Tag: Psalm 25

Posted on

First Sunday of Lent

advertisement for lent. crown of thorns on purple background

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneIn | Google Podcasts

Mass Readings

First Reading: Genesis 9:8-15
Responsorial: Psalm 25:4-9
Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:18-22
Gospel: Mark 1:12-15

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022121.cfm
https://www.deaconrudysnotes.org/

Today on deacon rudy’s notes, we’re going to talk about our Lenten journey in light of the pandemic. I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Thank you for joining me today as we discuss this first Sunday in Lent.

It’s hard to believe we already in Lent. In some ways, it feels like we’ve spent the last year in Lent! Between the lockdowns, isolation, social distancing, and the supply shortages, and adverse weather, I think many people feel like they’ve already given up so much this year. What more could we possibly give up? Now that’s an interesting question!

It’s almost like the great flood described in Genesis. There’s this feeling of frustration – maybe call it cabin fever. There’s also this feeling of helplessness – especially if you’re in the hospital or someone you know is in the hospital. How many people have to be in the hospital without their family and friends?

Sadly, I’ve read stories in the news about people who are really struggling emotionally right now. And that’s not so difficult to understand, right?

But my brothers and sisters, there is hope for a new tomorrow. That’s what our first reading from Genesis is all about! God tells Noah and the survivors that the world has been made new! Our second reading from First Peter reminds us that Jesus rose from the dead! Jesus overcame hopelessness and despair! And in our Gospel, Jesus emerged from isolation in the desert and began to proclaim the Kingdom of God asking people to repent and to believe.

In some ways, many of our families and friends find themselves in a desert of sorts. That’s how isolation can feel. But rather than give in to hopelessness, we must put our faith in Christ Jesus. We need to make sure we don’t wallow in the sadness or self-pity. This is a temporary crisis! Our hope is in Christ alone!

As disciples of Christ Jesus, we need to be firmly planted in our faith. We’ve repented and believed. Now as disciples, we can reach out to our families and friends through all the wonderful technology at our disposal. We need to check-in with them. We need to listen. We need to let people vent. Our presence can radiate the peace of Jesus Christ.

But there’s a benefit for us too. You see, if we occupy ourselves with checking on our family, friends and neighbors, then we have less time to focus on negative thoughts. Keeping tabs on the people we know and love is good for them and good for us! It’s a win-win!

My brothers and sisters, we can use this Lenten season to renew ourselves and our relationship with God by not focusing on ourselves! Instead, we focus on the needs of other people. Maybe instead of spending many hours on the news or social media or TV or streaming entertainment, we could use some of that time to call our family, friends and neighbors?

Now that’s a great Lenten devotion! We can intentionally add checking in with people and all it costs us is time. By “intentionally” I mean we should have plan. Maybe create a list or a spreadsheet of names and cycle through the names a few at a time each day of the week. This helps us use technology to break up the feeling of isolation and remind ourselves that we are still very much a community! That’s a subtle we can remind people that we are all citizens of the Kingdom of God!

As we begin this Lenten season, let’s not look back and focus on the great flood of the pandemic that already happened. Instead, let’s look forward to Easter – the sun rising over this dark valley!

Homework! As we begin this Lenten season, I invite you to reflect on the following two questions.
First, instead of giving something up, make a plan to reach out to a couple of your family, friends and neighbors several days every week.
Second, in addition to staying connected with other people, set aside a few minutes every day to pray or read the Bible or make a small donation to your parish, a Christian charity or some other worthy cause that promotes the common good?

I think doing our homework will help refocus us away from the negatives of the pandemic and refocus us on the great joy of Easter. Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples! May almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!

You’re listening to deacon rudy’s notes. Thank you for joining me today. Our theme music was composed by Silent Partner. You can find all sorts of helpful information on the website at www.deaconrudysnotes.org. I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Join me again next weekend as we break open the Word. Peace!

Image Credit: Lent. Artist Unknown. PNG.

Bibliography/Suggested Readings:
1. Healy, Mary. The Gospel of Mark. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2008. Kindle.
2. Keating, Daniel. First and Second Peter, Jude. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2011. Kindle.

