27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Deacon Mark Silvia of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Opening prayer:

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe and in the smallest of your creatures. You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. Pour out upon us the power of your love, that we may protect life and beauty. Fill us with peace, that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one. O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction. Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards your infinite light. We thank you for being with us each day. Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle for justice, love and peace. Amen (Laudato Si’)

1st Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7

The beauty of creation is a reflection of the Creator. I have traveled to many places in my life and I haven ever found a place where I was not in awe and wonder of the beauty of the earth. Here, God has created a beautiful home for all his children.

• Where/How have you experienced God in the beauty of the earth?

2nd Reading: Philippians 4:6-9

There was a time out of necessity that I attempted to do my own repairs to my car. Some parts I could replace very easily, but other work took skills and knowledge that I did not have to complete the work. The thing about car parts is that they don’t work well if they are not installed as they were designed. All of the parts need to fit as designed for the car to run well. It’s the same with our lives. God created each unique person to know him and to love him above all else, and to love our neighbors as our selves. When we are in right relationship with these three, then all the parts of our lives can work well. If we fail to love God, our neighbor, or ourselves, our lives will not work well. We need to be in right relationship with all three to find peace and joy.

• What does St. Paul mean when he asked the Philippians to keep on doing what they have learned and received and heard and seen in him so that the God of peace will be with them?

• What words or examples have you seen from others that have helped you to love God above all else, and to love your neighbor as yourself?

• How could our responsibility as good stewards ofthe earth help or hinder our relationship with God, others, and ourselves?

Gospel: Matthew 21:33-43

The gospel of Luke tells us that as Jesus drew near, he saw Jerusalem and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.”

God provided for and guarded his chosen people for many generations, and yet they failed to recognize him at the time of his visitation.

We might wonder how such a thing could have happened, and say if we were there we would have recognized Jesus as the Son of the Living God.

Jesus promised that he will be with us until the end of time, and God continues to provide for us and protect us; yet can we truly say we are always thankful and respectful for the gifts that God provides for us?

Just as being in right relationship with God, neighbor, and self helps us to find peace and joy; being in right relationship with creation is also necessary. The pollution and damage of creation can cause widespread impacts to ourselves and our neighbors for generations to come. If we truly love God, and our neighbor, and ourselves, we also need to care for creation.

• How can being a good steward of creation show our thankfulness and respect to God and our neighbor?

• How does caring for creation help us to offer a fruitful harvest to our Creator?

• What one thing can you do to be a better steward of creation?

This Week's Task

• Make one change in your life to become a better

steward of God’s creation.

The leader invites the group to pray the following

words together.

God of love, show us our place in this world as channels of your love for all the creatures of this earth, for not one of them is forgotten in your sight.

Enlighten those who possess power and money that they may avoid the sin of indifference, that they may love the common good, advance the weak, and care for this world in which we live.

The poor and the earth are crying out. O Lord, seize us with your power and light, help us to protect all life, to prepare for a better future, for the coming of your Kingdom of justice, peace, love and beauty.

Praise be to you! Amen. (Laudato Si’)

The leader will guide the group in praying Psalm 80 (from the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Psalm Response: The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

A vine from Egypt you transplanted; you drove away the

nations and planted it. It put forth its foliage to the Sea, its

shoots as far as the River.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Why have you broken down its walls, so that every passerby plucks its fruit. The boar from the forest lays it waste,

and the beasts of the field feed upon it?

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Once again, O LORD of hosts, look down from heaven,

and see; take care of this vine, and protect what your right

hand has planted the son of man whom you yourself made

strong.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Then we will no more withdraw from you; give us new

life, and we will call upon your name. O LORD, God of

hosts, restore us; if your face shine upon us, then we shall

be saved.

R. The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.

Conclude with an Our Father

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Auxiliary Bishop John Dolan of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Prayer

Loving Father, help us to be instruments of Your will on earth. For the times we disrupt Your will, we ask forgiveness. Let us see your hand in our lives each day. Make us Your instruments. Amen. 

