A Homily – The Twenty-eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

First Reading – 2 Kings 5:14-17 ©

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 97(98):1-4 ©

Second Reading – 2 Timothy 2:8-13 ©

Gospel Acclamation – John 6:63, 68

Alternative Acclamation – 1 Thessalonians 5:18

The Gospel According to Luke 17:11 - 19 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

Take care as to how you read the sacred text. It is easy to misconstrue the gospel, and the way may be easily lost in the miasma of jingoistic mythology. The story of Naaman the Leper is one of these tales that threatens to blind us to the purpose of the gospel; the good news is meant to furnish hope, like a lantern in the dark; it is meant to foster love and promote justice.

This is a story of healing, in this way it is in alignment with God’s promise to cleanse each of us and to heal us of our wounds, all of that which hurts and harms us, and from the disease of sin.

We must not be confused into believing that this is a story of miraculous faith or the magical powers of the prophet Elisha, or of God reaching into the world to cause a radical transformation in the life of a single individual.

God does not intervene in our affairs, not even to help us, because God has made us free and the whole of creation with it; the reality of our freedom precludes the notion of divine intervention.

Be mindful.

It is God’s intention to make us well…to save us, but the realization of that plan is not of this world.

Know this.

The authors and editors of the Book of Kings fail to understand where the real presence of God resides, which is everywhere, for God is not-not present in any place. The one and true God does not dwell in Israel in a special way, but in all places, at all times, with everyone.

God dwells in the human heart and speaks there to all of us, and to all of us God speaks the same thing, telling us of God’s desire that we love one another, that we be good to one other, just with one another, showing mercy in all things and walking humbly wherever we go.

Understand this.

It is right and good to praise God, the creator of the universe; it is right and good because creation is miraculous, and beyond the scope of human comprehension; but know this, God is not a giver of victories, God has no enemies, and in God, within whom all things exist and have their being…in God there is no conflict.

It is not God’s justice that is shown in the work of human beings and human institutions, it is human justice; when human justice approximates the divine, we will know it for the goodness that comes from it, we will recognize it in it’s quality of mercy.

Have faith in this…trust in the kindness of God who loves all people equally.

God’s power is everywhere, God’s spirit animates the voices that give God praise. If you are an instrument of justice, judge fairly, judge kindly, judge with mercy all-the-while remembering the love of God.

Consider this:

The gospel…the good news is the promise of resurrection and of life after death, but it is more than that. The good news concerns the life we live on earth. The resurrection is meant to ground our trust in the hope that we are all included in God’s plan for the salvation of all people, a plan which God will carry out even in regard to those who do not know of God’s plan, or who knowing of it, do not participate in God’s plan while they are living among us. God will save even those who view God as the enemy, those who suborn the truth and harm their brothers and sisters...God will save them to because God loves you.

Christian faith is grounded in our belief in the reality of the resurrection and the hope that it applies to us as well. The kindling of this hope is meant to free us from the bondage of the world and allow us to live a life of service right now; it is meant to set us on fire with the love of God.

Let us live with this passage for a moment…God is calling us to be holy, to be holy at all times, God is calling to us, inviting us into the compassionate life, into a life of wellbeing. This was God’s plan from the beginning of time, and there is not one of us, not one child of God, not one being in the whole of creation who is outside of this plan.

It is not that God has abolished death, as if they were engaged in a struggle from which God emerges as the victor; rather it is revealed that the death of the body is merely a transition, one we all pass through on our journey toward the creator…there is no death beyond the flesh.

The gospel is this:

God loves you and you are saved; you are not saved for anything that you have done, you did not earn it…you are saved simply because God loves you.

The promise of salvation is not that you will be spared from suffering and torment in hell, or that when you are judged God will forgive you; God has already forgiven you, you are already saved.

God has prepared you, and everyone for eternal life…believe it!

Let the goodness of the promise flow through you now and start living this life as if it were true.

We are not called to believe in the idea that Jesus is this or that, the Holy One of God or anything else, we are called to act on the principles of his faith, to live lives of charity and service to each other.

Know this.

It is wise to be thankful, to share your thanks with the world, and in your thankfulness to give from your bounty to those in need…this is the way.

God loves all people. God loves the clean and the unclean, the leper and the person in full health; God loves them both alike. God’s mercy is the inheritance of everyone who has ever lived, is living or will yet come into life.