Catechism References http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm:
1. The Covenant with Noah: 56-58, 71
2. Typology: 128-30, 1094
3. Jesus and angels: 333
4. Jesus’ temptations: 394, 538-40, 2119
5. Suffering for the sake of Christ: 520, 556, 1435, 1967
6. Proclamation of the kingdom: 543-46
7. Christ’s sacrifice for sin: 613-15
8. Christ’s descent to hell: 632-35
9. Noah’s Ark prefigures the Church and baptism: 845, 1094, 1219
10. Covenant and sacraments (especially baptism): 1116, 1129, 1222
11. Baptism and its effects: 1214-22, 1257-74
12. God saves through baptism: 1257, 1811
13. “Lead us not into temptation:” 2846-2949

First Sunday of Lent https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022121.cfm
Lectionary: 23

Reading I
Genesis 9:8-15
God said to Noah and to his sons with him:
“See, I am now establishing my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
and with every living creature that was with you:
all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals
that were with you and came out of the ark.
I will establish my covenant with you,
that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed
by the waters of a flood;
there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.”
God added:
“This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come,
of the covenant between me and you
and every living creature with you:
I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign
of the covenant between me and the earth.
When I bring clouds over the earth,
and the bow appears in the clouds,
I will recall the covenant I have made
between me and you and all living beings,
so that the waters shall never again become a flood
to destroy all mortal beings.”

Responsorial
Psalm 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (cf. 10) Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your love are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Good and upright is the LORD,
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and he teaches the humble his way.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.

Reading 2
1 Peter 3:18-22
Beloved:
Christ suffered for sins once,
the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous,
that he might lead you to God.
Put to death in the flesh,
he was brought to life in the Spirit.
In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison,
who had once been disobedient
while God patiently waited in the days of Noah
during the building of the ark,
in which a few persons, eight in all,
were saved through water.
This prefigured baptism, which saves you now.
It is not a removal of dirt from the body
but an appeal to God for a clear conscience,
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
who has gone into heaven
and is at the right hand of God,
with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.

Verse Before the Gospel
Matthew 4:4b
One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.

Gospel
Mark 1:12-15
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert,
and he remained in the desert for forty days,
tempted by Satan.
He was among wild beasts,
and the angels ministered to him.

After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

Posted on

Sunday of the Word of God

logo for Sunday of the Word of God with Jesus walking with two disciples

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneIn | Google Podcasts

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Mass Readings

First Reading: Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Responsorial: Psalm 25:4-9
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Gospel: Mark 1:14-20

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012421.cfm
https://www.deaconrudysnotes.org/

Thank you for joining me today for another edition of deacon rudy’s notes where every weekend we break open the Word. I’m so happy you’re here!

This Sunday, we celebrate “Sunday of the Word of God.” In September 2019, Pope Francis asked that the third Sunday of Ordinary Time be set aside for the celebration, study, and dissemination of the Word of God. I’ll include a link to the document in the notes for this podcast. It’s a wonderful initiative to encourage all Catholics to become more familiar with Scripture and become more comfortable sharing the Good News with others. Todays’ readings give us some great ideas to reflect on with our families and friends.

Our first reading is from Jonah. I think Jonah reflects our times today, especially in light of the storming of the U.S. Capitol.

Jonah was probably written after the exile. During this time, Israel is more nationalistic and very intolerant and suspicion of their enemies. Jonah is a prophet, and he expects to serve God’s will for God’s people. But what happens? God sends Jonah to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria – to Israel’s enemy. So, God wants Jonah to preach a message of repentance and forgiveness for the enemies of the country. How do you think that message went down?

It didn’t! Jonah was so upset that he tried to escape and hide from God. The passage we read this Sunday shows that in the end, Jonah delivers God’s message to Nineveh. But Jonah did the bare minimum. He only preached the destruction of Nineveh. He says, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed” (Jonah 3:4). Jonah didn’t offer a message of repentance. It was the king of Nineveh who, after hearing Jonah’s message from God, called his people to repent and convert (Jonah 3:4-10). God looked upon Nineveh and was moved by their repentance. So, God spares Nineveh.

Our passage today doesn’t give us Jonah’s reaction, so here’s the rest of the story. Spoiler alert! How do you think Jonah feels about God sparing his enemy? Jonah is ticked off! He is so upset he tells the Lord to take his life. Jonah says, “…Lord, please take my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live” (Jonah 4:3). That’s how upset he was with God. This very short book ends with God asking Jonah if God shouldn’t care about Nineveh and its 120,000 inhabitants and all their animals (Jonah 4:11). Of course, we know God does care about all creation.

One of the ideas that the Book of Jonah points is that while we might be narrow-minded and intolerant of people who are different from us or think differently from us, God’s mercy and love knows no limits. God’s mercy was not exclusively for Israel but was even available to Israel’s enemies.