1st Reading: Wisdom 6:12-16

Over the last few weeks, we have considered the vocations to ordained ministry and religious orders. This week, our readings offer us a look at the other Sacrament of vocation - Marriage. The Church has always taught that the goods of marriage between a man and a woman include Fidelity and Procreation. However, surrounding these two goods is the desire for a domestic church; which includes a spousal relationship with God, family, and Church. The domestic church is the primary purpose for a wedding within the Church. Couples who understand the value of a domestic church, know that their marriage is a Vocation. They know it isn’t just about two people living together. After all, anyone can do that. And many do. Developing a domestic church does not happen after the wedding. It should happen before; even during the time of courtship. Our First Reading is a call for all God’s people to have a courtship with Wisdom. God himself is “sitting at the gate,” waiting for us to abide in His love. If couples begin their relationship with God in mind, their courtship, engagement, and marriage will be fruitful. It will be a true Vocation in the life of the Church and for the good of the world. 

What is the purpose of celebrating marriage in the Church?

2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

As the Church winds up its liturgical year this November, the readings take on an end of the world theme. Before the final Sunday, the Feast of Christ the King, and before the new Season of Advent, the readings focus on the return of Christ in Glory. This of course, is what we believe. Christ has died, is Risen, and will come again. St. Paul reminds the Christian faithful in Thessolanica that those who have died in the Lord, along with those who remain, will be “caught up” with the Lord when he returns. Paul encourages the faithful not to lose heart but to “console one another” with the Good News that the one who is wedded to us will never abandon us. Of the Seven Sacraments within the Church, the Vocation of marriage best expresses the fidelity that God has for his faithful. The Church herself is often referred to as the Bride of Christ. And, though Christ will return to His bride, he also remains with us - through the Sacraments - until the end of time. Marriage is a mirror-image of God’s love for humanity. In good times and in bad, and in sickness and in health, God will love us and honor us all the days of our lives. He will never abandon us. He will be wedded to us forever. 

How do you see the Lord as Spouse of the Church?

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

While St. Paul reminds us that the Lord will return in glory to take us to himself, there is still a requirement for those who choose to be wedded to him. We are called to be faithful to him as well. There are some who think that they can “accept Jesus as Lord,” and then continue to carry on their lives outside of the Lord. Faith is not just a belief that Jesus the Lord exists. The word fides (as in semper fi) means to have a FAITH-ful relationship with Christ always. Christ is wedded to us and we are wedded to him. There cannot be any room for infidelity. For this reason, our Gospel reminds us to be like the faithful virgins who are always vigilant, faithful, and whose hearts are for the bridegroom alone. The foolish virgins are like those who were never really committed to the Lord. They claim the name Christian, but have not claimed the love and fidelity that goes with that name. Christian marriage between a bride and groom is a beautiful Vocation within the life of the Church when spouses remain faithful to each other, are open to the possibility of children (for love begets love), and remain faithful to the Lord as the source of their Love. Infidelity toward each other, their children, or the Lord, breaks down the domestic church and the marriage ceases to be a proclamation of the Good News - or a mirror image of the faithful love God has for us all. 

What does a domestic church look like for you? 

This Week's Task

Take time to read the wonderful documents from the USCCB website on marriage. It offers great insights, not only for those who are married, but for all within the faith. Visit the following link:http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/marriage-and-family

The group prays the following Prayer from the U.S. Bishops:

O God, who in creating the human race

willed that man and wife should be one,

keep, we pray, in a bond of inseparable love

those who are united in the covenant of Marriage,

so that, as you make their love fruitful,

they may become, by your grace, witnesses to charity itself.

Through Christ our Lord

Amen.

Continue with Psalm 63

My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

O God, you are my God whom I seek;

for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts

like the earth, parched, lifeless and without

water

.

R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary

to see your power and your glory,

For your kindness is a greater good than life;

my lips shall glorify you.

R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Thus will I bless you while I live;

lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.

As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,

and with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.

R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

I will remember you upon my couch,

and through the night-watches I will meditate on you:

You are my help,

and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.