Consider the Gospel reading for today, all of the lepers were healed of their disease but only one of them was grateful, returned and gave thanks. You may say that the one who returned and was healed, was healed in accordance with his faith and trust in God, but others were healed nonetheless in accordance of God’s grace and mercy. The important thing to understand is that they were all healed; God did not hold back any portion of divine mercy.

God saved them all, out of the superabundance of God’s love..

First Reading – 2 Kings 5:14-17 ©

Naaman the Leper Returned to Elisha and Acknowledged the Lord

Naaman the leper went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, as Elisha had told him to do. And his flesh became clean once more like the flesh of a little child.

Returning to Elisha with his whole escort, he went in and stood before him. ‘Now I know’ he said ‘that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel. Now, please, accept a present from your servant.’

But Elisha replied, ‘As the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will accept nothing.’ Naaman pressed him to accept, but he refused.

Then Naaman said, ‘Since your answer is “No,” allow your servant to be given as much earth as two mules may carry, because your servant will no longer offer holocaust or sacrifice to any god except the Lord.’

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 97(98):1-4 ©

The Lord has shown his salvation to the nations.

Sing a new song to the Lord

  for he has worked wonders.

His right hand and his holy arm

  have brought salvation.

The Lord has shown his salvation to the nations.

The Lord has made known his salvation;

  has shown his justice to the nations.

He has remembered his truth and love

  for the house of Israel.

The Lord has shown his salvation to the nations.

All the ends of the earth have seen

  the salvation of our God.

Shout to the Lord, all the earth,

  ring out your joy.

The Lord has shown his salvation to the nations.

 

Second Reading – 2 Timothy 2:8-13 ©

If We Hold Firm then We Shall Reign with Christ

Remember the Good News that I carry, ‘Jesus Christ risen from the dead, sprung from the race of David’; it is on account of this that I have my own hardships to bear, even to being chained like a criminal – but they cannot chain up God’s news. So I bear it all for the sake of those who are chosen, so that in the end they may have the salvation that is in Christ Jesus and the eternal glory that comes with it.

Here is a saying that you can rely on:

If we have died with him, then we shall live with him.

If we hold firm, then we shall reign with him.

If we disown him, then he will disown us.

We may be unfaithful, but he is always faithful, for he cannot disown his own self.

 

Gospel Acclamation – John 6:63, 68

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life; you have the message of eternal life.

Alleluia!

 

Alternative Acclamation – 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Alleluia, alleluia!

For all things give thanks, because this is what God expects you to do in Christ Jesus.

Alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Luke 17:11 - 19 ©

No-one Has Come Back to Praise God, Only this Foreigner

On the way to Jerusalem Jesus travelled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered one of the villages, ten lepers came to meet him. They stood some way off and called to him, ‘Jesus! Master! Take pity on us.’ When he saw them he said, ‘Go and show yourselves to the priests.’ Now as they were going away they were cleansed. Finding himself cured, one of them turned back praising God at the top of his voice and threw himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. The man was a Samaritan. This made Jesus say, ‘Were not all ten made clean? The other nine, where are they? It seems that no one has come back to give praise to God, except this foreigner.’ And he said to the man, ‘Stand up and go on your way. Your faith has saved you.’

 

A Homily – The Twenty-eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

Observation - October 10th, 2025, Friday

in the dark morning

looking east toward the sun

     rising over the rooftops

 

the maples and the elms

shaking off their leaves

     like a garment of red and gold

 

smoking in the garden

with a dog at my feet

A Homily - The Twenty-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

First Reading – Habakkuk 1:2-3, 2:2-4 ©

Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 94(95):1-2, 6-9

Second Reading - 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14 ©

Gospel Acclamation – 1 Samuel 3:9, John 6:68

Alternative Acclamation – 1 Peter 1:25

The Gospel According to Luke 17:5 - 10 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

There are no guarantees in this life, neither justice nor injustice, though we may reasonably expect a share of each. We can be certain of nothing; therefor be just toward all those you meet and seek to do no harm.

 God is not a mover of people, save by the eternal pull of grace and the infinite draw of divine love; forces like gravity that touch everyone and everything that is, forces by which God calls every one of God’s children. The spirit calls to us, though we are free to ignore it; even when we recognize it, most of us do.

