Oct. 3, 2010 — Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4; Psalm 95; 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14; Luke 17:5-10 Sometimes the Gospel message comes as a consolation. Sometimes it comes as a challenge. Today’s reading from Luke 17 presents us with the latter. After all, when we’ve finished a hard day at work, the […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – Sept. 26, 2010
Sept. 26, 2010 —Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Amos 6:1, 4-7; Psalm 146; 1 Timothy 6:11-16; Luke 16:19-31 What kind of steward are you? The Gospel reading from Luke 16 really challenges us. Oh, we may try to get around it by maintaining that we aren’t stewards, that we’ve never committed ourselves to the practice […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – Sept. 19, 2010
Sept. 19, 2010 —Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time Amos 8:4-7; Psalm 113; 1 Timothy 2:1-8; Luke 16:1-13 or 16:10-13 Summary. Jesus tells a parable about a man who mismanages his employer’s property and who alters the books so he’ll be supported after his firing. Jesus points out that worldly people are more successful at dishonest […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – Sept. 12, 2010
Sept. 12, 2010 — Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14; Psalm 51; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-32 or 15:1-10 Summary: The parable of the Prodigal Son illustrates God’s loving and generous character. The father gave to the younger son, who wasted what he had received, but then forgave him and welcomed him home. […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – Sept. 5, 2010
Sept. 5, 2010 — Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time Wisdom 9:13-18; Psalm 90; Philemon 9-10, 12-17; Luke 14:25-33 The reading from Wisdom 9 points out, “Who can know God’s counsel, or who can conceive what the Lord intends?” By our own mental processes, we have no way to figure out how God is working in […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – August 29, 2010
August 29, 2010 — Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29; Psalm 68; Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24; Luke 14:1, 7-14 There is one theme running through the readings today, that of humility. Humility has been defined as seeing yourself as God sees you. It is knowing who you really are. Humility is accepting the […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – August 22, 2010
August 22, 2010 — Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time Isaiah 66:18-21; Psalm 117; Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13; Luke 13:22-30 You’ve had the experience, haven’t you, of coming into a room full of strangers, all of whom seem to already know each other? Most people feel dismay as they look around, trying to figure out where they […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – August 15, 2010
Aug. 15, 2010 – Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Vigil Mass: 1 Samuel 15:3-4, 15-16; 16:1-2; Psalm 132; 1 Corinthians 15:54-57; Luke 11:27-28 Mass during the Day: Revelation 11:19; 12:1-6, 10; Psalm 45; 1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56 The Blessed Virgin Mary, our bishops tell us, is not only the model […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – August 8, 2010
August 8, 2010 —Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Wisdom 18:6-9; Psalm 33; Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 or 11:1-2, 8-12; Luke 12:32-48 or 12:35-40 Once again Jesus shocked his hearers, and he continues to shock us today: “Sell your belongings and give alms.” That sounds reckless and goes against all we have heard about financial planning. But […]
Stewardship Reflections on Lectionary Readings – August 1, 2010
August 1, 2010 — Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23; Psalm 90; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21 How could Jesus say what’s reported in the reading from chapter 12 of St. Luke’s Gospel? It sounds like he’s attacking a major foundation of society. “Though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist […]