R. My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Conclude with an Our Father

All Saints Sunday

All Saints Sunday (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Auxiliary Bishop John Dolan of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Prayer

Father, may Your will be done. Help us to remember that we have a place in Your Kingdom along with all angels and saints, where you live and reign, together with your Son and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

1st Reading: Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14

Our Heavenly Kingdom consists of a “great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue.” This countless number, as seen by John in the Book of Revelation, is a reminder to us of how great God’s Kingdom will be for all of us who are called co-heirs. The Population Reference Bureau makes a semi-scientific guess at the number of humans who ever lived on the planet. Assuming, they say, that Homo sapiens came into existence at roughly 800,000 B.C., there may have been as many as 108 Billion people residing on earth since that time. Of course, even if this number were way off, even to count one by one the over 7 Billion people on earth today would take more than a life time. If it is hard to count 7 Billion people (or 10-20 times that), imagine the countless number in the Our Heavenly Kingdom.

On this Feast of All Saints, we look to Our Heavenly Kingdom and long to be in that number. Do you see yourself counted in that number as the Saints go marching in?

2nd Reading: 1 John 3:1-3

If we have been baptized and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit, we may rightly count ourselves among the saints. A saint is, first and foremost, a child of God. As our 1st Reading shares, “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are.” We know that Saint Patrick, Pope Saint John Paul II, Saint Therese of Lisieux are all enjoying a certain heavenly bliss that we have yet to enjoy, yet we and they are all children of the same God. We may not carry a big “S” as do the Saints in heaven, but we are still “God’s children now.” To be saintly means to be holy. Holiness does not begin in heaven. It begins now. It begins with God, who through His Son, makes us Holy. When we place our hope in God who created us, saved us, and sanctified us, we will share the same beatific vision of God as the Saints in heaven, “for we shall see him as he is.” 

Is sainthood something to strive for or is it something that you are right now?

Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12

While we take time to honor the Saints of heaven and the holy men and women who have gone before us, our readings on this Feast Day point to those of us still on earth’s journey.

The readings, including our Gospel, encourage us to look to the things of heaven and keep our eyes on the prize. In order to keep our eyes on heaven and to live a holy (saintly) life, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount gives us certain “rule of life” with his Beatitudes.

Christ’s blessings upon the poor in spirit do not belong exclusively to Saints like Rose of Lima or Martin de Porres. Nor do His blessings fall upon Saint Francis alone - who was a peacemaker. The Martyrs Peter and Paul are not the only ones blessed for being persecuted. These blessings of God fall upon all of us who strive to live according to His teachings.

On this Feast of All Saints, may we all be holy as our God is holy. May we “rejoice and be glad, for our reward will be great in heaven.”

As you consider these Beatitudes are you able to rejoice and be glad?

This Week's Task

Visit a Catholic bookstore or go to your local library and get yourself aquainted with a Saint. Plenty of books on heroic Christians have been written. These books can offer us assistance on our own spiritual journey.

You may also try on-line to study the lives of the Saints. For fun, google Saint + any name and see what comes up. Yes, there are Saints named Covid, Guy, Ferrari, Hillary, and Lancelot.

The group says or sings “For all the Saints”:

For all the saints

who from their labours rest,

Who Thee by faith before the world

confessed,

Thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.

Alleluia, Alleluia

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;

The saints triumphant rise in bright array;

The King of glory passes on His way.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

The prayer continues with Psalm 24

Response: Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

The LORD’s are the earth and its fullness;

the world and those who dwell in it.

For he founded it upon the seas

and established it upon the rivers.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?

or who may stand in his holy place?

One whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,

who desires not what is vain.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,

a reward from God his savior.

Such is the race that seeks him,

that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.

R. Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.

Conclude with an Our Father

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Auxiliary Bishop John Dolan of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Prayer

Loving Father, help us to be instruments of Your will on earth. For the times we disrupt Your will, we ask forgiveness. Let us see your hand in our lives each day. Make us Your instruments.

Amen.

