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HOMILIES
Dear Audience,For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!
Sixteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)
1473
19
0First Reading
A reading from the Book of Genesis (18:1-10a)
The Lord appeared to Abraham by the terebinth of Mamre, as he sat in the entrance of his tent, while the day was growing hot. Looking up, Abraham saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them; and bowing to the ground, he said: "Sir, if I may ask you this favor, please do not go on past your servant. Let some water be brought, that you may bathe your feet, and then rest yourselves under the tree. Now that you have come this close to your servant, let me bring you a little food, that you may refresh yourselves; and afterward you may go on your way." The men replied, "Very well, do as you have said."
Abraham hastened into the tent and told Sarah, "Quick, three measures of fine flour! Knead it and make rolls." He ran to the herd, picked out a tender, choice steer, and gave it to a servant, who quickly prepared it. Then Abraham got some curds and milk, as well as the steer that had been prepared, and set these before the three men; and he waited on them under the tree while they ate.
They asked Abraham, "Where is your wife Sarah?" He replied, "There in the tent." One of them said, "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah will then have a son."
(P) The word of the Lord.(R) Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalms of David (15:2-3, 3-4, 5)
(R) He who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.
One who walks blamelessly and does justice; who thinks the truth in his heart and slanders not with his tongue. (R)
Who harms not his fellow man, nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor; by whom the reprobate is despised, while he honors those who fear the LORD. (R)
Who lends not his money at usury and accepts no bribe against the innocent. One who does these things shall never be disturbed. (R)
Second Reading
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Colossians (1:24-28)
Brothers and sisters: Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the church, of which I am a minister in accordance with God's stewardship to me to bring to completion for you the word of God, the mystery hidden from ages and from generations past. But now it has been manifested to his holy ones, to whom God chose to make known the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; it is Christ in you, the hope for glory. It is he whom we proclaim, admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with wisdom, that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
(P) The word of the Lord.(R) Thanks be to God.
Gospel
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (10:38-42)
Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. 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."
(P) The Gospel of the Lord.(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Homily
A father sent his kid to bed and went to watch television in the
living room. Five minutes later the boy calls,
"Dad! Can you bring a glass of water?"
The Dad answered,
"No. You will be fine. You should go back to bed now."
After five minutes the boy called out again,
"Dad! Can you get me a glass of water please?"
The Dad replied,
"No. Go to sleep."
After another five minutes the boy called out again with the same request.
The Dad, very annoyed this time, said,
"No. You are fine. Go to sleep and, if you ask again I'll come up there and
spank you."
The boy immediately said,
"Dad, when you come up here to spank me will you please bring me a glass of water?"
Putting children to bed can be a difficult task for many parents. Tired and weary, some will do anything to get their children to go to sleep. And children will come up with all types of excuses and reasons to stay up late to have their parents beside them until they fall asleep. The boy in the story did just that. He wanted something more than just water. He wanted the presence of his Dad for a little longer.
Today we read one of the simplest gospel stories - the story of Martha and Mary. While Jesus and his disciples were on their way to Jerusalem, the sisters invited Him into their house. Their decision to host Jesus and others, involved a great deal of time and effort on their part. Martha did just that. She wanted to be a good hostess and began to look for ways in which she could make Jesus and the others feel comfortable and happy. But her sister Mary was talking and listening to the Lord. This displeased Martha and she complained to Jesus that Mary was not helping her with the preparations. Jesus gently admonished Martha for being overly anxious and troubled about many things, and said to her that Mary had chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.
Both sisters loved Jesus and both wanted to do their best for Him but they had different temperaments and very different ways of demonstrating their affection and care. Martha showed her love for Jesus through service - cleaning the house, cooking and serving meals. Mary showed her love for Jesus by being with the Lord. The key difference between these two sisters was not that one served and the other just spent her time talking and listening to Jesus but that one had lost her focus on Jesus and the other was paying full attention to Him. Martha had taken her eyes off Jesus. She had lost her perspective of why she was serving Jesus in the first place. No doubt, she wanted to do her best for Jesus but was distracted by her many tasks and all that surrounded her, particularly by her sister's behavior. Her love for Jesus was perhaps a bit devoid of joy.
Our love for God may be expressed in many ways, forms and means and, we can express this love within the church and outside the church. Because we are living in different geographical areas, different circumstances and different surroundings and, each of us has different temperaments, personalities, talents, gifts, abilities and vocations. The only thing necessary for a Christian is to focus on Christ, the source and goal of our faith. Whether it be a few words of praise to God or ten hymns of praise, whether it be one hour of worship or a few hours each week, whether it be an offering of one dollar or one hundred dollars, whether it be giving just one hour of time or countless hours of voluntary service to our community and to those in need, God accepts all offerings in an equal manner.
So no matter what or how we contribute to God's mission or God's work on earth, we should never lose our focus on Christ who taught us to love our God with all our heart, with all strength, with all our soul and with our mind. We must love and serve God for His glory and for His name's sake. However, we must remember that while we show our love for God through our regular acts of service and devotion to Him and other ways, listening to God's Word and praying is even more important. Even though our desire to serve our Lord is valuable and important, knowing God and being in His presence need to take priority in our life.
Oftentimes a little more time in His presence is all we need, as Saint Paul writes in his letter to the Colossians (1:28) which we read today, "It is he whom we proclaim, admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with wisdom, that we may present everyone perfect in Christ."
(P) Amen.God Bless You!
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