lokaalokaya

January 1 :

December 29 :

December 25 - Christmas Day: God had visited us

 
First Reading Isaiah 9:1-6To those in darkness, a child will be born who will have dominion over the earth.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 96:1-2,2-3,11-12,13Sing a new song to the Lord.
 
Second Reading Titus 2:11-14God has appeared, bringing salvation to all.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 2:1-14
Today we celebrate Christmas, the mystery of Incarnation, God becoming man, the astonishing entrance that God made into our broken world. Again and again the beauty of this Gospel astonishes us that God makes himself a child so that we may love him, so that we may dare to love him, and as a child trustingly lets himself be taken into our arms. It is as if God were saying: I know that my glory frightens you, and that you are trying to assert yourself in the face of my grandeur. So now I am coming to you as a child, so that you can accept me and love me. God is born for us but the question is whether we are ready to welcome him. The most unfortunate and the saddest sentence is found in the Gospel of Luke: “There was no place for them in the Inn” (Lk 2:7). Centuries have passed but this stark reality still continues in our lives. God wants to come in but we keep our doors closed. Why should we not also be moved by curiosity to see more closely and to know what God has said to us? At this hour, let us ask him to touch our hearts with the holy curiosity and the holy joy of the shepherds, and thus let us go over joyfully to Bethlehem, to the Lord who today once more comes to meet us. Amen

December 22 - Fourth Sunday in Advent: Joseph, the just man

First Reading Isaiah 7:10-14Ahaz proclaims the sign that the Lord will give: a virgin shall give birth to a son, Emmanuel.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 24:1-2,3-4,5-6The Lord is the King of Glory who established the earth.
 
Second Reading Romans 1:1-7Paul greets the community at Rome and declares himself a servant of Christ Jesus.
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 1:18-24
 
Today is the fourth Sunday in Advent. Christmas will dawn in few days. Matthew’s story of the birth of Jesus centres on the person of Joseph. The mystery is so great that Joseph cannot understand what is happening. In his puzzlement, the Lord calls Joseph to a remarkable act of faith and obedience. Joseph, in wordless response to the word of God communicated by an angel, rose and ‘took his wife to his home’. A total and unquestioning acceptance of the word of God is Joseph’s first action in Matthew’s infancy story. St. Joseph shows us the value of grace under pressure. He always found himself in emergency situations during the brief period of his life on earth: having to accept a young wife who is pregnant before they are married, having to travel to faraway Bethlehem, having to flee as refugees into Egypt etc. He had to face a lot of pressure, a lot of crisis and a lot of emergency situations but God’s grace was sufficient for him. St. Bernard comments that God never gives us a challenge or a call or a duty without the sufficient grace to accomplish it. Joseph leads the way and shows us the quality of trust and commitment to the coming of God, which should mark the lives of each and every one of us this Christmas.

December 15 - Third Sunday of Advent: Rejoice

First Reading Isaiah 35:1-6,10In the day of the Lord, all sorrow and mourning will cease.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 146:6-7,8-9,9-10The Lord will save his people.
 
Second Reading James 5:7-10Be patient, and be ready; the coming of the Lord is near.
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 11:2-11
 
The third Sunday of Advent is called the "Gaudete Sunday" -- Rejoice Sunday, the Sunday of joy. The Liturgy speaks of Joy in order to give us courage since our hearts can easily become frightened and weighed down by the hardships we face. We can lose patience in our sufferings as we await the coming of the Lord. That’s what happened to John the Baptist as we hear in today’s Gospel. He is in a dungeon, the victim of a petty tyrant and his vengeful, immoral consort. It is just possible that, in the dark, vile hole of a prison John is having some doubts about Jesus as the Messiah. Therefore Jesus gives John the reassurance, echoing the words of the Prophet Isaiah, that He is truly the awaited messiah. All of us are searching for happiness, but why are so few truly happy and even those who are happy are only happy for such a short time? It is because our approach is wrong. We go up the wrong side and we decide to take the wrong way up. Revelation says: "God is love," but man has tried to reverse the phrase so that it says: "Love is God"! Thus, when we say, "Happiness is God," we divinize our little experiences; we make happiness into an idol. This explains why he who seeks God always finds joy while he who seeks joy does not always find God. Therefore let us pray that we will always ‘seek joy in the Lord’.
 

December 8 - Second Sunday in Advent : A voice crying in the wilderness

First Reading Isaiah 11:1-10A descendent of Jesse will usher in a time of peace.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 72:1-2,7-8,12-13,17The Messiah will bring justice and peace to the nations.
 