1st Reading: Exodus 22:20-26

We are in the second week of our series on “All In!” Responding to God’s call is not for the faint-hearted. It requires a life-long commitment and includes carrying one’s cross. How we go all in depends on the gifts God has given us and the way in which we respond to God’s call. Some of us are called to the single life, others to the consecrated life, still others to the married life. Today, we recognize a life of priesthood. We remember the priests of our parishes and communities. We also remember those who are studying for the priesthood and those who are beginning to respond to God’s call. We keep them all in our prayers! What kind of priest would God be calling? Of course, we hope that he may have intelligence enough to finish his philosophical and theological studies. He should have some administrative skills. But above all, God’s priests must be pastoral. They must tend to all of God’s people and not be selective with whom they prefer to minister. Our First Reading gets right to the point. All priests - and all people of faith - must not oppress aliens, abuse widows, or orphans, or extort the poor. On the contrary, he must be a defender and shepherd of all God’s people; especially the most vulnerable. 

What would you hope to see in a future priest?

2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10

We all recall the priests invitation after the consecration at Mass: “The Mystery of our Faith.” One of our responses is, “We proclaim your death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.” This response, in part, comes from Paul’s many letters; including this letter to the Thessalonians. Here, Paul congratulates the church community for turning to God from idols and as they serve Him, they ...“await his Son from heaven whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the coming wrath.” This short memorial acclamation in Paul’s letter has repeated in some form, time after time, Mass after Mass, for over two-thousand years. Whenever ordained priests and priestly people gather around the altar, we affirm what we believe. This timeless acclamation is a part of our rich Catholic history. It will continue for many years to come - until He returns in glory - as long as priests and priestly people gather in His name. Meanwhile, these words run empty unless we become imitators of the one who died, rose, and promised to come again. Paul reminds his church in Thessolanica - and he reminds us today - to be imitators of Christ until he comes. 

How am I an imitator of Christ?

Gospel: Matthew 22:34-40

The new commandment, requires a new temple and a new priesthood.

The old law, with its temple and priests, gives way to Jesus Christ who is the New Law, the New Temple, the New Priesthood.

If we abide in His love, we have a share in His new law, we become His temple, and we have a share in his priesthood.

By virtue of our Baptism, we are configured to Christ who is priest, prophet, and king.

However, we must be imitators of Christ - as St. Paul reminds us in the Second Reading - and remember that we have put on His garment.

To be priestly people (ordained and lay members), we must follow this new command:

“You shall love the Lord, your God,

with all your heart,

with all your soul,

and with all your mind.

This is the greatest and the first commandment.

The second is like it:

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

How have you embraced this new law in your life?

This Week's Task

Send a letter to your parish or community priest and thank him for responding to the Lord’s call.

Offer a prayer for seminarians who are studying for the priesthood.

Pray for more vocations to the priesthood.

The group prays the following Prayer from the U.S. Bishops:

Gracious and loving God, we thank your for the gift of our priests. Through them, we experience your presence in the sacraments.

Help our priests to be strong in their vocation. Set their souls on fire with love for your people.

Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. Inspire them with the vision of your Kingdom.

Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel. Allow them to experience joy in their ministry.

Help them to become instruments of your divine grace. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Continue with Psalm 18

I love you, Lord, my strength.

I love you, O LORD, my strength,

O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.

R. I love you, Lord, my strength.

My God, my rock of refuge,

my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!

Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,

and I am safe from my enemies.

R. I love you, Lord, my strength.

The LORD lives and blessed be my rock!

Extolled be God my savior.

You who gave great victories to your king

and showed kindness to your anointed.

R. I love you, Lord, my strength.

Conclude with an Our Father

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Auxiliary Bishop John Dolan of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Prayer

Loving Father, help us to be instruments of Your will on earth. For the times we disrupt Your will, we ask forgiveness. Let us see your hand in our lives each day. Make us Your instruments. Amen.

