Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

Today’s short Gospel reading echoes the words Elizabeth spoke on greeting her cousin Mary: “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” Mary carried and bore Jesus, the Incarnate Word of God. For that reason, Mary was born free of original sin to be the Ark of the New Covenant. When Jesus replies to the woman, the word of God he refers to includes Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

God, help me understand the mystery of your Incarnation. To hear and observe your word should be my primary aim every day. On my own, I will fail time after time, but through your grace—or as Saint Paul put it, “clothed with Christ”—it makes hearing and observing your word possible. Lord, I ask for that grace today; help me see.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

In today’s Gospel reading, again on how Jesus teaches his disciples to pray, Luke tells of Jesus driving out a demon. The crowd confronts Jesus, saying that he drives out demons by the power of Beelzebul. Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?”

Understanding perfectly the course of division, Jesus offers unity through him, with him, and in him by saying, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” The Gospel acclamation echoes this in the words of Jesus from the Book of Revelation: “The prince of this world will now be cast out, and when I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all to myself, says the Lord.” Help me understand, God, that I need to stay close to you so that when you come again you will draw me to you.

Thank you, God, for the gift of your presence in the Gospel, at Mass in the Eucharist, and in the Blessed Sacrament. I’m not confident that I know what it means to gather with you; through your grace, I ask that you give me an example today. I want to be with you and not against you. Stay with me, Lord, and guide me.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

Today’s Gospel reading from Luke follows immediately after Jesus teaches the disciples the Lord’s Prayer. In praying, Jesus tells his disciples, be persistent. The parable that tells about the man who goes to his friend’s house at midnight for three loaves of bread describes approaching God in prayer. Because every moment on earth may be our last, it is always the midnight hour when we approach God, who is always ready to receive the ones who seek him out.

Not everything I ask God to give me will be given to me. In the parable, Jesus makes clear that what we pray for that is in accord with the will of God will be given. The friend will give his persistent friend three loaves of bread, which he will in turn share with his friend who is on a journey. In seeking God, the will of God will be found; in knocking, the door will be opened; in asking, God will give every good thing there is to receive. In the Our Father it is the same perfect unity and abandonment to the will of God. “Thy will be done” and “give us this day our daily bread.” Help me discern, Lord, whether what I ask you in prayer is one with your will.

God, teach me today to know your will. I know you want me to know your will, not because it shackles and confines my will but because to do your will is to live in the truth and freedom of your divine love. When I say I want to do your will, let it not be as if I am fulfilling another’s human wish. Let me see instead that your will is woven into the very fabric of existence. Your will simply is; it is the way things work on earth as in heaven—a mystery. Job said it best: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be hindered. I have dealt with great things that I do not understand; things too wonderful for me, which I cannot know.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Wednesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”

Jesus teaches his disciples to say the Our Father, the Lord’s prayer. As one of the disciples came to Jesus to ask him how to pray, he must have asked out of true humility. The disciple also shows a certain observance to tradition that comes across by his asking to be taught to pray just as John the Baptist taught his disciples to pray. Jesus then prays what we know as the Our Father.

Saint Paul says, “We do not know how to pray as we ought.” Lord, help me understand how this applies to me. When I pray the Our Father, let me realize that I am saying the same prayer you said from the heart to be in union with God the Father. Every line of the Our Father is a meditation on the glory of the Father and the mercy he shows us. As a whole, it is complete abandonment to God’s will even for our daily needs. Lord, when I struggle with prayer and distractions crowd my mind, let me remember to ask you as the disciple asks: “Teach me to pray.”

The Gospel acclamation for today is “You have received a spirit of adoption as sons through which we cry: Abba! Father!” With a spirit of adoption, we pray: Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi

Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”

Jesus makes clear in today’s Gospel reading that one thing is necessary: to sit beside the Lord at his feet and listen to him speak. While Martha was busy serving and preparing, Mary sat at the feet of the Lord. I imagine Martha in the kitchen taking account of things she still has to do before everybody can sit down, eat, and rest. Being burdened means completing a seemingly endless list of things, exacting tasks that must be done before taking a breath. Mary chooses the better part, and it will not be taken from her. Another way of saying that: being present before God and listening to him gives what is everlasting and can’t be taken away even amid the demands of a day.

God, you know how I will deceive myself today in the seemingly endless list of things I have to do before I rest. Help me understand that there will always be more to do that drains and leaves me feeling burdened with many cares. Yet, if I return to you in the day through prayer—even a few quiet moments—I will choose something that will not be taken from me. Let me be mindful that you will supply the grace I need in order to sit beside you and listen to you speak.

On this memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi, teach me, Lord, to measure my success not by how much I acquire in the world and how much surplus I possess. I know you are rich in mercy, and I am poor to whatever degree I dismiss that. As Saint Paul says, “For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” Show me, Lord, how to succeed in listening to you and doing your will by letting go of excess—all that places an obstacle between you and me.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Monday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.