Second Reading Romans 15:4-9Both Jews and Gentiles glorify God for the salvation found in Christ Jesus.
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 3:1-12
 
The Church’s use of John the Baptist over the Advent Season invites us to join John’s audience in these days of preparation. The kingdom of heaven is at hand, and the one who is able to separate the wheat from the chaff is coming. John never saw a superhighway, but he uses the image in order to prepare the way for the coming of the world’s most wonderful and most extraordinary traveller, the Messiah Jesus, into our lives. The highway John wishes to construct is within our hearts. It hasn't a number, but it does have a name-conversion. Conversion results when a person realizes profoundly that the message and the life of Jesus make sense and is infinitely desirable. Conversion takes place when Jesus and his message cut through the moments of pain, tears, worry, fear and uneasiness in our lives. Conversion means meeting Jesus in his word and allowing Him to become directly involved in our lives. Once this happens, life can never be the same for us.
 

December 1 - First Sunday in Advent : Be awake and be Prepared

 
First Reading Isaiah 2:1-5 Isaiah describes his vision in which all nations are gathered together by God in peace.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 122:1-2,3-4,4-5,6-7,8-9 Rejoicing, let us enter the house of the Lord.
 
Second Reading Romans 13:11-14 Be prepared, salvation is near.
 
Gospel ReadingMatthew 24:37-44
 
 
 
Today we begin a new season of Advent and it is its 1st Sunday. Now, in the general literal sense, the word 'advent' means 'coming of someone,' but in the Christian Liturgical sense it specifically implies to 'the coming of Christ.' So specifically therefore, with the start of Advent today, we begin the period of expectation and waiting for the coming of Christ, our Savior — his birth on the first Christmas day. But actually, the Lord comes to us in three ways: the first coming of Jesus about 2000 years ago when he came as our Savior (Coming in history), the second coming is the glorious return of Jesus in future at the end of time (Coming in Majesty) and the third coming is situated between the first two comings. It is Jesus' daily coming into our hearts here and now at every moment of every day in the sacraments – very specifically through the Eucharist, and therein lies a challenge for us as well as a comfort (Coming in Mystery). Thus in a general sense, the period of Advent encompasses all time viz. Past, Present & Future. So, a Christian in this sense is always a citizen of Advent. Therefore, it is not surprising that we begin the new Liturgical Year this Sunday, with the same theme of 'the coming of Christ', where we ended it last Sunday.
 

November 24 - Solemnity of Christ the King : " Thy kingdom come!"

 
First Reading 2 Samuel 5:1-3 David is anointed king.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 122:1-2,3-4,4-5 Enter the house of the Lord rejoicing.
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Second Reading Colossians 1:12-20 Hymn to Jesus as the first-born of all creation.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 23:35-43
 
Today, the last Sunday of ordinary time the Church in a special way invites us to celebrate Jesus Christ our anointed king who overcame suffering and death, and so brought us out of darkness into his kingdom of light. On 7th July 2009, during the funeral of Michael Jackson, the presiding pastor said: “Behold the king of pop ready to face the King of the world.” Today (34th Sunday), the entire world stands still and bows to the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Rev 17, 14), and the Holy Mother Church celebrates the feast of Christ the King and Sovereign ruler of the Universe (Dan 7, 14). Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925 in response to growing nationalism and secularism. In initiating this feast, the Church wanted to take our worship of Jesus from the privacy of our hearts and to proudly proclaim his public reign as well. The title of the feast was “Jesu Christi Regis” (Our Lord Jesus Christ the King). Again, in his 1969 motu proprio Mysterii Paschalis, Pope Paul VI gave the celebration a new title: “Iesu Christi universorum Regis” (Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the Universe). He also gave it a new date: the last Sunday in the liturgical year and assigned to it the highest rank, that of “Solemnity.” As we celebrate this feast let us ask ourselves: “Who reigns in my heart? Jesus or the evil one? Am I happy to be a subject of His kingdom? What are the values of his kingdom that I admire and try to inculcate into my life? 

November 17 - Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time: Jesus left the Temple and departed from it

 
 
First Reading Malachi 3:19-20The day of justice is coming, says the Lord.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 98:5-6,7-8,9Sing praise to God, who rules with justice.
 