1st Reading: Isaiah 45:1, 4-6

Over these next four weeks, we will go all in! This segment of Sundays will help us to discern what it means to follow the Lord in very deep and profound ways. This World Mission Sunday, next week’s Priesthood Sunday, and the following National Vocations Awareness Week, will help us to recall the beauty of ordained and consecrated life. The last week in this series is dedicated to the vocation of married life. On this World Mission Sunday, we remember the wonderful missionaries who are dedicated to sharing the Gospel in all parts of the world. As far as the sun extends, dedicated men and women go out to share the Good News in Word and Deed. Of course, these missionaries take their marching orders from God Himself. Our first reading recalls how God set up King Cyrus of Persia to be His instrument to lead the people of Israel back home. This was God’s way of saying, “ I’m in charge of the Salvation of My People Israel.” As the reading States, “From the rising of the Sun to its setting,” God is in charge. From the rising of the Sun to its setting,” God continues to send missionaries to the ends of the Earth and to show His glory to all nations. 

In what way is God using you as an instrument?

2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5

Our vocation comes from God. St Paul new this when he spoke to the Thessalonians. In his letter, Paul first gives thanks to God for the servants there in Thessolanica. With these words of thanksgiving, Paul acknowledges that God is in charge and that all good things come from the Lord. Even the missionary efforts of our Church today begin with God. We are simply instruments of His grace to dispense grace and mercy to the ends of the Earth. To reaffirm this thought, Paul reminds the Thessalonians that they received the gospel not just by Paul’s words, but first by the power of the Holy Spirit who was with them. Indeed! All good things proceed from the grace of the Holy Spirit who is God. The old adage is still true: “You cannot give what you have not first received.” Our celebration of the Eucharist each Sunday is a reminder that all we receive and all that we give flow from the Altar of God. It is for this reason that we say the Eucharist is the source and the summit of all that we do. Everything we do - and all that we are - begins and ends with God. 

How do I see the Eucharist as the source and Summit of my weekly life?

Gospel: Matthew 22:15-21

We may hear people say, “. . . but on the other side of the coin . . .” This is an expression to show a contrast between two opinions or two ways of life.

In the gospel, Jesus invites the Pharisees and Sadducees to look at a coin. In this case, Jesus shows that the whole coin belongs to Caesar. But while the whole coin belongs to Caesar, life - including Caesar’s life - belongs to God.

Let us remember that the word Caesar means King in Latin. The Roman King stood as an adversary to both Jews and the early Christian Community. For both communities, he was the other side of the coin. They were looking for a king who stood on the same side of the coin - their side.

By contrast, as we saw in the First Reading, the Persian king Cyrus stood alongside God and the people of Israel.

Unfortunately, the religious leaders in the Gospel, by posing the question to Jesus and in an attempt to trip him up, are seen as the adversaries of the true Christ, Caesar, the king. They could not accept this humble servant to be the king (Messiah) that they had longed for.

Do you believe that you are on the same side of the coin with God?

This Week's Task

This is World Mission Sunday.

Before you make a gift on Sunday to help share the Gospel through the efforts of our missionaries, take time to study the missionary life of the church.

You may wish to go to the Vatican website and read the Pope’s message for this special weekend.

Please pray for all missionaries who dare to share the Gospel in the most remote parts of our world.

The group prays the following Prayer of St. Francis:

Lord make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred let me sow love

Where there is injury, pardon

Where there is doubt, faith

Where there is despair, hope

Where there is darkness, light

And where there is sadness, joy.

O divine master grant that I may

not so much seek to be consoled as to console

to be understood as to understand

To be loved as to love

For it is in giving that we receive

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned

And it’s in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Continue with Psalm 96

Give the Lord glory and honor.

Sing to the LORD a new song;

sing to the LORD, all you lands.

Tell his glory among the nations;

among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.

R. Give the Lord glory and honor.

For great is the LORD and highly to be praised;

awesome is he, beyond all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are things of nought,

but the LORD made the heavens.

R. Give the Lord glory and honor.

Give to the LORD, you families of nations,

give to the LORD glory and praise;

give to the LORD the glory due his name!

Bring gifts, and enter his courts.

