants, obey your masters of this world with fear and respect, with simplicity of heart, as if obeying Christ. Do not serve only when you are watched or in order to please others, but become servants of Christ who do God’s will with all your heart. Work willingly, for the Lord and not for humans, mindful that the good each one has done, whether servant or free, will be rewarded by the Lord.
And you, masters, deal with your servants in the same way, and do not threaten them, since you know that they and you have the same Lord who is in heaven, and he treats all fairly.
►Gospel: Lk 13:22–30
Jesus went through towns and villages teaching and making his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, is it true that few people will be saved?”
And Jesus answered, “Do your best to enter by the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you will stand outside; then you will knock at the door calling: ‘Lord, open to us.’ But he will say to you: ‘I do not know where you come from.’
“Then you will say: ‘We ate and drank with you and you taught in our streets!’ “But he will reply: ‘I don’t know where you come from. Away from me all you workers of evil.’
“You will weep and grind your teeth when you see Abraham and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves left outside. Others will sit at table in the kingdom of God, people coming from east and west, from north and south. Some who are among the last will be the first, and others who were first will be last!”
REFLECTION
“The last shall be first and the first shall be last.”
It is possible to gain great favor in life
by being less than honest, more than arrogant,
totally self-serving.
But that kind of favor lasts only as long
as the dust out of which it springs.
Only service to others makes us first in the eyes of Jesus.
Simon and Jude, Apostles
►1st Reading: Eph 2:19–22
Now you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the holy people: you are of the household of God. You are the house whose foundations are the apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ Jesus. In him the whole structure is joined together and rises to be a holy temple in the Lord. In him you too are being built to become the spiritual sanctuary of God.
►Gospel: Lk 6:12–16
Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he called apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.
REFLECTION
“At that time, Jesus went up a hill to pray and spent the whole night there.”
The purpose of prayer is to take us
deep into the heart and mind of God.
We do not pray
in order to change God.
We pray in order to change ourselves
so that God’s word can be done in us.
30th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Phil 1:1–11
From Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to the saints in Philippi, with their bishops and deacons; to you all in Christ Jesus:
May grace and peace be yours from God, our Father, and Christ Jesus the Lord.
I give thanks to my God each time I remember you, and when I pray for you, I pray with joy. I cannot forget all you shared with me in the service of the Gospel, from the first day until now. Since God began such a good work in you, I am certain that he will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus.
This is my hope for you, for I carry you all in my heart: whether I am in prison or defending and confirming the Gospel, you are with me and share the same grace.
God knows that I love you dearly with the love of Christ Jesus, and in my prayers I ask that your love may lead you each day to a deeper knowledge and clearer discernment, that you may have good criteria for everything. So you may be pure of heart and come blameless to the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of holiness that comes through Christ Jesus, for the glory and praise of God.
►Gospel: Lk 14:1–6
One Sabbath Jesus had gone to eat a meal in the house of a leading Pharisee, and he was carefully watched. In front of him was a man suffering from dropsy; so Jesus asked the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But no one answered. Jesus then took the man, healed him and sent him away. And he addressed them, “If your lamb or your ox falls into a well on a Sabbath day, who among you doesn’t hurry to pull it out?” And they could not answer.
REFLECTION
“Is it lawful to cure people on the sabbath or not?”
No law is really absolute
if keeping the law itself
obstructs a society from doing good.
Then, we must seek the Law above the law.
We must ask whether the law we keep
is really equal to the good that must be done despite it.
30th Week in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Phil 1:18b–26
But in any case, whether they are sincere or showing off, Christ is proclaimed and because of this I rejoice and have no regrets.
I know that all this will be a grace for me because of your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Christ. I am hopeful, even certain, that I shall not be ashamed. I feel as assured now, as before, that Christ will be exalted through my person, whether I live or die.
For to me, living is Christ, and dying is gain. But if I am to go on living, I shall be able to enjoy fruitful labor. Which shall I choose? So I feel torn between the two. I desire greatly to leave this life and to be with Christ, which will be better by far, but it is necessary for you that I remain in this life. And because I am convinced of this, I know that I will stay and remain with you for your progress and happiness in the faith. I will surely come to you again, and give you more reason for being proud of belonging to Christ Jesus.
►Gospel: Lk 14:1, 7–11
One Sabbath Jesus had gone to eat a meal in the house of a leading Pharisee, and he was carefully watched.
Jesus then told a parable to the guests, for he had noticed how they tried to take the places of honor. And he said, “When you are invited to a wedding party, do not choose the best seat. It may happen that someone more important than you has been invited, and your host, who invited both of you, will come and say to you: ‘Please give this person your place.’ What shame is yours when you take the lowest seat!
Whenever you are invited, go rather to the lowest seat, so that your host may come and say to you: ‘Friend, you must come up higher.’ And this will be a great honor for you in the presence of all the other guests. For whoever makes himself out to be great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be raised.”
REFLECTION
“Those who make themselves great will be humbled.
Those who humble themselves will be made great.”
“Greatness” is not something
we can declare of ourselves.
That kind of greatness is only arrogance.
Real greatness is conferred by those around us
who see our works and know them to be
the will of God for the good of others.
31st Sunday in Ordinary Time
►1st Reading: Wis 11:22—12:1
For the entire world lies before you, just enough to tip the scales, a drop of morning dew falling on the ground.
But because you are almighty, you are merciful to all; you overlook sins and give your children time to repent. You love everything that exists and hate nothing that you have made; had you hated anything, you would not have formed it.
How could anything endure if you did not will it? And how could anything last that you had not willed? You have compassion on all because all is yours, O Lord, lover of life.
In fact your immortal spirit is in all.
And so by degrees you correct those who sin, you admonish them, reminding them how they have strayed so that turning away from evil they may trust in you, Lord.
►2nd Reading: 2 Thes 1:11—2:2
This is why we constantly pray for you; may our God make you worthy of his calling. May he, by his power, fulfill your good purposes and your work prompted by faith. In that way, the name of Jesus our Lord will be glorified through you, and you through him, according to the loving plan of God and of Christ Jesus the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, let us speak about the coming of Christ Jesus, our Lord, and our gathering to meet him. Do not be easily unsettled. Do not be alarmed by what a prophet says or by any report, or by some letter said to be ours, saying the day of the Lord is at hand.
►Gospel: Lk 19:1–10
When Jesus entered Jericho and was going through the city, a man named Zaccheus was there. He was a tax collector and a wealthy man. He wanted to see what Jesus was like, but he was a short man and could not see because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed up a sycamore tree. From there he would be able to see Jesus who had to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, come down quickly for I must stay at your house today.” So Zaccheus hurried down and received him joyfully.
All the people who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to the house of a sinner as a guest.” But Zaccheus spoke to Jesus, “The half of my goods, Lord, I give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will pay him back four times as much.” Looking at him Jesus said, “Salvation has come to this house today, for he is also a true son of Abraham. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”
REFLECTION
“Hurry down, Zaccheus, for I must stay in your house today.”
The temptation in life is to mix only with our own kind.
We judge people as if we were God,
We label them good or bad once and for all.
Fortunately, God does not do that to us
or our very judgment of others would condemn us.
Instead, God reaches out to draw us closer always.