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12Paul urges the community to follow his example and to earn their keep.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 21:5-19
 
In today’s Gospel Jesus portrays for us, graphically, the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. For Jews, the destruction of these two things was equivalent to the end of the world. Precisely for this reason, the Church uses this gospel passage as one of its readings for the end of the liturgical year. It wants us to reflect on the end of the world. But what’s the significant it has in our lives? What does it mean to us personally? We read the Gospel of Matthew that Jesus, before His prediction of the destruction of the Temple, ‘left the Temple and departed from it’ (24:1). Jesus not only went out of the Temple, He also departed from it and never returned to it. He did not depart on His own accord, they drove Him off; He did not reject them, rather they had rejected Him. When He departed from the Temple, its sanctity, glory and defense departed. The most beautiful and magnificent Temple in the world turned into the most ruinous heap. Three days after He departed the veil of the Temple was rent – making everything in the Temple common and unclean. Woe descends upon anyone from whom the Lord departs. If we drive away His presence from our souls, it will become desolate, as desolate as the Temple of Jerusalem. That will be the end of the world to us. When Jesus departs from my life, that is going to be my experience of the end of the world.
 

November 10 – Thirty second Sunday in Ordinary Time : Heaven is our Home

 
First Reading 2 Maccabees 7:1-2,9-14 Jewish martyrs give witness to their faith, even unto death.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 17:1,5-6,8,15 The just person will live in God's presence.
 
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 2:16—3:5 Paul encourages the Thessalonians and asks for their prayers.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 20:27-38 
 
 
In today’s Gospel we find Jesus in reply rejecting the caricature that the Sadducees present of heaven, a caricature that suggests that it is a simple continuation of the earthly relationships of the spouses. Eternal beatitude is not just an increase and prolongation of terrestrial joys, the maximization of the pleasures of the flesh and the table. The other life is truly another life, a life of a different quality. It is true that it is the fulfillment of all man's longings on earth, yet it is infinitely more, on a different level. Interpreting Jesus' answer to the Sadducees, in an erroneous way, some have claimed that marriage has no follow-up in heaven. He does not deny that they might rediscover in God the bond that united them on earth. If God united them on earth, how could he divide them in heaven? According to this vision, matrimony does not entirely end with death but is transfigured, renewed and made holy -- it loses those limits that mark life on earth -- in the same way that the bonds between parents and children or between friends will not be forgotten. In the preface of the Mass for the dead, the liturgy says that with death "life is changed, not taken away"; the same must be said of marriage, which is an integral part of life. Let us look forward to a glorious life in heaven. 
 

November 3 – Thirty First Sunday in Ordinary Time : Zacchaeus’Transformation

 
First Reading Wisdom 11:22—12:2 God is merciful because all things were created by God.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 145:1-2,8-9,10-11,13,14 Sing praise to God, who is faithful.
 
Second Reading 2 Thessalonians 1:11—2:2 Paul tells the Thessalonians to remain faithful to Christ until Christ comes again.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 19:1-10
 
In the figure of Zacchaeus in today’s Gospel, we have a portrait of a lost soul. He is a chief tax collector, a rich man who has apparently gained his living by fraud by profession and so a“sinner” excluded from Israel’s religious life. But Zacchaeus’ faith & humility bring salvation to his house. He expresses his faith in his fervent desire to “see” Jesus, even humbling himself to climb a tree just to watch Him pass by. While those of loftier religious stature react to Jesus with grumbling, Zacchaeus receives Him with joy. Beneath the loving gaze of Christ, the heart of Zacchaeus warms to love of neighbour. From a feeling of isolation, which had led him to enrich himself without caring about what others had to suffer, he moves to an attitude of sharing. In another passage of the Gospel Jesus states that it is very difficult for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven (cf. Matthew 19:23). In the case of Zacchaeus we see that precisely what seems impossible actually happens: "He," St. Jerome comments, "gave away his wealth and immediately replaced it with the wealth of the Kingdom of Heaven" (Homily on Psalm 83:3). And Maximus of Turin adds: "Riches, for the foolish, feed dishonesty, but for the wise they are a help to virtue; for the latter they offer a chance of salvation, for the former they procure a stumbling block and perdition" (Sermon 95). And it is only at this point that the love of God achieves its purpose, and salvation is accomplished: 'Today salvation has come to this house' (v 9)."
 
 

October 27 : Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - The Prayer of the Humble Man

First Reading Sirach 35:12-14,16-18God hears the prayer of the poor.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 34:2-3,17-18,19, 23The Lord hears and answers the cry of the poor.
 
