The Twenty-Eighth Week of Ordinary Time
In the Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time we hear
the story from Matthew about the King who gave a
banquet for his son and invited many guests. It is a powerful story
about rejecting Jesus' own invitation and about God's universal invitation
to a new group of "chosen" people.
Thursday
is the Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, virgin
and doctor of the Church. Saturday is the Memorial of Saint
Ignatius of Antioch, bishop and martyr.
This
week we end our look at the Letter to the Galatians and begin two weeks of Paul's Letter to the Ephesians.
The letters emphasize the universal church and the unity of this church
that brings together Gentiles and Jews.
In Luke's Gospel this week, Jesus seems frustrated that
some of the people won't listen to him. “This generation is
an evil generation." When a Pharisee invited Jesus for dinner,
the fellow was shocked that Jesus didn't do the required ritual washing
of his hands. Jesus uses this as an opportunity to talk about real
purity. He recommends they give money to the poor. But as Jesus continues
to challenge the Pharisees, they hatch a plot to get rid of him. Jesus
tells his disciples to beware of the "leaven" or "hypocrisy"
of the Pharisees. Jesus wants us to acknowledge him, in the face of
persecution.
On
the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time we see Matthew's
gospel tell us of the Pharisee plot to set a trap for Jesus.
This time they use politics to see if he will offend either Rome or
the people. Should they pay Rome's census tax? Jesus pushes the challenge
back to them: "Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to
God what belongs to God." What is it they must repay to God that
is God's? Their trust in Jesus, God's gift to them. |
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Daily
Prayer This Week
On
Sunday we hear of the King who invited many to his son's banquet but the
invitation was rejected. This might be a good place for us to begin our prayers this week, pondering the invitation
from Jesus in our lives.
Whether
or not we have a clear picture of where we are being called by Jesus,
we can feel the invitation, the call to our hearts, in the silence.
We can take just a few minutes each morning as we awaken to sit by the
side of the bed and open our hands and hearts and pray, "Jesus,
in this quiet moment, I feel my heart being drawn to you. Help me to
see where you are calling me this day."
We
can repeat this small prayer on our way to work, taking our children to
school and walking to the store. "I know you are in my heart,
Jesus. I know you are calling me this day, but my heart is not always
open to listen. Help me to answer your call today. At the end of this
day, help me to be joyful in answering your call through those in my
life."
So
many of the stories this week are clashes between Jesus and the Pharisees.
We can ask ourselves:
Where in my life do I worry more about appearances than I worry about the poor
who are in front of me? Who are "the poor" in my life? Who
are the outcasts, the unpopular or the rejected people I see each day?
How can I minister to those people and be a leaven in this world?
At
the end of each day this week, we can be grateful for the many opportunities
we were given to follow along with Jesus. We can ask the Holy Spirit
to help us see the invitation in our lives every day and ask for the
clarity to recognize "the poor." When I see the poor, the
outcasts, those whose health or habits make them unappealing, do I love
them the way Jesus would? Can I look at the brusque and rude people
in my life as people Jesus would have gravitated toward, sensing how
much they need love? |
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