taken 2003

 

October 1 2006

Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Num 11:25-29 The LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to Moses. Taking some of the spirit that was on Moses,the LORD bestowed it on the seventy elders; and as the spirit came to rest on them, they prophesied. Now two men, one named Eldad and the other Medad, were not in the gathering but had been left in the camp. They too had been on the list, but had not gone out to the tent; yet the spirit came to rest on them also, and they prophesied in the camp. So, when a young man quickly told Moses,"Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp, " Joshua, son of Nun, who from his youth had been Moses’aide, said,"Moses, my lord, stop them." But Moses answered him,"Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the people of the LORD were prophets! Would that the LORD might bestow his spirit on them all!"

Ps 19:8, 10, 12-13, 14 R. (9a) The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul;
the decree of the LORD is trustworthy,giving wisdom to the simple.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever;the ordinances of the LORD are true,
all of them just.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
Though your servant is careful of them,very diligent in keeping them,Yet who can detect failings? Cleanse me from my unknown faults!
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
From wanton sin especially, restrain your servant;let it not rule over me.Then shall I be blameless and innocentof serious sin.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.


Jas 5:1-6 Come now, you rich, weep and wail over your impending miseries.
Your wealth has rotted away, your clothes have become moth-eaten, your gold and silver have corroded, and that corrosion will be a testimony against you; it will devour your flesh like a fire. You have stored up treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud; and the cries of the harvester have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on earth in luxury and pleasure; you have fattened your hearts for the day of slaughter. You have condemned; you have murdered the righteous one; he offers you no resistance.

Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48 At that time, John said to Jesus, "Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us." Jesus replied, "Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us. Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward." Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where 'their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'"

It is best to accept the good works of others without questioning where they are coming from or who the doer of the deeds is aligned with. "For whoever is not against us is for us." For me this is a message of interreligious tolerance and more than tolerance embracing those who do good. If a Muslim group is feeding the poor or a Buddhist tends to the sick or a Christian group visits those in prison in my sight they are all doing the will of God and it would be misguided to question their motives or stop them from doing theses charities that serve others and serve God.

When I taught religion to young children they had a very strong sense of what charities needed to be done and unquestioning sense that it was the right thing to do. I remember my fourth grade student Juan being compassionate shouting out "Poor baby Jesus" when he heard about the baby Jesus not having a crib or bed and being in the manger that was for animals. The love and compassion of the children is pure and true and in my belief part of the connection that all children have with God. The children had no doubts about the acts of mercy and charity and had willing hearts. It was something that when we discussed acts of mercy and charity they already had open and willing hearts. I was only putting a name on some of the Christian charities their compassion and love for others was already present.

In this respect, I think that I need to remember that openness to others and the heart of caritas in my daily life.