Second Reading 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18Paul perseveres in faith, confident that God will rescue him.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 18:9-14
 
 
Jesus draws a blunt picture in today’s Gospel. The Pharisee’s prayer is almost a parody of the thanksgiving psalms (see for example Psalms 30,118). Instead of praising God for His mighty works, the Pharisee congratulates himself for his own deeds, which he presents to God in some detail. The tax collector stands at a distance, too ashamed even to raise his eyes to God (see Ezra 9:6). He prays with a humble and contrite heart (see Psalm 51:19). He knows that before God no one is righteous, no one has cause to boast (see Roman 3:10; 4:2). We see in the Liturgy today one of Scripture’s abiding themes - that God “knows no favorites,” as today’s First Reading tells us (see 2 Chronicles 19:7; Acts 10:34-35; Romans 2:11). God cannot be bribed (see Deuteronomy 10:17). We cannot curry favor with Him or impress Him - even with our good deeds or our faithful observance of religious duties such as tithing and fasting. If we try to exalt ourselves before the Lord, as the Pharisee does, we will be brought low (see Luke 1:52). This should be a warning to us - not to take pride in our piety, not to slip into the self-righteousness of thinking that we’re better than others, that we’re “not like the rest of sinful humanity.” If we clothe ourselves with humility (see 1 Peter 5:5-6) - recognize that all of us are sinners in need of His mercy - we will be exalted (see Proverbs 29:33). The prayer of the lowly, the humble, pierces the clouds. Paul testifies to this in today’s Epistle, as He thanks the Lord for giving him strength during his imprisonment. Paul tells us what the Psalmist sings today - that the Lord redeems the lives of His humble servants. We too must serve Him willingly. And He will hear us in our distress, deliver us from evil, and bring us safely to His heavenly kingdom.

October 20 - Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Persistent Widow

 
First Reading Exodus 17:8-13Joshua and the Israelites defeat Amalek with the help of God and his servant, Moses.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 121:1-2,3-4,5-6,7-8The Lord is the Guardian of Israel.
 
Second Reading 2 Timothy 3:14—4:2Paul exhorts Timothy to continue to preach the word Timothy received from his teachers.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 18:1-8
 
The Lord is our guardian, beside us at our right hand, interceding for us in all our spiritual battles. In today’s Psalm we’re told to lift our eyes to the mountains, that our help will come from Mount Zion and the Temple - the dwelling of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Joshua and the Israelites, in today’s First Reading, are also told to look to the hilltops. They are to find their help there - through the intercession of Moses - as they defend themselves against their mortal foes, the Amalekites. Notice the image: Aaron and Hur standing on each side of Moses, holding his weary arms so that he can raise the staff of God above his head. Moses is being shown here as a figure of Jesus, who also climbed a hilltop, and on Mount Calvary stretched out His hands between heaven and earth to intercede for us against the final enemy - sin and death (see 1 Corinthians 15:26). By the staff of God, Moses bested Israel’s enemies (see Exodus 7:8-12;8:1-2), parted the Red Sea (see Exodus 14:16) and brought water from the Rock (see Exodus 17:6). The Cross of Jesus is the new staff of God, bringing about a new liberation from sin, bringing forth living waters from the body of Christ, the new Temple of God (see John 2:19-21; 7:37-39; 19:34; 1 Corinthians 10:4). Like the Israelites and the widow in today’s Gospel, we face opposition and injustice - at times from godless and pitiless adversaries. We, too, must lift our eyes to the mountains - to Calvary and the God who will guard us from all evil. We must pray always (persevere in prayer) and not be wearied by our trials, Jesus tells us today. As Paul exhorts in today’s Epistle, we need to remain faithful, to turn to the inspired Scriptures - given by God to train us in righteousness. We must persist, so that when the Son of Man comes again in kingly power, He will indeed find faith on earth.

October 13 – Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Give thanks with a grateful heart

 
 
First Reading 2 Kings 5:14-17Naaman is cleansed of his leprosy and chooses to serve the God of Israel.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 98:1,2-3,3-4Rejoice! The salvation of God is made known to all.
 
