Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

(Galatians 5:1-6; Luke 11:37-41)

In the homes of pious Mexican families, an altar is often present.  It will typically have images of Jesus and Mary along with pictures of deceased loved ones.  The altar is a way of extending the life of prayer in church to the home.  In Jesus’ time Pharisees would wash before meals for a similar reason.  Washing oneself before eating imitates the ablutions of animals before being sacrificed in the Temple.  It reminds house members and guests of their offering of self to God.  For good reason, then, the Pharisee in today’s gospel is surprised when Jesus does not wash as he goes to eat.

Because the washing is not required in the Law, Jesus is not bound to do it.  However, he uses the look of surprise on the Pharisee’s face to give a lesson on spiritual cleanliness.  He says that inner purification through almsgiving forgives more sin than washing of hands and feet.  He wants his disciples to practice charity, not to worry about popular ritualistic practices.

This doesn’t mean that we should go to church with dirty hands unless, perhaps, it was in helping a homeless person that we dirtied them.  In any case, we should try to keep in mind the needs of others and much as our own needs.

Monday, October 12, 2026

 

Monday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

(Galatians 4:22-24.26-27.32-5:1; Luke 11:29-32)

What is the freedom that St. Paul writes of in today’s first reading?  Is it merely the absence of shackles?  Paul has something greater in mind than that since he says that Christ has freed us.  The freedom here is to be the ability to fulfill the Christian destiny of eternal life.  Christ won the possibility of achieving it by his incarnation and paschal experience.  Nevertheless, humans must choose to run the course of freedom -- which is to say living justly -- every day. 

Some say that Christians are not free if out of necessity they live justly.  These people, however, miss the point.  When Christians live justly, they know that they will achieve what is most valuable in life.  They are at least as free as the super gymnast who willingly trains six hours a day so that she can win a medal at the Olympics.

Paul mentions the possibility of slipping back into slavery.  We could do this by abandoning the challenge of righteous living.  If we slack off on our efforts to follow Christ, we will not fulfill our destiny.  We will lose the possibility of eternal life like the athlete who suspends training forfeits her chance for a medal.  But the task is not as hard as it sometimes feels.  Christ remains with us to help.

Sunday, October 11, 2026

TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

(Isaiah 25:6-10; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Matthew 22:1-14)

We see another parable in today's Gospel. Perhaps it's better to say we see two parables. The first is the story of the banquet a king held for his son's wedding. The second takes place during the banquet when a man arrives without a wedding garment. It seems separate from the main story because it has a different purpose. Before we look closely at these stories, let's review our knowledge of parables.

The word parable means comparison. To understand something unknown, the parable teller compares it to something well known. For example, to discover the greatness of the Kingdom of God, Jesus says it is like a pearl of great price. Parables can be as short as a phrase or even a word or as long as the story of the prodigal son. Jesus was a genius at telling parables, whether short or long. His parables captured people's attention. But more importantly, they moved people to reconsider their approach to life. Take the parable of the Good Samaritan. A teacher of the Law asks Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” Then Jesus tells the parable of the Samaritan who saved the life of the man attacked by robbers. Jesus asks the teacher who the man's neighbor was. The teacher, who undoubtedly hated Samaritans, had to admit that the neighbor was a member of the hated people. Upon hearing this parable, we must rethink our approach to the peoples we resent.

In today's Gospel, the parable of the king's banquet is a very similar allegory to last Sunday's parable. The king is God. The wedding banquet is the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven where Jesus accepts the Church as his bride. The first servants are the prophets, and the second are the apostles. The invited guests are the Jews who refuse to accept Jesus as God’s Messiah. Finally, the people on the roads are the non-Jews, the Gentiles, who accept Jesus and are baptized. The purpose of the parable is to say that for the most part, it will be only the Gentiles, and not the Jews, who will enjoy the banquet of the Kingdom.

The second parable tells of what happens during the banquet. The man who enters the banquet without wedding clothes is thrown out. “That’s not fair,” we might think. “He was probably so poor he didn’t have a wedding garment.” However, the excuse is invalid because wedding clothes were readily available. The wedding garment represents the good works that are required to have a place at the banquet in heaven. Even if a person is baptized, a place at the heavenly banquet is not guaranteed. They must feed the hungry and visit the sick, et cetera to enjoy eternal life.

Those who want to watch football or soap operas seven nights a week should pay attention to this parable. Yes, rest and recreation are necessary for our natural life. However, it is also necessary to help those in need to have eternal life. Yes, marriage is necessary to satisfy our carnal desires. However, it is also necessary for married couples to support each other emotionally and spiritually. Likewise, both must cooperate in raising their children.

Life is complex. We often want to navigate it by doing what most people do. Unfortunately, most people do what is comfortable and convenient, not what has eternal value. Jesus told parables to shake us out of this complacency. They show us God's ways that lead us to the heavenly banquet. They are not as difficult to live as we think, because we have Jesus as our guide's companion.

Friday, October 9, 2026

 

Friday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

(Galatians 3:7-14; Luke 11:15-26)

In today’s first reading St. Paul warns the Galatians about “works of the Law.”  He is not talking about good deeds done to benefit others.  Rather he has in mind the physical rites of Judaism like circumcision and continual ablutions.  He says that these are unnecessary and even counterproductive in light of Christ.  What saves people – he implores -- is faith.  He will expand that remedy later in the letter -- “faith working through love.”

In the gospel Jesus preaches along the same line. He tells the crowd gathered as he drove out a demon the story of a similar expulsion.  He says that when an evil spirit is driven out, it looks for an opportunity to reenter the poor soul along with companions.  When the victim tidies up his soul with physical trappings but no works of charity for God’s sake, the demons attack.  They march in like locusts in a wheat field to cause more harm than before.

Physical trappings for us may be wearing a rosary around our necks and continual genuflections in front of the altar.  These actions are not bad in themselves, but they lack the power to save.  Only as much as they foster “faith working through love” can they lead us to God’s Kingdom.

Thursday, October 8, 2026

 

Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

(Galatians 3:1-5; Luke 11:5-13)

People often wonder why God does not seem to answer their prayers.  After all, Jesus promises in today’s gospel that the one who asks, will receive.  To illustrate what he means, he adds that one has only to knock, and the door will be opened to her.

Jesus has also just told a parable indicating that the prayer must be persistent.  The neighbor asking bread is not assisted until he repeatedly makes the request.  Persistence indicates the person’s need that a request be granted.  More importantly, it shows the faith of the petitioner in the goodwill of the one asked.

Persistence is not always required.  God often grants a request that is sincerely made.  We should not hesitate to ask for anything that is truly beneficial and needed.  As Jesus indicates, our Father in heaven is anxious to help us.