September 8, 2024
23rd Sunday
Ordinary Time
FOCUS: God’s loving presence is with us always.
God is with us, intimately close, just as Jesus was to the man in the Gospel today. In the Mass, Jesus reaches out to touch us and offer his healing. May we always be granted an open heart and clear vision to see his loving presence among us.
What's in Your Heart
Is there anyone whose heart is not frightened at some time or another? Thus, the Lord’s message in Isaiah is directed to all of us. When we encounter Jesus we will experience vindication and recompense.
​
-
Am I willing to admit I have blind spots—about people, about opinions, even about God? What can I do to be healed of these?
​
-
Who am I deaf to? Do I “show partiality” in listening to some in my congregation rather than others?
​
-
What part of my life seems like a desert lately? How might I prepare myself to expect and welcome refreshing streams bursting forth in my own life? In the life of my community?
Homily Stories
Some years ago I was on a team that was running a men’s retreat weekend, and I was on kitchen duty. The setting was rustic and the kitchen primitive. We made meals using a few available utensils and a couple of propane rings to cook on. Other team members were enjoying interacting with the men, and I was struggling just to make a pot of oatmeal, a vat of spaghetti, or something that resembled coffee. I found myself getting angrier and angrier as the weekend went on.
​
A friend who was on the team walked into the kitchen late Saturday afternoon and said, “Come with me. We need to get something from town.” I figured we were off to get more kitchen supplies, so I grumblingly left with him, glad, at least, for the short break from the sweltering kitchen.
​
We went into town and my friend pulled into an A&W drive-in. He said, “You look like you could use a root beer float.” I didn’t argue. We sat in the shade enjoying our drinks. I calmed down enough to see how well the weekend was going for the men we were there to serve. I was able to hear the thanks my friend offered for tackling kitchen detail for 60 men. I found new strength to get back to the work with energy and even a smidgen of joy. And gratitude began to flow like a stream in my heart again.
​
Sometimes it’s doesn’t take much to help a blind man see and for streams to flow forth in the desert.
​
First Reading
Second Reading
Quotes
What does it cost us to say, "My God help me! Have mercy on me!" Is there anything easier than this? And this little will suffice to save us if we be diligent in doing it.
—Saint Alphonsus Liguori
This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections.
—Saint Augustine