Second Reading 2 Timothy 2:8-13Those who remain faithful to Christ will share Christ's glory.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 17:11-19
 
Today's readings are about remembering and thanksgiving, healing and salvation. In the Old Testament reading, (Second Kings 5:14-17) Naaman the Syrian remembers to thank Elisha for his cure, and one of the 10 lepers cured by Jesus remembered to turn up and thank his healer. It is the foreigner who returns, who praises God and who expresses gratitude to Jesus. When Jesus says: “Your faith has made you well," the blessing certainly refers to some benefit other than that which all, including the other nine, had received earlier. The verb “made well” is the same very often translated “to be saved.” The stories of the lepers teach us some powerful lessons about remembrance, gratitude, healing and salvation. Grateful hearts are the hallmark of authentic Christians. Those who possess the virtue of gratitude are truly rich. They not only know how richly they have been blessed, but they continuously remember that all good things come from God. There is an old saying: Justice is when you get what you deserve. Mercy is when you don’t get what you deserve. Grace is when you get what you don’t deserve. I like you get asked a dozen times a day, “How are you doing?” I have trained myself to often answer, “More blessed than I deserve.” Yes, All is gift. Thankful people store up in their grateful memory all the good experiences of the past, just as the French proverb states: “Gratitude is the heart’s memory.”

October 6 : 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Faith as a mustered seed

 
 
First Reading Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4 The patience of the just man shall be rewarded when he sees the vision fulfilled.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 95:1-2,6-7,8-9 Sing joyfully to God, our salvation.
 
Second Reading 2 Timothy 1:6-8,13-14 Paul urges Timothy to remain strong in the Spirit of faith Timothy received.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 17:5-10
 
The power of our faith doesn't depend on its quantity but its quality; It seems to me that this is why, when the apostles said increase our faith, Jesus took them immediately out of the area of quantity, and brought them to the smallest seed he could think of, the mustard seed. Jesus could have said, for example: If your faith were the size of a grain of sand, or a speck of dust, but the point of the comparison with the mustard seed is that it is living; it has a living power which a grain of sand does not. Just as a small weed can split a slab of concrete, or a mustard seed can produce a huge tree in which the birds of the air find shelter, so the living power of faith can move mountains. The secret of the living power which faith has is that it is built on the living word of God. Faith, trust and deep commitment to the wonderful things that God does through the strangeness of his ways, are the basis of the Christian life. Through a deep and trusting acceptance of the goodness, yet strangeness of God’s ways, revealed to us through the loving gift of His Son, we can make sense of our lives. We, who have received this gift of living faith in God’s Word, have a responsibility for its growth in us, or more precisely, we have a responsibility to grow in this gift of faith.

September 29 – Twenty Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Who is the Lazarus in my life?

 
First Reading Amos 6:1,4-7 God will judge the complacency of the people and their leaders.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 146:7-10 Happy are those who find solace in God, the help of the poor.
 
Second Reading 1 Timothy 6:11-16 Paul exhorts Timothy to stay faithful to God in all things.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 16:19-31
 
 
The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus has left Bible readers wondering why the rich man had to go to hell. We are not told he acquired his wealth by foul means or that he was responsible for the poverty and misery of Lazarus or that he committed any crime or evil deed. He went to hell not for the things he did but for the things he didn't do. We often think that we sin by doing what we are not supposed to do -by thought, word and deed (i.e. the sin of commission). Today’s parable reminds us that the sin of omission can land someone in hell. The poor man Lazarus was lying at his gate. And the rich man simply couldn't care less. Of course he did nothing against Lazarus. But he has failed to do a good deed, failed to reach out and share a little of his blessings with someone in need. His sin is that of omission, and for that he was going to roast in hell.
 
Another problem we have with this parable is why Lazarus went to heaven. This is the only parable of Jesus where the character in the story has a name. So the name must be significant for interpreting the parable. The name “Lazarus” means “God is my help.” Lazarus, therefore, is not just a poor man, but a poor man who believes and trusts in God, which opens the gates of heaven to him.
The good news of this parable is this: If you feel like a Lazarus right now, battered by sickness, poverty and pain, forgotten by society and by those whom God has blessed in this life, continue believing and trusting in God knowing that it will be well with your soul in the end. If you see yourself as one of those blessed by God with the good things of life, open your door and see. Probably there is a Lazarus lying at your gates and you have not taken notice.
 
These readings remind us that the law of love (see John 15:12; Romans 13:8) means that each of us in some way will be judged by the mercy we show to the poor. As the rich man learns in the parable of Lazarus - the distance between ourselves and God in the next life may be the distance we put between ourselves and the poor in this life (see Matthew 25:31-46; James 2:8,14-17).