Isn’t that a message for today? Sometimes we can become almost self-righteous in our points of view that we can’t think of our “enemies” as children of God. But the reality is that God cannot be limited by our politics! Understanding that might thaw frozen hearts and help us reach out to people not as our enemies but recognizing them as our neighbors. Oh sure, we might think of them as our annoying neighbors; but nonetheless, they are our neighbors. Everyone deserves to hear the Good News!

And the task of sharing the Good News is significant. In today’s Gospel, like what we heard last week in John, Jesus calls the first disciples. He calls Andrew and his brother, Simon Peter. A little farther down the coast, Jesus calls James and his brother John. What does he say to Andrew and Simon Peter? He says, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Mark 1:17).

Could God reveal himself to each and every one of us directly? Wouldn’t that be something – maybe like how in Captain Marvel, people can speak directly with the Supreme Intelligence. But that’s fiction. God will never force himself on anyone. So, Jesus asks us as disciples to become fishermen of other people. In other words, to share the Good News. To whom do we share the Good News? Well, as we heard in the first reading where Jonah preached to his pagan-enemies, and even in the second reading where Paul is writing to Gentiles, we are to bring the Good News to everyone regardless of how they voted and regardless of their political point of view.

This Sunday is Sunday of the Word of God, and our goal is to implement the prayer we hear in today’s Psalm: Teach me your ways, O Lord. Maybe that’s the only thing that can help us overcome the violence we saw at the capitol.

The bishops of the United States have a new website with some great resources to celebrate the Sunday of the Word of God. The website is catholic.bible. I’ll include all the links in the notes to this podcast. But there’s a handout called “New Habits Inspired by Sunday of the Word of God” and it has four simple ideas to spend time with Scripture: 1) the USCCB offers a Daily Readings Podcast, 2) Family Lectio Divina, 3) a resource from the Archdiocese of Detroit called “52Sundays” with some cool activities and reflections, and 4) try reading the Gospel before dinner. To this list, I would add that there are some excellent podcasts out there that can offer some discussion starters, like homilies by Bishop Robert Barron, or Fr. Larry Richards of the Reason for Our Hope Foundation, and of course, mine right here on deacon rudy’s notes!

So much to choose from, and that leads us to homework! Nourished by the Eucharist, the following two questions will help us implement Sunday of the Word of God. First, what are some ways you and your family and friends can celebrate Sunday of the Word of God this weekend? Second, what are some things you can do this year to learn more about Scripture, like joining a Bible study group or listening to Fr. Mike Schmitz and his videos called “The Bible in a Year.”

Let’s start 2021with some new ways to honor Scripture in our homes. Perhaps then the power of God’s love can transform our nation and our world! Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!

You’re listening to deacon rudy’s notes. Thank you for joining me today. Our theme music was composed by Silent Partner. You can find all sorts of helpful information on the website at www.deaconrudysnotes.org. I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Join me again next weekend as we break open the Word. Peace!

Image Credit: The official logo for the Sunday of the Word of God was unveiled at the Vatican on January 17, 2020. The colorful logo depicts “The Road to Emmaus” and is based on an icon written by the late Benedictine Sister Marie-Paul Farran. The newly established day is being celebrated on January 26th. It is meant to be devoted to the celebration, study, and dissemination of the word of God. (courtesy Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization).

Bibliography/Suggested Reading:
1. Healy, Mary. The Gospel of Mark. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2008. Kindle.
2. Montague, George T SM. First Corinthians. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2011. Kindle.

Catechism References http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm:
1. 520, 787-88: Jesus and his disciples
2. 543-46: Proclamation of the kingdom
3. 863-65: Vocation
4. 914-33: Consecrated life
5. 922-24: Consecration of virgins

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012421.cfm
Sunday of the Word of God
Lectionary: 68

Reading 1
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
The word of the LORD came to Jonah, saying:
“Set out for the great city of Nineveh,
and announce to it the message that I will tell you.”
So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh,
according to the LORD’S bidding.
Now Nineveh was an enormously large city;
it took three days to go through it.
Jonah began his journey through the city,
and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing,
“Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed, “
when the people of Nineveh believed God;
they proclaimed a fast
and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.

When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way,
he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them;
he did not carry it out.

Responsorial
Psalm 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (4a) Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your love are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice
and teaches the humble his way.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.

Reading 2
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
I tell you, brothers and sisters, the time is running out.
From now on, let those having wives act as not having them,
those weeping as not weeping,
those rejoicing as not rejoicing,
those buying as not owning,
those using the world as not using it fully.
For the world in its present form is passing away.

Alleluia
Mark 1:15
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent and believe in the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Mark 1:14-20
After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

As he passed by the Sea of Galilee,
he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea;
they were fishermen.
Jesus said to them,
“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Then they abandoned their nets and followed him.
He walked along a little farther
and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.
They too were in a boat mending their nets.
Then he called them.
So they left their father Zebedee in the boat
along with the hired men and followed him.

Posted on

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

picture of breonna taylor

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneIn | Google Play Music

Mass Readings

First Reading: Ezekiel 18:25-28
Responsorial: Psalm 25:4-9
Second Reading: Philippians 2:1-11 OR 2:1-5
Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092720.cfm
www.deaconrudysnotes.org

As you heard the readings this weekend, what words struck you?

The readings today are rich with meaning that for many of us, it might be challenging to pick out any one message. For me, there were two lines. The first comes from the first reading from Ezekiel, “You say, ‘The LORD’s way is not fair!’” (Ezekiel 18:25, NAB). And the second line comes from the Gospel, “Jesus said to them, ‘Amen I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are going ahead of you into the kingdom of God’” (Matthew 21:31).

My brothers and sisters, every weekend, we are being challenged with readings that are trying to shape our discipleship. And this weekend’s readings do not disappoint! In today’s Gospel, we hear the story of two sons. The first son refuses to do what his father asked. He threw a tantrum! In a culture where sons are supposed to honor and obey their fathers, the son’s reaction is offensive. <1> But the son reconsiders and goes out into the vineyard. The second son pays lip service to his dad, saying what his dad wants to hear, but he never goes into the vineyard.

When Jesus asks people which son did his father’s will, it so obvious to everyone – even the chief priests and elders agree. But what Jesus says next shocks them. “Amen, I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are going ahead of you into the kingdom of God” (Matthew 21:31). Whoa! Ezekiel’s words, “The LORD’s way is not fair!” (Ezekiel 18:25, NAB), sound so true! How is it fair that blatant sinners are getting into heaven first?

It’s like we discussed last weekend. We might start out on the same path as God, but at some point, we veer off course. We don’t know it – we might not even want to believe that we’re off course because we are so convinced in how right we are – in the soundness of our thoughts.

Gradually, we equate our way with God’s will, and we might not even realize it, but self-interest begins to creep into our thinking. Can’t we say that at some level, that’s what was operating in the minds of plantation owners in the South when they used Scripture to justify slavery and racism? They violently rejected any interpretation of God’s Revelation in Jesus Christ that challenged their way of life. The threw tantrums!

Perhaps, it’s easy to look back on history and approach it with more clarity then they had at the time. And yet, we too suffer from similar blinders to the events in our own time. That’s the only way I can come to terms with the ugliness of the many Brexit debates or the current presidential campaign in the US. We think we are so right and they are so wrong that we refuse to consider anything else. What tantrums do I throw? Maybe when we come to mass, we pay “lip service to God,” focused only on our vision of God.

Could that be why we didn’t see anything wrong with separating babies from their illegal immigrant parents? Or why we don’t object to efforts to gut access to affordable healthcare? Maybe that’s why some police convinced themselves that it’s ok to cross the line and murder black Americans in custody? Is that why police officers burst into the Breonna Taylor’s apartment and murdered her? I know we don’t have all the facts in her case. Still, I hope and pray there was something substantial to move the grand jury to acquit the police officers who killed Breonna, especially since they returned three counts of wanton endangerment in the first degree against one police officer who fired blindly into three of Breonna’s white neighbors’ apartments. Where is the justice? Of course, people are upset because the poison of racism is so entrenched in our culture we can’t help but doubt the impartiality of the grand jury’s work.

Graphic that says be transformed by the eucharist. Jesus emptied himself in service to others. how can i think like Jesus thinks? www.deaconrudysnotes.org

But there is hope. Yes, even in these turbulent political times, there is hope!

St. Paul, in today’s second reading says, now listen to this: If there is any comfort in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any solidarity of the Spirit, if there is any compassion or pity, fill up my joy: [I want] you to think the same, have the same love, and be of one mind, with just a single thought, with no thoughts that are in line with selfish ambition or empty conceit. No – in humility, think of each other as your superiors; don’t be each of you looking to your own [interests]; instead, look to each other’s interest. Let your thinking be what was in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:1-5).

And then Paul gives us the beautiful hymn to Jesus – Jesus took the form of a slave and emptied himself in service to others. What a challenge! My brothers and sisters, we are not called to imitate Jesus mindlessly. We are called to assimilate ourselves into Jesus’ way of thinking. <2> And we can’t do that unless we are willing to consider the possibility that we might not be as right as we think we are. We can’t assimilate ourselves into Jesus’ way of thinking unless we are ready to believe that the person with whom we disagree with is more important than the ideas we are arguing over.

May the Eucharist and the work of the Holy Spirit transform us so that we become stewards of justice in this world!

Homework! Nourished by the Eucharist today and perhaps a little troubled by the Word of God today, I ask you to do the following at least two or three times this week beginning today,

Prayerfully read and reflect on today’s second reading, Paul’s letter to the Philippians 2:1-11, and ask yourself what you think God is asking you to do.
Here is one approach you could take:
1. Ask God what he wants you to learn from this reading.
2. Pause for a few seconds.
3. Then read the passage at least once – slowly and deliberately.
4. Pause for a few seconds.
5. Picture a small light in the very center of your body. Now picture it growing slowly. Soon your whole body is in this light. Can you feel the warmth?
6. Resting in God’s presence, think about the words of this Scripture passage. What jumps out at you? Why? What is it God is trying to show you? You may spend as much or a little time as you’d like to do this.
7. As you finish, hear Christ’s words: Go and do likewise.

Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!

Image Credit:
Cover: Breonna Taylor: Art by Ariel Sinha (IG: @arielsinhaha). Used with permission.
2nd: Deacon Rudy Villarreal. PNG file.

Notes:
Unless otherwise indicated, all Bible quotes are taken from The Bible: A Study Bible freshly translated by Nicholas King. Buxhall, Suffolk UK: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
1. Mitch, Curtis and Edward Sri, The Gospel of Matthew, Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2010), Kindle, 275.
2. Hamm, Dennis, SJ, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academics), 2013. Kindle, “The Best Example of All: Christ’s Self-Emptying Love and Service.”

References:
1. Hamm, Dennis, SJ. Philippians, Colossians, Philemon. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academics, 2013. Kindle.
2. Marchionda, James, OP. “Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time.” Know Before You Go. 22 September 2020. Accessed 27 September 2020. https://www.opcentral.org/node/3424.
3. Mitch, Curtis and Edward Sri. The Gospel of Matthew. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2010. Kindle.

Catechism References http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm:
1. Jesus the Lord, 201, 449
2. The Lordship of Christ, 446-461
3. The Word become flesh, 461
4. Docetism, 465
5. Christ is God and man, 472, 602, 705, 713, 1224, 2812
6. Jesus as our model, 520
7. John the Baptist, 535
8. Parables, 546
9. Life in Christ, 1694, 2842
10. Just person distinguished by habitual rectitude toward others, 1807
11. The obligation of social justice, 1928-30, 2425-26
12. Concern for others, 2635-36
13. Prayer, 2641, 2667
14. “Thy will be done,” 2822-27
15. Only Holy Spirit can give us the mind of Christ, 2842

Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092720.cfm
Lectionary: 136

Reading 1
Ezekiel 18:25-28
Thus says the LORD:
You say, “The LORD’s way is not fair!”
Hear now, house of Israel:
Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?
When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies,
it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.
But if he turns from the wickedness he has committed,
he does what is right and just,
he shall preserve his life;
since he has turned away from all the sins that he has committed,
he shall surely live, he shall not die.

Responsorial
Psalm 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (6a) Remember your mercies, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your love are from of old.
The sins of my youth and my frailties remember not;
in your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and teaches the humble his way.
R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Reading 2
Philippians 2:1-11
Brothers and sisters:
If there is any encouragement in Christ,
any solace in love,
any participation in the Spirit,
any compassion and mercy,
complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love,
united in heart, thinking one thing.
Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory;
rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,
each looking out not for his own interests,
but also for those of others.

Have in you the same attitude
that is also 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 the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
which 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.

Alleluia
John 10:27
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Matthew 21:28-32
Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people:
“What is your opinion?
A man had two sons.
He came to the first and said,
‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’
He said in reply, ‘I will not,’
but afterwards changed his mind and went.
The man came to the other son and gave the same order.
He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir, ‘but did not go.
Which of the two did his father’s will?”
They answered, “The first.”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you,
tax collectors and prostitutes
are entering the kingdom of God before you.
When John came to you in the way of righteousness,
you did not believe him;
but tax collectors and prostitutes did.
Yet even when you saw that,
you did not later change your minds and believe him.”