lokaalokaya

September 11 - Twenty Eighth Sunday In ordinary time Year A

 
First Reading Isaiah 25:6-10aThe Lord will provide richly for his people.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 23:1-6The Lord is our shepherd.
 
Second Reading  Philippians 4:12-14,19-20Paul tells the Philippians that God provides whatever he needs.
Gospel Reading  Matthew 22:1-14 (shorter form Matthew 22:1-10)Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast.
Background on the Gospel Reading
Immediately after criticizing the religious leaders through the parable of the tenants in last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus proceeded to tell another parable, again directed at the religious leaders. We hear this parable in today’s Gospel.
In the parable of the wedding feast, Jesus offers an image of the kingdom of heaven using the symbol of a wedding banquet. In today’s first reading from the prophet Isaiah and in today’s psalm, the Lord’s goodness is evident in the symbol of a feast of good food and wine. Jesus’ listeners would have been familiar with the image of a wedding feast as a symbol for God’s salvation. They would consider themselves to be the invited guests. Keeping this in mind helps us to understand the critique Jesus makes with this parable. The context for this parable is the growing tension between Jesus and the Jewish religious leaders in Jerusalem. This has been the case for the past two Sundays and will continue to be true for the next several weeks.
The parable Jesus tells is straightforward. The king dispatches his servants to invite the guests to the wedding feast that he is planning for his son. The listeners would have been surprised to learn that the first guests refused the invitation. Who would refuse the king’s invitation? A second dispatch of servants follows. Again to the listeners’ great surprise, some guests ignore the invitation. Some of the invited guests even go so far as to mistreat and kill the servants. The king invokes his retribution against these murderers by destroying them and burning their city.
We might stop here for a moment. Why would some guests kill the servants sent to invite them to the king’s wedding feast? It might be possible that the king was a tyrant, evidenced by the destruction of the city of those who refused his invitation. But if we follow this idea, then the allegory seems to be about something other than the kingdom of heaven. It is more likely that the destruction of the city would have been a powerful image corresponding to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70, which would have been an important event for Matthew’s audience.
With the invited guests now deemed unworthy to attend the king’s wedding feast, the servants are sent to invite whomever they can find. The guests arrive, but it appears that accepting the king’s invitation brings certain obligations. The guest who failed to dress in the appropriate wedding attire is cast out of the feast. We are reminded that while many are invited to the kingdom of heaven, not all are able to meet its requirements. God invites us to his feast, giving us his salvation. Yet he asks us to repent for our sins.
Jesus’ message in the parable cautions against exclusive beliefs about the kingdom of heaven. The parable also teaches about humility. Those who assume that they are the invited guests may find that they have refused the invitation, and so others are invited in their place. To accept the invitation is also to accept its obligations. God wants our full conversion in complete acceptance of his mercy.

September 04 - Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

September 27 - Twenty Sixth Sunday in ordinary Time Year A

September 20 - Twenty fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A : God's generous mercy

 
First Reading  Isaiah 55:6-9God's ways are far beyond the ways of human beings.
 
Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 145:2-3,8-9,17-18God is near to those who call upon him.
 
Second Reading  Philippians 1:20c-24,27aPaul tells the Philippians to live for Christ.
Gospel Reading  Matthew 20:1-16In the parable of the workers in the vineyard, Jesus teaches about God's generous mercy.
Background on the Gospel Reading
In today's Gospel, Jesus moves from Galilee to teach in Judea where he is sought out by great crowds and tested by the Pharisees on issues such as marriage and divorce. Jesus also encounters a rich young man who is unable to accept Jesus' demand that he leave his possessions to follow him. Jesus' response to the rich young man sounds very much like the conclusion we will find in today's Gospel: the first will be last and the last will be first.
On the surface, the parable of the workers in the vineyard appears to be an offense to common sense. Those who work a longer day ought to be paid more than those who work just an hour or two. When viewed in this way, the landowner seems unfair. That is because we are reading into the parable our own preconceived notions of how fairness and equality should be quantified.
A close read shows us that the landowner paid on the terms that were negotiated. The landowner, it seems, has acted completely justly. The parable goes beyond that, however, and we come to see that the landowner is not simply just, he is exceptionally just. He is radically just. He has given those who labored in the field for a full day their due pay. But he has also given a full-day's wage to those who worked only a single hour. No one is cheated, but a few receive abundantly from the landowner just as we receive from God more than what is merely justifiable or due. God, like the landowner, is radically just and abundantly generous. The workers who complain are made to look foolish as they lament the fact that landowner has made all workers equal. Indeed, what more could one ask for than to be treated as an equal at work or anywhere else?
The parable reminds us that although God owes us nothing, he offers abundantly and equally. We are occasionally tempted to think that our own actions deserve more reward, more of God's abundant mercy, than the actions of others. But God's generosity cannot be quantified or partitioned into different amounts for different people. When we think that way, we are trying to relate to God on our terms rather than to accept God's radically different ways.