 Know this!

 God is the creator of the universe, the cause of all that is; each of us and the entire creation is was created by God in a state of radical freedom. In our capacity as free agents we must work toward the justice we wish to manifest in our own lives, and in the lives of the people we encounter.

 Be mindful, we only have the power to be just to one other, we cannot seize justice for ourselves; you will not be the cause of your salvation. It is God who makes us well, who creates in us the possibility of wellbeing, which we find in turn, in God who is our wellbeing, and its final realization is not of this world.

 Do not look for salvation in this world, it will not come from kings and princes, from popes or presidents. God is not a king, and there are no other gods beside God.

 All of creation belongs to the creator, all that is beautiful and everything that frightens or disturbs us, all of it comes from God, and everything redounds to the good.

 Be mindful.

 God has prepared each of us to receive the divine blessing, and God will not rest until each of us has accepted it for themselves.

 Consider the faith of Timothy:

 His words are the words of political prisoner, exhorting us to faith and reminding us of our heritage; that we belong to a tradition that places service to others over individual liberty.

 Not everyone can follow the way to the same end that Timothy did, or Jesus before him. They were leaders of the faith, pointing the way to the blessed life, one that is just and merciful and good.

 Be like Timothy if you can, follow the way of Jesus as well as you are able, but do not despair if you fail; you will fail, and God will continue to love you.

 When leaders rise among us; we must acknowledge them. When leadership is pure and we see that their work is holy, we must acknowledge that. In acknowledging these things it is important to not embellish them…cling to the truth at all times, in all things.

 God does not appear in visions.

 Remember.

 God speaks to all people; God speaks in the human heart. God is present for anyone who will listen, never favoring some over others. God leads us in silence, communicating through the rhythm of the heart, through the tug and pull of our conscience as it resonates with the good.

 This is the Gospel; God loves you, and you are saved.

 You are not saved for anything that you have done, you did not earn salvation, you are saved because God loves you and for no other reason. The promise of salvation is not that you will be spared from suffering and torment in hell, or that when you are judged God will forgive you; there is no hell and God has already forgiven you…share the word!

 God loves you and you are saved already.

 If you feel unworthy…stop; God has a plan for you. God has prepared you and everyone for eternal life.

 Believe it!

 Let the goodness of the promise flow through you now and start living this life as if it were true. Do not be concerned with creeds and confessions, with decrees and decretals, or the doctrine of the church…those do not save; right belief does not save.

 We are not called to believe in the idea that Jesus is this or that, the Holy One of God, we are called to act on the principles of his faith, we are called to live lives of charity and service to each other.

 Share the Gospel, share the good news and be mindful!

 Pay close attention to the Gospel, especially on those occasions when the message is cryptic, or the meaning of the parable is unclear. Interpret these passages when you are centered in the way; interpret them through the lens of love, with hope and justice.

 Understand this.

 Faith means trust, it is not magic. Our faith is not circumscribed by the content of our beliefs, neither can it be measured for quality, quantity, or intensity…faith is trust, which a person either exercises or does not.

 If we trust in the promise of the Gospel, if we trust in the good news that Jesus preached, then we may be able to free ourselves from greed and corruption, and the class-consciousness that foments injustice around the world.

 In the Gospel for today we see Jesus rebuke the disciples, the men who some years later became the apostles of the church. He rebuked them because he saw into their hearts were and bore witness to the spiritual poverty that beset them; he knew that they are using their position in the community of believers to place themselves in positions of authority and influence over the rest of his followers. He rebuked them because they had abandoned the way, and he encouraged them to return to it in the mode of a servant.

 Jesus responded to their error with love, he did not reject them, he gave them further instruction, and he comforted them.

First Reading – Habakkuk 1:2-3, 2:2-4 ©

The Upright Man Will Live by His Faithfulness

How long, O Lord, am I to cry for help while you will not listen; to cry ‘Oppression!’ in your ear

and you will not save?

Why do you set injustice before me, why do you look on where there is tyranny?

Outrage and violence, this is all I see, all is contention, and discord flourishes.

Then the Lord answered and said, ‘Write the vision down, inscribe it on tablets to be easily read,

since this vision is for its own time only: eager for its own fulfilment, it does not deceive; if it comes slowly, wait, for come it will, without fail.