In the well-known parable from today’s Gospel reading, Jesus responds to a scholar of the law who asks him, “Who is my neighbor?” A priest and Levite separately passed by the man who had been stripped and beaten, but a Samaritan saw him, stopped, and eventually took him to an inn. Jesus finishes the parable and asks the scholar which of the three was the neighbor. “The one who treated him with mercy,” he says. And Jesus replies, “Go and do likewise.”

God, help me understand your mercy. There will be opportunity today to show mercy to someone in need—probably not in a dramatic or memorable way—but nonetheless in a way that through my actions, another may receive your mercy. The question is whether I will be too busy to notice or find justification in some other necessary task. The readings from a few days ago describe Jesus and his disciples trying to pass through a Samaritan village on their way to Jerusalem, but they were not welcome so went another way. Here, Jesus places the Samaritan in the role of giving tender care to a wounded human being. Rather than demonize Samaritans, Jesus shows one of them giving mercy where mercy is sorely needed.

Lord, amid all the necessities and distractions of the day, put in my path the means to show someone your mercy. You know me, Lord; unless you make things very clear to me, I will miss it. Be with me today, and show me how I can please you best.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

The apostles ask Jesus for the gift of faith, and he reassures them with his reply. Just as Jesus heals those who called out to him in their illness or distress by reaching out for him, so it is with the apostles. Only a little faith is necessary for God to supply what is lacking.

God, help me understand that the little faith I have is enough as long as I desire you. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Help me see the mulberry trees in my life that the mustard seed of faith can move. I can do little, but as Job says in yesterday’s reading: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be hindered.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

“At that very moment he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. . . . No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son.”

On hearing from the seventy-two disciples Jesus sent out that even the demons are subject to them, Jesus rejoices. One of the translations from Greek for rejoice is to jump for joy. Jesus acknowledges the power the he has given his disciples through God the Father and the Holy Spirit and quickly adds, “Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” Because of the power Jesus gives the disciples, they could face Satan and not be harmed and rejoice that he had a place for them in heaven.

God, what is it about childlike faith that brings you more closely into view? It means being able to see you beyond the veil or hear you, as Job did, speaking through the storm. Surely childlike faith does not mean returning to the faith I had as a child; it means returning to a mature faith that is childlike in trusting in your gracious will, in recognizing that you are my God and I am your child. To be childlike means to see beyond the veil what remains hidden to the wise and learned. How often, Lord, I count myself among the wise and the learned? Help me return to you and put that aside so that your Son can rejoice in saying to me: “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.”

From the Psalms today, we hear “The revelation of your words sheds light, giving understanding to the simple.” And from the refrain: “Lord, let your face shine upon me.” Just as the sun bathes me in light and warms me, let me bask in your love, God. Teach me childlike wisdom and learning, even in the midst of trials so that I can say as Job did: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be hindered. I have dealt with great things that I do not understand; things too wonderful for me, which I cannot know.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Memorial of Saint Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church

And as for you, Capernaum, “Will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to the netherworld.”

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus says, “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!” He speaks to the people of the region where he called his disciples and preached the Gospel. The people he addresses he would have known and loved as his own. How is it, then, that he says: “Will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to the netherworld.” Is this to say in another manner that whoever exalts himself will be humbled? The woes toward the towns close to his heart are perhaps caused by human frustration that, although he worked mighty deeds, the people did not repent and return to God. In the first reading from Job, God expresses the same sentiment when he says, “Have you ever in your lifetime commanded the morning and shown the dawn its place. . . ? But from the wicked the light is withheld, and the arm of pride is shattered.”

God, help me understand how to take the grand scope of your actions in the world to see how they apply to my life, to this very day. As the people of Capernaum rejected Jesus, they rejected you, God. In turn, whoever listens to your Son, listens to you. As Jesus said elsewhere in the Gospel: “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” Let me give glory to you, Lord, that is due to you as God the Father Almighty, creator of the universe.

You are God, and I am not. Let me remember throughout the day, God, as the psalmist says, that it is you who guide me along the everlasting way. Give me the grace to hear your voice.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, archangels

Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.” And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Jesus is able to say to Nathanael, “You will see greater things than this” because Jesus sees through the eyes of his divinity. In this Gospel reading from John, Jesus’ encounter with Nathanael comes after he chooses the first disciples. There is a giddiness in Jesus’ response to Nathanael, as if he can’t wait to show Nathanael where he comes from and who he is.

God, you sent your Son, who always accomplished your will perfectly and showed us the way to you. “You will see greater things than this,” Jesus tells us. Help me to see him today in the so-called ordinary events of the day; help me to see your divine work with the eyes that Jesus sees heaven opened. Today, on the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, help me understand that the greater things that you work through the world are visible but also invisible and no less real, such as the work of his angels. Michael means “who is like God,” Gabriel means “hero of God,” and Raphael means “God has healed.”

Jesus, let me trust in your care of me today. When will I be able to see as you see “the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man”? It is more than I can imagine and enough that you stay with me today, keeping me sure-footed as you guide me throughout the day. Saint Michael, defend me in battle; Saint Gabriel, champion my faith; Saint Raphael, heal my soul!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings