News RSS Feed

The sky is falling! The end is near! In today’s Gospel, people admire the Temple’s magnificence as Jesus looks on. He then predicts: “All that you see here, the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.” By the time Luke records these words from Jesus the event He’s referring to has happened. It would be natural then for Luke’s audience that now the end is near! But Luke wishes to separate the Temple’s destruction from the end times and Christ’s return.

As we reflect on our Gospel, it’s clear that the Sadducees were trying to trip up Jesus when they presented the hypothetical situation of a woman who was married to seven brothers over her lifetime. The Sadducees were an influential group who thought that their strict adherence to the first five books of the Bible (the Law of Moses) left no room for belief in the resurrection of the dead.

Are you willing to go “out on a limb” for your faith? Are you willing to set aside your pride and put Jesus first? Only Luke tells the story of Zacchaeus and his determination to catch a glimpse of Jesus as He passed through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem. Zacchaeus was short and needed to climb the limb of the Sycamore tree to gain a better sight line.

After teaching His disciples on the necessity of praying with persistence (Luke 18:1-8), Jesus told another parable on prayer, which was unique to Luke. In the story, two individuals went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, the other a Tax Collector.

In our responsorial psalm for our Liturgy today, we hear that “Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 112) When we put our trust in God, we are never let down or disappointed, for God is the creator of all things and will be with us until the end. Keep strong in the faith, confident that through hard work and perseverance, justice and love will prevail in the end.”

We see a familiar theme in the readings this week: people are in need of healing, of mercy, of salvation, and the Lord comes to their aid. Our Faith tells us that the Lord responds to those in need. The message focuses on our reaction to His generosity. God appreciates gratitude and as we see throughout these readings wants only the gift of ourselves in return.

Just a little faith can do the seemingly impossible! From the initial pessimism of the Prophet Habakkuk to the mustard seed hope of Luke, this week’s readings could leave us a bit baffled. Nonetheless, the message is to press on.

Jesus addressed a parable to those who were rich in material goods yet ignored the needs of the poor. In the story, a wealthy man feasted in luxury while Lazarus, a poor man, was outside his house, lying in agony, suffering from disease and starvation. When the two men died, their fortunes were reversed.

One might ask why Jesus would make a dishonest servant the hero of His story. We can waste all sorts of time trying to figure out a contemporary understanding of this parable of a not-so-honest manager. He tells about a disgraced steward who uses shady means to forgive just a portion of the debt some people owe. Jesus knows that forgiveness and mercy are in short supply.

What is the point of Jesus’ story about a lost sheep and a lost coin? In Jesus’ time shepherds normally counted their sheep at the end of the day to make sure all were accounted for. Since sheep by their very nature are very social, an isolated sheep can quickly become bewildered and even neurotic, and become easy prey for wolves and lions. The shepherd’s grief and anxiety is turned into joy when he finds the lost sheep and restores it to the fold.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches us the basis for the cost of discipleship. There are three basic conditions for discipleship: subordination of everything, even family in order to make a commitment to Jesus; acceptance of the cross-the imitation of Jesus; and the relinquishment of all possessions in order to possess and be possessed by Christ alone.

We hear in our First Reading from the Book of Sirach: “My child, conduct your affairs with humility and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. Humble yourself the more, the greater you are and you will find favor with God.” Serving with humility is so very difficult for some people. There are those who are always looking for accolades and “pats” on the back.

The last line in today’s Gospel reads: “For behold, some are last who will be the first, and some are first who will be the last.” We must always remember that even the snail made it on to Noah’s ark! There is a lesson in humility to be learned here.

We have passed the mid-point of summer and have been concentrating on the summer’s readings taken from the Gospel of Luke. The focus has been on the practice of discipleship and what it means to be a disciple of Christ. This practice ignites a burning message in today’s Gospel. There is a cost to discipleship: suffering, division, and even rejection.

True and deep faith in God can be elusive, even for those of us who attend Mass regularly. We have so much to do with so little time to do it. Faith in God is key to our existence. We have numerous tasks and pressures, yet all our work must be done in the context of a mature, and maturing, faith.

In Jesus’ time, respected Rabbis were often called upon to settle disputes. When a man approached Jesus regarding a quarrel over the family inheritance Jesus refused to intervene in this shameless argument about money. He then began a long discourse on the nature of material possessions. Jesus warned His disciples to be on guard against greed, since one’s life did not consist in an abundance of possessions. Notice that Jesus says, “Guard against all greed.” Could this apply not only to material wealth, but also our knowledge wealth as well?

oday’s readings focus on prayer and hospitality. All who knock on the door of the Church are to be invited and welcomed with holy hospitality and led through full conscious and active participation to live out one’s Baptism. We as the faithful of God have a special role in offering hospitality by inviting all within the community to share their gifts and talents. We have a duty from the “streets to the seats” to provide hospitality to all who enter Corpus Christi Church.

Jesus had been teaching His followers about the privilege of being a disciple and now He did something radical for His day — He taught a woman. When Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, listening to the words of her master, Martha criticized her for neglecting to help her to provide hospitality for their guest. Jesus reminded Martha that she was too anxious about things of little importance. The one thing that should concern her was “to seek God’s kingdom before all else.”

The Parable of the Good Shepherd is one of the most well known parables. The message of this parable is clear and obvious: regardless of what culture or religion we are from, we should be willing to help people in need, even if they are different from us. Some say this parable is the most moving parable in Scripture.

“Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” We are constantly on a journey. Jesus was on a journey towards Jerusalem. He sent messengers ahead to prepare the way, but one village refuses to receive Him. He rebukes His disciples for wanting to punish them by fire. He says to the others: “Follow me.”