See how he flags, he whose soul is not at rights, but the upright man will live by his faithfulness.’

 

Psalm - Psalm 94(95):1-2, 6-9

LORD, avenging God, avenging God, shine forth!

Rise up, O judge of the earth; give the proud what they deserve!

They kill the widow and alien; the orphan they murder.

They say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob takes no notice.”

Understand, you stupid people! You fools, when will you be wise?

Does the one who shaped the ear not hear? The one who formed the eye not see?

 

Second Reading - 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14 ©

Never Be Ashamed of Witnessing to Our Lord

I am reminding you to fan into a flame the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you. God’s gift was not a spirit of timidity, but the Spirit of power, and love, and self-control. So you are never to be ashamed of witnessing to the Lord, or ashamed of me for being his prisoner; but with me, bear the hardships for the sake of the Good News, relying on the power of God.

Keep as your pattern the sound teaching you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. You have been trusted to look after something precious; guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

 

Gospel Acclamation – 1 Samuel 3:9, John 6:68

Alleluia, alleluia!

Speak, Lord, your servant is listening:

you have the message of eternal life.

Alleluia!

 

Alternative Acclamation – 1 Peter 1:25

Alleluia, alleluia!

The word of the Lord remains for ever.

What is this word?

It is the Good News that has been brought to you.

Alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Luke 17:5 - 10 ©

Say, 'We Are Merely Servants'

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

  ‘Which of you, with a servant ploughing or minding sheep, would say to him when he returned from the fields, “Come and have your meal immediately”? Would he not be more likely to say, “Get my supper laid; make yourself tidy and wait on me while I eat and drink. You can eat and drink yourself afterwards”? Must he be grateful to the servant for doing what he was told? So with you: when you have done all you have been told to do, say, “We are merely servants: we have done no more than our duty.”’

 

A Homily - The Twenty-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

A Homily – The Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

First Reading - Amos 6:1, 4-7 ©

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 145(146):7-10 ©

Second Reading – 1 Timothy 6:11-16 ©

Gospel Acclamation – John 10:27

Alternative Acclamation – 2 Corinthians 8:9

The Gospel According to Luke 16:19 - 31 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

The words of the prophet were never more-true than they are today…woe to you Israel of the iron fist. Woe to the callous hearted. Woe to those who cannot see God looking back at them through the eyes of their neighbor, who cannot see God looking back at them through the iron slats of the fences they build, which divide us from one another. Woe to those who cannot see God in the faces of their brothers and sisters living in the occupied territories of Palestine. Woe to powerful, and the power mongers. Woe to those who deny justice to the oppressed.

Consider this:

God is the author of our salvation, there is no other authority on the matter. Do not trust in the power of princes and kings who promise to deliver you, but are powerless to do so; but God will, and God is not a respecter of persons, tribes, or nations.

The life of a human being…of all human beings, the entire sum of time that human beings have on Earth is little more than a flash in the night, a sudden, brief and violent eruption…we are born, we breathe and we are gone. The Earth itself will not survive the sun.

Therefore, consider the words of the prophet and the teaching of Jesus who points to the way: happy are those who assist in the divine work of mercy and justice:

Lift up the oppressed,

          Wherever they are

Feed the hungry

Free the prisoner

Teach the ignorant,

          Whoever they are

Advocate for those who need an advocate, care for those who cannot care for themselves. Find those who are lost in their wickedness…bring them home.

Know this.

The Church began to deviate from the way on the day it was founded. As soon as Jesus died, before Christians were even called Christians, the falling out among them was immediate and intense.

The Church was divided in doctrine concerning questions about the truth, regarding the knowledge of God, the possession of riches and the distribution of alms. In this era (the beginning), the Church was like any other human institution, because it was just another human institution. The epistle from today exemplifies this by promoting the falsehood that the rewards of the faith are transactional; stating to the gathered believers that if they give their wealth to the church, they will have a reward in heaven.

Be mindful!

The sheep do not choose the shepherd but rather, it is the shepherd who chooses the sheep. In the Christian tradition we see Jesus in the role of the shepherd, and in Jesus we see God; the creator of the universe.

There is just the one shepherd, and there is but the one sheepfold and whether it make sense to us or not, whether it contradicts the teaching and traditions of the Church or not, it is to the one Shepherd that we all belong…the good and bad a like.

