DAILY- HOMILY

October 6, 2014

Monday 27th Week in Ordinary Time

[St. Bruno]

Gal 1: 6-12 / Ps 111: 1b-2, 7-8, 9 and 10c / Lk 10: 25-37 

Reading: Gal 1: 6-12

I am surprised at how quickly you have abandoned God who called you according to the grace of Christ, and have gone to another gospel. Indeed, there is no other gospel, but some people who are sowing confusion among you want to turn the Gospel of Christ upside down. But even if we ourselves were giving you another gospel different from the one we preached to you, or if it were an angel from heaven, I would say: let God's curse be on him! As I have said I now say again: if anyone preaches the Gospel in a way other than you received it, fire that one. Are we to please humans or obey God? Do you think that I try to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, that the Gospel we preached to you is not a human message, nor did I receive it from anyone, I was not taught of it but it came to me as a revelation from Christ Jesus.

Gospel: Luke 10: 25-37

Then a teacher of the Law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, "Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?" Jesus replied, "What is written in the Scripture? How do you understand it?" The man answered, "It is written: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus replied, "What a good answer! Do this and you shall live." The man wanted to keep up appearances, so he replied, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus then said, "There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, too, was going that way, and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him and treated his wounds with oil and wine and wrapped them with bandages. Then he put him on his own mount and brought him to an inn where he took care of him.  The next day he had to set off, but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper and told him: 'Take care of him and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I come back.'" Jesus then asked, "Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" The teacher of the Law answered, "The one who had mercy on him." And Jesus said, "Go then and do the same."

Reflection:

     Jesus asked, "Which of these three made himself neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" So how do I make myself a neighbor to others?

     During the wake and burial of my mother, my sisters and I were surprised with the presence of many persons whom we did not know. Listening to their stories, we came to know that these were the persons who were helped by our mother. They came not only to condole with us but also to say thank you for the good done to them by our mother.  She was a neighbor to them! Being a neighbor is to be kind, to care, to respect, to share, to listen, maybe to do little things for others but done because of LOVE. Your neighbor need not be beside you. They can come from far away, no relations to you, but when you do something good out of love for them, this makes a difference in their lives. Jesus told the teacher of the law to go and do the same - to have compassion on other people. This is the same command given to us today in this very individualistic and materialistic world where many just think of their own lives. Me first! Gone are the days when our neighbors can be three blocks away from us and yet they are cared for.

     How are we treating the persons around us? Let us remember that we can only enter heaven through them and with them. Our love shown in works of mercy is our passport to the Kingdom of God.

Prayer Requests:

We pray ...

... for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn

... for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary

... for families who are in need of healing

... for world peace and reconciliation especially in war-torn areas

... for wisdom, perseverance and clarity of mind as they prepare and take their exams:

     * Karen Tuala who takes the bar exams on the four (4) consecutive weekends of October

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most. 

Have a good day!

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