September 13- Twenty Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time :

First ReadingSirach 27:30—28:9Those who seek God's mercy must be merciful toward others.
Responsorial PsalmPsalm 103:1-4,9-12A song of praise to God who is kind and merciful.
Second ReadingRomans 14:7-9We belong to the Lord.
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 18:21-35Jesus teaches that we must forgive one another as God has forgiven us.
Background on the Gospel Reading
Today's Gospel reading directly follows last Week's Gospel in which Jesus taught the disciples how to handle disputes and conflict within the Christian community. In today's reading Peter asks Jesus how many times one ought to extend forgiveness to another. Peter proposes a reasonable number of times, perhaps seven. Jesus replies by extending Peter's proposal by an enormous amount; not just seven times should one forgive, but 77 times. The parable of the unforgiving servant is Jesus' elaboration of his initial reply to Peter. Through the parable we come to understand the depths of God's mercy toward us and the results of our acceptance of God's forgiveness.

September 6 - Twenty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time :

August 30 - Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time :

August 23 - Twenty first Sunday in Ordinary Time

August 16 - Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

August 9 - Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time :

August 2 - Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Small is Great

 
First Reading  Isaiah 55:1-3The Lord will renew his covenant with the descendents of David.
 
Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 145:8-9,15-18The Lord provides for his people.
 
Second Reading Romans 8:35,37-39Nothing can separate us from the love of God. 
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 14:13-21
 
 
Today’s Gospel suggests that one person can make a difference. Or rather, two people can make a difference: one person and Jesus. When Jesus asked the boy for his meagre offering he trusted Jesus and gave him the little he had: the five loaves and two fish. The boy gave what he had to Jesus. And Jesus shared the boy’s gift with thousands. This is the good news of today’s Gospel: that if we share what we have with Jesus , no matter how small and insignificant it is, he can make it bear fruit beyond our wildest dream. Today’s Gospel tells us that if we offer our talents and gifts to Jesus for his work, he can perform miracles with them. 

July 26 – Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time : There's no way to measure what Jesus is worth

 
First Reading1 Kings 3:5,7-12 Solomon pleases God when he asks for a wise and understanding heart to better govern the people.
Responsoria PsalmPsalm 119:57,72,76-77,127-130 The law of the Lord is more precious than silver and gold.
Second Gospel ReadingRomans 8:28-30 God chose us to be conformed to the image of his Son.
Gospel ReadingMatthew 13:44-52 (shorter form: Matthew 13:44-46)
The Gospel metaphors of a buried treasure and the pearl of great price speak as clearly today as they did long ago. Jesus is the treasure and the pearl of great prize. Is it so in your life as well? We have to find that out because we are going to be changed and formed by what we treasure and love. We become what we treasure and love. Psalmist says: “Therefore I love your commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold” (Ps 119). This is what we see in the lives of saints. For them Jesus became the most important treasure in their lives. And so Paul says that he considers everything as mere garbage compared to the value of knowing Jesus (Phil 3:7-8). Can we boast of the same? Can I say that Jesus is the most valuable treasure I have? That there is no way to measure what He is worth? May God give us the grace to say that with conviction. “To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances, to seek Him is the greatest adventure, to find him the greatest human achievement” (St. Augustine). 

July 19 – Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time : God gives many chances

 
First Reading  Wisdom 12:13,16-19 God has shown himself to be a God of justice and mercy.
Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 86:5-6,9-10,15-16 A prayer to God for mercy.
Second Reading  Romans 8:26-27 The Spirit intercedes for us with God.
Gospel ReadingMatthew 13:24-43 (shorter form: Matthew 13:24-30)
 
 
Central to today’s parable of the wheat and the weeds is the preciousness of the wheat. God is patient, kind, and loving like a grandparent. If you want to know what God is like, picture that farmer in the Gospel. The servants wanted to go and pull up the weeds, and the farmer says, "Well, let's not be too hasty, too quick to judge. Let's give it some time. The landowner refuses to lose any of it in order to get rid of the weeds. “We might pull out some wheat thinking it's a weed." That's God speaking. And it's a picture of God that Jesus himself gives us. And it's the way God treats us, because God loves us very, very much. In its present stage, the world is composed of the good and the bad. The judgment of God alone will eliminate the sinful. Until then there must be patience and the preaching of repentance. We can learn much from God’s patience as we see him allow both the good and the evil to grow together. God wants all to be saved that’s why He keeps the sinner in the world. God gives us many chances and opportunities to repent. What is the weed in me?

July 12 - Fifteenth Sunday of the Ordinary Time: God’s Word

 
First Reading  Isaiah 55:10-11 The Word of the Lord shall achieve its purpose.
Responsorial Psalm   Psalm 65:10-14 A prayer of praise to God for his abundance.
Second Reading   Romans 8:18-23 Together with all of creation, we await God’s redemption.
Gospel ReadingMatthew 13:1-23 (shorter form: Matthew 13:1-9)
 
In today’s Gospel Jesus describes four possible responses to the word of God. The seed on the foot path refers to those people who quickly lose the word because they do not understand it. The seed on rocky ground describes those who have no firm foundation. The seed fallen among thorns relates to those who receive the good news, but later abandon it for the lure of the world. Finally, the seed on good soil describes those who hear the word of God, accept it, and conform their lives to it. 

July 5 – Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Being gentle

First Reading
Zechariah 9:9-10 The Lord shall come to reign in Zion.
Responsorial PsalmPsalm 145:1-2,8-11,13-14 A prayer of praise to God who is our king.
Second ReadingRomans 8:9,11-13 Those in whom the Spirit of God dwells must now live according to the Spirit, not the flesh.
Gospel ReadingMatthew 11:25-30
 
Todays Gospel contains an important invitation for all of us. It invites us to learn from Jesus because he is "gentle and humble of heart". a beautiful example of the gentleness of Jesus is the way he handled the case of the woman caught in adultery. Jesus didn't shout and rave. he didn't scream and yell. He simple bent over, gentle, and wrote in the sand with his finger. His action stood out like a clap of thunder in the silence of a summer's night. Let us learn from Jesus how to be gentle when the world wants us to be proud and humble when the world wants us to be aggressive. 

June 21 - Feast of Sts Peter and Paul : To love Jesus in life and in death

First Reading : Acts 12:1–11 Psalm : Psalm 34:2–9Second Reading : 2 Timothy 4:6–8, 17–18Gospel : Matthew 16:13–19
Today we gather for the solemn celebration of Saints Peter and Paul, the principal Patrons of the Church of Rome. It is interesting to note the personalities of both Peter and Paul. Peter was impetuous, telling Jesus that he would die with him on Holy Thursday night if necessary (John 13:37) but later that night he denied he knew him. Yet what made Peter a suitable candidate for Jesus’ call was his love, so three times Jesus asked him if he loved him and asked him to look after the flock. Paul was a controversial character in his own way. He had a fiery personality. In his early life he channelled that fire towards persecuting the Christians in Jerusalem, even witnessing the death of Stephen, the first martyr for Jesus (Acts 8:1). After his conversion Paul’s preaching was fiery and upset the churches. As we look at the personalities of Peter and Paul, we see that God called them to use their personalities to spread the Gospel, Peter to use his impetuous love to look after the flock, and Paul to use his training as a Pharisee and his strength of character to ensure that the non-Jews would be welcomed into the church. It is a reminder to us that our talents and our weaknesses too can become God’s means of helping others, if we allow. We don’t have to be perfect for God to work through us, God can work through us, faults and all, as he did with Peter and Paul.

June 14 - Corpus Christi - The Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ

First Reading   Deuteronomy 8:2-3,14b-16a Moses tells the people to remember how God delivered them from slavery in Egypt.
Responsorial Psalm   Psalm 147:12-15,19-20 Praise God, Jerusalem!
Second Reading   1 Corinthians 10:16-17 Though many, we are one body when we partake of the Body and Blood of Christ.
Gospel Reading John 6:51-58
 
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. One of our Eucharistic Acclamations after the Consecration is “When we eat this bread and drink this cup we proclaim your death, O Lord, until you come again.” That is what Paul wrote to the Corinthians (1 Cor 11:26). How can we say that when we gather for the Eucharist we proclaim Jesus’ death? When we gather for the Eucharist it is to be an act of love, reflecting the love of Jesus sacrificing himself on the cross for us. If we gather for the Eucharist and we really don’t care about each other then our Eucharist is meaningless. Once again in the same chapter Paul says that our Eucharist is a shame if we do not love one another. When we gather for the Eucharist it is to be an act of love, reflecting the love of Jesus sacrificing himself on the cross for us. Our daily lives must reflect the Eucharist we celebrate. Each day, we must give of ourselves, pour out our lives in service and in love of others. How? In small ways — almost unnoticed, but so real and sometimes not convenient to do. For example: "Daddy, will you come play with me?" "Mom, will you help me?" The phone rings: "I wonder if you could help me…" Or "I need to talk to you because..." An older person in the family: how about a visit, a call or a letter? In Eucharist, we celebrate here in worship what we must live out there in daily life. That is why the Eucharist is essential to Catholic belief and fundamental to Catholic life. 

June 7 - Trinity Sunday : God's Love overflows

 
 
First Reading   Exodus 34:4b-6,8-9 Moses pleads for God’s mercy on Mt. Sinai.
Responsorial Psalm   Daniel 3:52-56 We praise God who is exalted above all forever.
Second Reading   2 Corinthians 13:11-13 Paul urges the Corinthians to live in peace with one another and with God.
Gospel ReadingJohn 3:16-18
Today is Trinity Sunday. Our God is not simply one. He is three-in-one. A community of persons united in love. Therefore, there’s no chance that we’re merely expressions of God’s neediness. Instead, we’re an expression of God’s love. Perfect love, which God is, is giving, generous, overflowing. It can’t contain itself. You and I might understand ourselves, then, as an overflowing of God’s love. And since we’re made in God’s image, we can say that we’re both created by overflowing love, and created for overflowing love. Which makes our existence both a gift, and a possibility- a possibility to give and receive love the way God does: a perfect love without conditions, without limits. The Trinity is not something to be argued about or explained in rational terms but a mystery to be experienced, the mystery of our own unity in God. It is a sanctifying and mysterious presence, like a bright cloud with a voice of fire and the fluttering of wings, an indwelling Spirit, a boundless Light, a presence we manifest in ourselves whenever we invoke the Holy Trinity in the Sign of the Cross: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” In Nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.

May 31 - The Solemnity of Pentecost: Transformation

 
First Reading Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11 The Holy Spirit descends upon the apostles gathered in Jerusalem.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 104:1,24,29-31,34 God’s Spirit renews the earth.
 
Second Reading 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7,12-13 We are all one in Christ Jesus.
 
Gospel ReadingJohn 20:19-23
 
 
 
Today we are celebrating the great Solemnity of Pentecost. If, in a certain sense, all the liturgical solemnities of the Church are important, Pentecost is uniquely so. This is because, having reached the 50th day, it marks the fulfilment of the event of the Passover, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus through the gift of the Spirit of the Risen One. The disciples are locked in the upper room out of fear. But Jesus brings them Peace. The violence of the darkness which attempted in vain to quench the light has produced peace. Death has turned into life and peace and thus the disciples’ fear turns in to joy. Here we find the beginnings of the transformation which the death and resurrection of Jesus can produce. Pentecost puts an end to fear by calling men and women to forgiveness. The wholeness and holiness which Jesus’ gift of the spirit has brought into the lives of the disciples are now available, through them, to the forgiven sinner.
 

May 24 - Ascension of the Lord : Call to be witnesses

 First Reading  Acts of the Apostles 1:12-14 After Jesus’ ascension to heaven, the apostles return to Jerusalem and gather in prayer with Mary, the mother of Jesus.
 
 Responsorial Psalm   Psalm 27:1,4,7-8 The Lord is our salvation.
 
 Second Reading    1 Peter 4:13-16 If you suffer for Christ, you will be blessed.
 
 Gospel ReadingJohn 17:1-11a
 
Today, the feast of Christ’s ascension, we celebrate the crowning of his Easter victory over sin and death. The ascension is not really about Jesus going away but about Jesus becoming the Lord of all creation. It is a joyous day, a day to look upwards at where Christ, our Brother, sits in glory at the right hand of the Father. Our destiny is to share in the glory of Christ. We often forget this and pursue goals that are not really worthy of our calling. Today’s feast also reminds us to become witnesses of the Lord. “You are my witnesses” (Acts 1:8) said Jesus as he ascended. That was aid to every follower of his, from the ones who saw his ascension down to us who have only heard about him, yet have believed. In fact, witness to Christ in the world for any believer has to begin with oneself.