October 2017

Thirtieth Sunday (“A”) – October 29, 2017

From the Pastor /

Moses recognized the tendency of some people to forget their own origins and to protect their newly gained prosperity. He reminds the people that they were a refugee people themselves and slaves in Egypt. As God had responded to their cries of distress, so God will continue to hear the cry of those who are poor and punish those who oppress them. The prophets remind the people again and again of the demands of the Law: that the love of God and neighbor are at the heart of all their religious observances, and that God has chosen Israel to be a light to the nations, so that the witness of their lives would help the whole of humanity to come to the knowledge of God’s saving love. St. Paul commands the Thessalonian community for the way in which they have faithfully followed the Gospel life he had taught them. They have done this so well that they have become an example for everyone, not only the neighboring communities. This, surely, is the way that evangelisation is meant to work, by the witness of transformed lives. The secret lies in the greatest commandment of the Law as spelt out by Jesus: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind”; and “You must love your neighbor as yourself.”

When the Christian community responds with prayer and practical help to the crises of our times, then it will truly be a light for all nations to see. We will be teaching the Gospel by the example of our lives and building the new creation.

Thirtieth Sunday (“A”) – October 29, 2017 Read More »

Twenty-Ninth Sunday (“A”) – October 22, 2017

From the Pastor /

Jesus lived the whole life in an occupied country. The Romans were probably not such an immediate presence in Galilee, leaving its control to their puppet king Herod Antipas, but their presence in Jerusalem was much more evident, their garrison being attached to the Temple Mount, much to the chagrin of the Jews. The question put to Jesus by the Pharisees, who were no lovers of the Romans, was devious. If Jesus says the Roman taxes should be paid, He can be accused of being traitor to His country. If they should not be paid, He can be accused of being a rebel and handed over to the Roman authorities.

Our identity is intimately bound up with God. The first element in our identity is being male and female. God hands over to us the stewardship of the world and asks us to carry out that stewardship as creatively as God has demonstrated himself. God is creator and sustainer, God is healer and inspirer. God loves this world and loves us. Our challenge is to discover whether we can love in the same way as God loves.

Twenty-Ninth Sunday (“A”) – October 22, 2017 Read More »

Twenty Sixth Sunday (“A”) – October 1, 2017

Frackville, From the Pastor /

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is speaking to the chief priests and the elders of the people. His words are somewhat alarming and challenging, especially to anyone who claims religious faith. Jesus gives them a scenario and leaves them to find the appropriate answers. Both sons in today’s parable answer their father: one chooses not to tell the truth, saying he will go to work, and in fact does not; while the other son tells the truth, that he doesn’t want to go, but afterwords changes his mind, and goes and does the work that his father has asked of him. Jesus goes on to tell people that when John the Baptist came among them, as an example and model of “true righteousness”, they, the people of religion and holy talk, did not believe him. At the same time, however, the tax collectors and the prostitutes were making their way into the kingdom of God before them. It is not difficult to imagine the reaction to Jesus’ words among these people. It surely would not be difficult, too, for us to try to imagine our reaction to the words of Jesus if they were addressed to us. Do we consider ourselves to be respectable religious people, or do we know ourselves to be sinners, just as much as “the tax collectors and prostitutes” of whom Jesus speaks? Everything depends on how we see ourselves, and on how we see and judge others.

In our parishes Sunday after Sunday we can allow ourselves to be fooled into thinking that we are the good and holy people, while the many poor souls who never darken the door of a church are the castaways of God, outside God’s love. This is exactly what Jesus was dealing with in His own day. We can learn from this Gospel passage and put away any superciliousness that may accompany us on our way to church. There is no reason for us to become self-righteousness with regard to our religion and our God. St. Paul tells us that, even though Jesus was in the form of God, He emptied himself. We are to do the same, empty ourselves and allow God to fill us. In so doing, we will not be shocked that tax collectors and prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God before us; rather we will rejoice.

Twenty Sixth Sunday (“A”) – October 1, 2017 Read More »