Be mindful.

When you consider the teaching of the shepherd, do not trouble yourself with how the shepherd speaks to you, in what language, in what text, with how the shepherd speaks to your sister or your brother, to your neighbors or the stranger. The shepherd is speaking to them to, and they are listening as they are able (or willing).

Everyone that is, everyone without exception follows in the way of God, for there is no other way. Do not trouble yourself if you do not understand the journey that another person is on, because God is guiding them, just as God is guiding you, and if you resist, God will be patient, God will wait, just as God waits for everyone.

When you hear the voice of God, Jesus, the shepherd, they will speak to you of love, and you will recognize them for them peace they express; God is love, God is patient and God is kind.

God has promised that not lose a single one of us will be lost. Neither will any one of us lose God. No matter what; God is with us, because there is no place, not a single place where God is not.

Remember this!

Jesus is not a lord; his riches were in spiritual gifts, he shared those gifts with many, with all whom he encountered and in sharing he became richer still.

Jesus was our friend, he lived with us as a friend, spoke to us as a friend, loved us as a friend, and died for the sake of us…his friends.

Understand this.

As you read the scriptures you must be on the lookout for those passages in scripture which contradict that fundamental truth as stated above, such as the reading for today.

The reading from Luke is not a parable, it is not meant to teach anything but fear. It is presented as an argument to justify the denial of charity to Christians, especially in those in communities outside of Palestine, to exclude them from the scope of their good works, something Jesus himself would never have done as a teacher of the way, and this is the evidence that shows how the Church very early on developed a false interpretation of Jesus’ teaching.

The writing is heavily mythologized, representing imagery of the afterlife, depicting Lazarus in the Bosom of Abraham (imagined here as an analogy for Elysium), the abode of the blessed dead. Be mindful of the reference to Hades, and the description of a gulf between Tartarus and the greenfields of the blessed realm.

Be mindful.

Jesus did not speak in concrete terms regarding the afterlife.

The author riffs on the name of Lazarus, which is the name of a man who we know, who Jesus loved. The author builds up the narrative in a way that draws a clear connection between Lazarus and the tales of the Syro-Phoenician woman, who also, like a dog, asks for scraps at the table of the anointed one.

In this way the author connects everyone whom his contemporaries viewed as outsider in the church, because they were not from the tribes of Israel; connecting them to the beloved Lazarus who he raised from the dead by an ethno-nationalistic construction.

The central message of today’s reading provides the final clue. The message given is that Jesus is content to let people die in their sins, suffer in eternity, and never have recourse to salvation, if they have not fashioned such a connection to Israel for themselves…through the church. This message stands in stark contrast to his teaching on love, forgiveness and mercy.

First Reading - Amos 6:1, 4-7 ©

Woe to Those who Live in Luxury

The almighty Lord says this:

Woe to those ensconced so snugly in Zion and to those who feel so safe on the mountain of Samaria, those famous men of this first of nations to whom the House of Israel goes as client.

Lying on ivory beds and sprawling on their divans, they dine on lambs from the flock, and stall-fattened veal; they bawl to the sound of the harp, they invent new instruments of music like David, they drink wine by the bowlful, and use the finest oil for anointing themselves,

but about the ruin of Joseph they do not care at all.

That is why they will be the first to be exiled; the sprawlers’ revelry is over.

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 145(146):7-10 ©

My soul, give praise to the Lord.

Alleluia!

It is the Lord who keeps faith for ever,

  who is just to those who are oppressed.

It is he who gives bread to the hungry,

  the Lord, who sets prisoners free.

My soul, give praise to the Lord.

Alleluia!

It is the Lord who gives sight to the blind,

  who raises up those who are bowed down.

It is the Lord who loves the just,

  the Lord, who protects the stranger.

My soul, give praise to the Lord.

Alleluia!

The Lord upholds the widow and orphan

  but thwarts the path of the wicked.

The Lord will reign for ever,

  Zion’s God, from age to age.

My soul, give praise to the Lord.

Alleluia!

