Gospel for October 30, 2009, Friday
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. | 10/31/2009 12:02 AM
Printer-friendly version | 
Send to friend | 
Share your views
30th Week in Ordinary Time
1st Reading: Rom 9:1–5
I tell you sincerely in Christ, and my conscience assures me in the Holy Spirit that I am not lying: I have great sadness and constant anguish for the Jews. I would even desire that I myself suffer the curse of being cut off from Christ, instead of my brethren: I mean my own people, my kin. They are Israelites whom God adopted, and on them rests his Glory. Theirs are the covenants, the Law, the worship and the promises of God. They are descendants of the Patriarchs and from their race Christ was born, he who as God is above all distinctions. Blessed be He forever and ever: Amen!
Gospel: Lk 14:1–6
One Sabbath Jesus had gone to eat a meal in the house of a leading Pharisee, and he was carefully watched. In front of him was a man suffering from dropsy; so Jesus asked the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But no one answered. Jesus then took the man, healed him and sent him away. And he addressed them, “If your lamb or your ox falls into a well on a Sabbath day, who among you doesn’t hurry to pull it out?” And they could not answer.
REFLECTION
It is much too easy to think of religion as being about us, instead of being about God. It is much too easy to be overwhelmed with our issues, instead of God's issues. It is much too easy to focus on our priorities, instead of God's priorities. It is much too easy to superimpose our priorities on God's priorities and, thereby, to consider our priorities to be God's priorities.
Here is a simple point: a correct understanding of God's priorities results in us doing good for other people. The man or woman, who belongs to God, recognizes God's great concern for the suffering of less fortunate people. God's top priority for His people is their humble compassion. If God, in humble compassion, could give His son to humanity through crucifixion, those of us, who belong to God, can reach out to each other in humble compassion. We help people to see God's kindness through our kindness. It never violates God's priorities when we do good. We can always find opportunities to show compassion in ways we cannot imagine. We represent God well, even in the hardest circumstances, when we are prepared to do good, just because we believe in God.
________
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc., 8 Mayumi St., U.P. Village, Diliman, Quezon City, U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman, 1101 Quezon City; Tel. No. (02) 921-39-84; Fax No.: (02) 921-62-05 E-mail: cci@claret.org; Websites: http://www.claretianpublication.com (Claretian Publications) & http://www.claretphilippines.org (Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines) Claretian HOPE CENTER: Aurora Milestone Tower, 1045 Aurora Blvd., Loyola Heights, Quezon City E-mail: hopecenter07@yahoo.com/hopecenter07@gmail.com
Comments