September 22: Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time -The parable of the Unjust Steward

 
First Reading Amos 8:4-7Unfair business practices and injustice to the poor will be judged by God.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 113: 1-2,4-6,7-8Praise be to God, who raises up the poor.
 
Second Reading1 Timothy 2:1-8 : Paul tells Timothy that prayer for those in authority is pleasing to God because God wills the salvation of all.
 
Gospel Reading Luke 16:1-13 (shorter form, Luke 16:10-13)
 
 
In today’s Gospel, Jesus relates the parable of the Unjust Steward. It’s a very tricky parable. The steward was a rogue, who dishonestly reduced the quantum of debts of his master’s tenants, but the master praised his cleverness. The master praised not his dishonesty, but his foresight, prudence and astuteness. We can learn a lot of lessons for our spiritual life from the way men behave and organize their worldly affairs. We should not adopt their goals, but we can profitably use their methods for our spiritual well being. We should hate their ends, but we must love to adopt their methods. The children of this world may be wise but their wisdom pertains only to this passing world. Though this worldly wealth is not to be trusted for our happiness, it could be used as subservient to our pursuit of our happiness in the other world. Now is the only time we have got to make good use of our gifts, talents and possession to gain heaven.

September 11 – Twenty Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time : Joyful Finding

 
First Reading Exodus 32:7-11,13-14Moses stands up to God, recalling all of God's great promises.
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 51:3-4,12-13,17,19Once we are forgiven, we can hope for a new heart and a fresh start.
 
Second Reading 1 Timothy 1:12-17Paul proves it's never too late to repent and serve God.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 15:1-32
 
The words of the father in the story, to the sulking elder brother, are filled with the pathos of Jesus’ appeal: ‘My son, you are with me always and all I have is yours’. The‘best robe’, the ‘ring’, the ‘sandals’ and the ‘feast’, all marks of special regard, point to a mercy and generosity that have no limits. We are left to imagine the aftermath. Surely, the son’s life is transformed, as he comes, at last, to share in the love in the heart of his father. The future the Saviour promises to the world, in fact, will be a sharing in the love of his Father (cf. John 14:25 etc). The merciful, loving heart of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is the merciful, loving heart of God our heavenly Father. His mercy tirelessly seeks out each sinner and should the sinner respond there is delirious happiness and rejoicing in the whole court of heaven. To every sinner in the state of mortal sin I say as simply as I can, ‘Your sin is not the big deal you think it is; the big deal is your return to the merciful love of God. Trust in his mercy, not in your sin. And if you continue to sin, continue to trust and to return to his mercy.

September 8 - Twenty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time : Hating our own life

 
 
First Reading Sirach 3:17-18,20,28-29 Humble yourself and you will find favor with God
 
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 68:4-7,10-11 The just rejoice and exult before God.
 
Second Reading Hebrews 12:18-19,22-24 You have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 14:1,7-14
 
We have yet to comment on the phrase “hating our own life”. This is just an extension of the earlier part. Jesus wants our lives to be lived in total truth and love. Our lives are not to be determined and manipulated by attachments, desires, ambitions or fears and anxieties which can become very much part of ourselves. We are to live in total freedom. “None of you can be my disciples unless he gives up all his possessions.” It is the ability to let go, even of health and life itself. Any aspect of a person or anything that lessens that freedom to follow truth and love is to be “hated” and transcended. Today's teachings are addressed to people who have not yet made the option for discipleship but are considering it. It reminds Luke's Christian readers of the choice they have already undertaken.
 

September 01 - Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time : Take the Lower Place

 
 
First Reading  Isaiah 66:18-21 Nations of every language shall come to see my glory.
 
Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 117:1-2 Praise the Lord, all you nations.
 
Second Reading  Hebrews 12:5-7,11-13 Whom the Lord loves, he disciplines.
 
Gospel ReadingLuke 13:22-30
 
 
In the Gospel of Luke today we also hear Jesus talking about humility. Our Gospel acclamation today says “I am meek and gentle of heart.” Indeed this quality of humility is one for which Jesus is very much a role model. We often talk about how Jesus lowered himself to become like us – a God becoming a man! How much more humble could he be? So when Jesus talks about humility we know that he is “walking the talk”! This idea is actually a theme in Luke, and it is the same theme that we read in the first reading: The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will find favor in the sight of the Lord. Luke started this theme in the first chapter with the beautiful Magnificat of Mary we heard two weeks ago: He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent away empty. He will end it with Jesus at the Last supper taking on the role of servant.