 

Second Reading – 1 Timothy 6:11-16 ©

Do All that You Have Been Told, Until the Appearing of the Lord

As a man dedicated to God, you must aim to be saintly and religious, filled with faith and love, patient and gentle. Fight the good fight of the faith and win for yourself the eternal life to which you were called when you made your profession and spoke up for the truth in front of many witnesses. Now, before God the source of all life and before Christ, who spoke up as a witness for the truth in front of Pontius Pilate, I put to you the duty of doing all that you have been told, with no faults or failures, until the Appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who at the due time will be revealed by God, the blessed and only Ruler of all, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, who alone is immortal, whose home is in inaccessible light, whom no man has seen and no man is able to see: to him be honour and everlasting power. Amen.

 

Gospel Acclamation – John 10:27

Alleluia, alleluia!

The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice, says the Lord, I know them and they follow me.

Alleluia!

 

Alternative Acclamation – 2 Corinthians 8:9

Alleluia, alleluia!

Jesus Christ was rich, but he became poor for your sake, to make you rich out of his poverty.

Alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Luke 16:19 - 31 ©

Dives and Lazarus

Jesus said to the Pharisees, ‘There was a rich man who used to dress in purple and fine linen and feast magnificently every day. And at his gate there lay a poor man called Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even came and licked his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried.

  ‘In his torment in Hades he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off with Lazarus in his bosom. So he cried out, “Father Abraham, pity me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames.” “My son,” Abraham replied “remember that during your life good things came your way, just as bad things came the way of Lazarus. Now he is being comforted here while you are in agony. But that is not all: between us and you a great gulf has been fixed, to stop anyone, if he wanted to, crossing from our side to yours, and to stop any crossing from your side to ours.”

  ‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them..” “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”’

 

A Homily – The Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

A Homily – The Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

First Reading - Amos 8:4-7 ©

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 112(113):1-2, 4-8 ©

Second Reading – 1 Timothy 2:1-8 ©

Gospel Acclamation – Acts 16:14

Alternative Acclamation – 2 Corinthians 8:9

The Gospel According to Luke 16:1 - 13 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

God does not keep a tally of our good and bad deeds, God does not set us on a scale to weigh the one against the other in order to determine if we are worthy to continue in life.

God loves us as a parent loves a child; the creator of the universe has a plan for our salvation and it includes the good and the bad alike.

Be mindful:

The divine spirit knows what we have done and why we have done it, God knows all of our intentions and the full range of consequence that applies to each of our actions.

God knows whether we gave to the needy or stole from them, hoarded food or fed the hungry, God knows if we fomented violence among our neighbors, and God knows if you led a humble life as a servant of justice and mercy

God knows what we say in our heart of hearts, how we deceive ourselves and justify our deceit. God knows because the divine spirit called us into being, we dwell within the godhead and are sustained by it.

God is not—not present in any space; the divine spirit is coterminous with our own.

Know this:

The creator of the universe does not intervene in the lives of individuals, nor in the course of human history. God desires that we do good and refrain from evil, but God made the whole of creation free, and us in it…free to choose one path or the other.

All of the evil we commit, including the evil consequences of our evil actions…none of it disturbs the fundamental goodness of the godhead. The entire sum of evil and sin in the universe, all of it, from the beginning to the end of time, is necessarily finite, and as such it is infinitely less than the infinite good ness of the loving God. God has promised to resolve it, and God has the perfect ability to do so.

We experience evil here on earth, both passively and actively, but we carry none of it with us into eternity…Augustine was right to equate evil with nothing.

It is wise to praise the creator; it is good to be thankful for existence itself, but do not look to God for favor in this world, look to your brothers and sisters, to your friends and family, seek it from the stranger and give it in return.

Understand this.

God wants everyone to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth…this is the heart of the gospel. God desires the salvation of all people and has laid aa plan into the foundation of the universe to make it happen.

Our faith is in God, and God’s intention towards creation, that faith is the basis of our hopes, and by those hopes we have the blueprint for a just society.

Be mindful!

God will not intervene on your behalf, either to help you or hinder you but God does see you and hear you, God feels you and God is with you.

Know this!

Jesus is not a lord, though he was rich in spiritual gifts, which he shared with many; he shared his gifts with all whom he encountered, and in the sharing those gifts he became even more resplendent.

There was no poverty, lack or want in Jesus…we had a true friend.

It is your task to find your path through the world, and this world that have been born into is a dangerous and capricious place…you must find your path, take the good with bad, take the bad with good…you have no other choice.