R. Give the Lord glory and honor.

Conclude with an Our Father

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Español)

Our commentary this week is provided by Deacon Mark Silvia of the Diocese of San Diego. For a PDF version, visit http://www.christ-ion.com

Opening Prayer

Father and maker of all, you adorn all creation with splendor and beauty, and fashion human lives in your image and likeness. Awaken in every heart reverence for the work of your hands, and renew among your people a readiness to nurture and sustain your precious gift of life. Amen

1st Reading: Ezekiel 18:25-28

Knowing the Lord’s way and living it are two separate things. Sometimes we might find it easier to justify our way, our beliefs and morals, to match our actions rather than to follow God’s way. God said, “Both ways lie before you, life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you may live!” The Church upholds and defends the dignity and sacredness of life from conception to natural death for all persons. As baptized disciples of Christ and members of his body, we are called to uphold and defend the life of every person regardless of nationality, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, criminal conviction, etc. Abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment are never acceptable or justifiable to take a human life.

• Is there a Church teaching or doctrine regarding life that you don’t agree with or found too challenging to follow? If so, what did you decide to do?

2nd Reading: Philippians 2:1-11

What makes a saint? One of my favorite definitions comes from Soren Kierkegaard, a Danish Theologian, who famously wrote: “To be a saint is to will the one thing.” And, that one thing is to know God. Similarly, St. Paul calls us to be of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, (willing the) one thing; to have in us the same attitude that is also in Christ Jesus.To have the same attitude of Christ, we need to know him. Jesus described himself as meek and humble of heart. He said the greatest commandments is to love God with all your heart, your mind, and your soul; and to love your neighbor as yourself. Henri Nouwen, a Dutch Catholic priest, professor, writer and theologian, wrote that the beatitudes “offer us a self-portrait of Jesus. Jesus is the Blessed One. And the face of the Blessed One shows poverty, gentleness, grief, hunger, and thirst for uprightness, mercy, purity of heart, a desire to make peace, and the signs of persecution.”

• How would you describe yourself to another person who has never met you before?

• How would you describe Jesus to another person who has never heard of him before?

• What do you need to change in yourself to have the same attitude of Christ?

Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32

I have two sons. Both are great kids (now in their thirties) and both at times have either said yes and then didn’t do what I asked them to do, or said no and later did what was asked of them. I have also done both when things were asked of me.

It seems to be human nature to sometimes feel pulled by other priorities or resistant to what is being asked of us. But Jesus reminds us that only those who hear and do the will of God will enter into the kingdom of heaven. Jesus summed up the commands of God as; love God will all your heart, mind and soul; and to love your neighbor as yourself.

Can we profess that we believe and follow Christ if we then hate our neighbor and despise our enemy?

If we say we love our neighbor and enemies, then our actions should match our words, especially in the defense of the dignity and sanctity of life for all people including the unborn, the poor, the elderly, the ill, the disabled, the refugee, and the imprisoned. If we see the face of Jesus in all people, how can we then leave him hungry, alone and cold? How then could we crucify him?

• Was there a time when you failed to speak up or take an action to uphold the sacredness and dignity life because you were afraid?

• How can we improve how we see the face of Christ in all persons, especially in the outcasts and most vulnerable of society?

This Week's Task

• Think of one action that you can take this week in support of the dignity and sacredness of life and then do it for your love of God and your love for that person.

Group Prayer

The leader invites the group to pray the following words together.

Lord Jesus, help us to realize the sacredness of human life and to respect it from the moment of conception until the last moment at death. Give us courage to speak with truth and love and with conviction in defense of life. Help us to extend the gentle hand of mercy and forgiveness to those who do not reverence your gift of life. To all, grant pardon for the times we have failed to be grateful for your precious gift of life or to respect it in others. Amen.

The leader will guide the group in praying Psalm 25 (from the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Psalm Response: Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior.

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Remember that your compassion, O LORD, and your love are from of old. The sins of my youth and my frailties remember not; in your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Good and upright is the LORD; thus, he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice, and teaches the humble his way.

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Conclude with an Our Father