Tuesday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1: Philippians 2:5-11
Brothers and sisters:
Have among yourselves the same attitude
that is also yours in Christ Jesus,
Who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and, found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 22:26b-27, 28-30ab, 30e, 31-32
R. (26a) I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.
I will fulfill my vows before those who fear him.
The lowly shall eat their fill;
they who seek the LORD shall praise him:
“May your hearts be ever merry!”
R. I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.
All the ends of the earth
shall remember and turn to the LORD;
All the families of the nations
shall bow down before him.
R. I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.
For dominion is the LORD’s,
and he rules the nations.
To him alone shall bow down
all who sleep in the earth.
R. I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.
To him my soul shall live;
my descendants shall serve him.
Let the coming generation be told of the LORD
that they may proclaim to a people yet to be born
the justice he has shown.
R. I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.
Alleluia: Matthew 11:28
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Luke 14:15-24
One of those at table with Jesus said to him,
“Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God.”
He replied to him,
“A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many.
When the time for the dinner came,
he dispatched his servant to say to those invited,
‘Come, everything is now ready.’
But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves.
The first said to him,
‘I have purchased a field and must go to examine it;
I ask you, consider me excused.’
And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen
and am on my way to evaluate them;
I ask you, consider me excused.’
And another said, ‘I have just married a woman,
and therefore I cannot come.’
The servant went and reported this to his master.
Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant,
‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town
and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
The servant reported, ‘Sir, your orders have been carried out
and still there is room.’
The master then ordered the servant,
‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows
and make people come in that my home may be filled.
For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.’”
Meditation
Beloved in the Lord, during this month of remembrance of the faithful departed and these final weeks of the liturgical year, the Church invites us to reflect on our lives from the perspective of eternity. In the Gospel, Jesus presents us with God’s universal call to salvation. God calls people every day, but each day they find reasons that seem valid to them to postpone their response to His call.
The Right Time
The right time to respond to God’s call is now. We must accept His invitation immediately, go out to meet Him, and truly encounter Him by offering Him our lives. God invites us and will never grow tired of inviting us. The problem is that our time on earth to serve, love, and follow Christ is limited.
The Excuses
We will always find excuses that seem valid to us for not saying “yes” to God immediately, and for not committing ourselves to serving Him right now: work, projects, marriage, and children. All these aspects of our lives are important, and God is not asking us to abandon them, but to serve Him through them and alongside them.
There Is No Conflict
Serving God in His Church and in our community, and taking our share of responsibility, does not require us to abandon everything else we have to do. The guests invited to the banquet could have accepted the invitation and attended to their fields later. Likewise, the man who had just got married could have attended with his wife. Listening to their excuses, one would think that accepting God’s invitation was incompatible with their professional activities, married life, or business affairs.
Putting Things in Their Proper Perspective
Without a relationship with God, everything we build is fragile. It is in God that our lives, projects, and relationships find a firm foundation, like a house built on rock. Why should I abandon my spiritual life on the pretext that I am pursuing a project or a job? God comes first, and everything else comes afterwards. And when my life comes to an end, what will truly matter? Will it not be the love I have received from God and shared with the world? How can I give what I have not received, when I have spent my time making excuses instead of responding to the Lord’s call?
God First
The Kingdom of God will be given to those who recognise their need for it. Nothing can truly satisfy our hearts and fulfil us as much as communion with God. Let us not postpone our response to His invitation. Let us hurry to His banquet and bring our families, children, and spouses along with us. Let us bring our work and projects there too. God takes nothing away from us except what prevents us from being truly happy, and He gives us everything.
Let Us Pray
Lord, grant us the grace to respond to Your call fully and without delay. May we know how to say yes to Your grace every day.
Intercession
We pray to You, Lord, for Christian couples, that they may nurture their relationship with You and keep the flame of Your love burning brightly in their hearts.
Mother Mary, pray for us.
Spiritual Exercise
Perform an act of service in our parish or in the group to which we belong.
Flora KAMTA, (Community of the Disciples of the Living Christ)