You may steer your own vessel, but you do not control the storm, the wind, the rain, the waves, or the current. You have little say in the choices that other people make, the consequences of which may buffet and beat and batter you…therefore, b e loving, merciful, and just; strive to possess these qualities regardless of how you fail, and you will fail time and time again, but regardless of your failings rest assured that you remain the subject of God’s love. Listen to the divine spirit when it calls on you to love what is good and to avoid what is evil.

Be kind to people and develop friendships, we cannot go through life without them.

We need each other, we are communal beings, our relationships are what truly matter; they matter more than wealth, or power, or prestige. The world is full of calamities; we will not survive them without our friends.

First Reading - Amos 8:4-7 ©

I Will Never Forget your Deeds, you who Trample on the Needy

isten to this, you who trample on the needy and try to suppress the poor people of the country, you who say, ‘When will New Moon be over  so that we can sell our corn, and sabbath, so that we can market our wheat?

Then by lowering the bushel, raising the shekel, by swindling and tampering with the scales,

we can buy up the poor for money, and the needy for a pair of sandals, and get a price even for the sweepings of the wheat.’

The Lord swears it by the pride of Jacob, ‘Never will I forget a single thing you have done.’

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 112(113):1-2, 4-8 ©

Praise the Lord, who raises the poor.

Praise, O servants of the Lord,

  praise the name of the Lord!

May the name of the Lord be blessed

  both now and for evermore!

Praise the Lord, who raises the poor.

High above all nations is the Lord,

  above the heavens his glory.

Who is like the Lord, our God,

  who has risen on high to his throne

yet stoops from the heights to look down,

  to look down upon heaven and earth?

Praise the Lord, who raises the poor.

From the dust he lifts up the lowly,

  from the dungheap he raises the poor

to set him in the company of princes,

  yes, with the princes of his people.

Praise the Lord, who raises the poor.

Alleluia!

 

Second Reading – 1 Timothy 2:1-8 ©

Pray for Everyone to God, Who Wants Everyone to be Saved

My advice is that, first of all, there should be prayers offered for everyone – petitions, intercessions and thanksgiving – and especially for kings and others in authority, so that we may be able to live religious and reverent lives in peace and quiet. To do this is right, and will please God our saviour: he wants everyone to be saved and reach full knowledge of the truth. For there is only one God, and there is only one mediator between God and mankind, himself a man, Christ Jesus, who sacrificed himself as a ransom for them all. He is the evidence of this, sent at the appointed time, and I have been named a herald and apostle of it and – I am telling the truth and no lie – a teacher of the faith and the truth to the pagans.

In every place, then, I want the men to lift their hands up reverently in prayer, with no anger or argument.

 

Gospel Acclamation – Acts 16:14

Alleluia, alleluia!

Open our heart, O Lord, to accept the words of your Son.

Alleluia!

 

Alternative Acclamation – 2 Corinthians 8:9

Alleluia, alleluia!

Jesus Christ was rich, but he became poor for your sake, to make you rich out of his poverty.

Alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Luke 16:1 - 13 ©

You Cannot Be the Slave of Both God and Money

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘There was a rich man and he had a steward denounced to him for being wasteful with his property. He called for the man and said, “What is this I hear about you? Draw me up an account of your stewardship because you are not to be my steward any longer.” Then the steward said to himself, “Now that my master is taking the stewardship from me, what am I to do? Dig? I am not strong enough. Go begging? I should be too ashamed. Ah, I know what I will do to make sure that when I am dismissed from office there will be some to welcome me into their homes.”

Then he called his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, “How much do you owe my master?” “One hundred measures of oil” was the reply. The steward said, “Here, take your bond; sit down straight away and write fifty.” To another he said, “And you, sir, how much do you owe?” “One hundred measures of wheat” was the reply. The steward said, “Here, take your bond and write eighty.”

‘The master praised the dishonest steward for his astuteness. For the children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind than are the children of light.

‘And so I tell you this: use money, tainted as it is, to win you friends, and thus make sure that when it fails you, they will welcome you into the tents of eternity. The man who can be trusted in little things can be trusted in great; the man who is dishonest in little things will be dishonest in great. If then you cannot be trusted with money, that tainted thing, who will trust you with genuine riches? And if you cannot be trusted with what is not yours, who will give you what is your very own?

‘No servant can be the slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.’

 

A Homily – The Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)