29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A, Year II)
Community Word: True disciples of Jesus respond to His calling to fruitfulness.
Theme: True disciples of Jesus respond with fruitfulness when they live godly lives in accordance with His truth.
Promise: “He has made the world firm, not to be moved, he governs the people with equity.” (Ps 96:10b)
Reflection:
When, in order to entrap him, the Pharisees asked Jesus, “…what is your opinion? Is it lawful to pay the imperial tax to Caesar, or not?”
Jesus affirms the importance of obedience to earthly authority as the proper means of maintaining civic order. But in qualifying the sentence with: “…render … to God what belongs to God” (Mt.22:21), He may be teaching them detachment from money and worldly attachments, in order that they may be able to truly worship God and give Him the glory that is due Him. Remember, no one can serve two masters, God and money (Mt. 6:24).
As human beings, we have all been stamped with God’s image and likeness: “God created man in His image, in the image of God He created him…” (Gen 1:27) and we were admonished to observe God’s commandments. First Corinthian 5: 19-20 tells us that “Every human body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within him given by God, thus everyone’s body does not belong to himself. From the beginning it belongs to God who created us and redeemed us” in the precious blood of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Undeniably, we can never repay, or give back to God all that He has given and done for us. But at least we should strive to be worthy of the gifts, talents and blessings He has bestowed upon us through fruitfulness that is pleasing to His eyes.
The Community’s Theme: True disciples of Jesus respond with fruitfulness when they live godly lives in accordance with His truth, should be our fitting response to giving Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s. For “those who (like us), belong to Christ have crucified the flesh: impurity, shamelessness, hatred, anger, division, factions, envy, etc. with its vices and desires…. If we live by the Spirit, let us live in a spiritual way,”(Gal 5:21, 24-25).
If we are to live godly lives, we have to live like Jesus in every way. We have to live His life – the way we communicate and interact with others, and in our witnessing. Union with the Spirit must show itself, not only in a person’s life of faith, but above all, in our love of neighbor. We have to learn that the measure of our love is not the love of ourselves, but our love of the Lord and of our brethren. And let this common love for the Lord, be the basis of our love for one another. To live godly lives, we have to follow Christ’s way of unconditional love and limitless patience. During those times when we encounter aggression from people who have evil designs for us, we just have to think and act as Jesus did. Christian love is to love and not heed the cost, to love and not seek what is in it for us. It expresses itself in service, affection, self-sacrifice and forgiveness even for those who may have done to us harm, or caused us pain.
Inspired by the Second Vatican Council, all laity is expected to take a more active role in the creation of a just and caring church and community. This means that as Christians, we should not just content ourselves with obedience to the laws of the land, but we must also involve ourselves in civic life and contribute to the creation of a better nation, a better people, a better world, and a place to live in. When we follow civil authority, we become good citizens of our nation. When we follow God’s commandments, we become good citizens of the world and the world beyond.
No matter what, let us all strive to be fruitful stewards and use well what God has graciously given us. If we consider ourselves true disciples, in the real meaning of it, our words and actions must reflect and mirror Christ at all times. Then, and only then, we can claim to belong to Christ.
Reflection Questions:
1. How did the gospel inspire you to change some of your attitudes and behavior?
2. In what ways do you have difficulty reconciling your Christian duties with that of your civic responsibilities?
This Week’s Daily Mass Reading Guide:
October 19, 2014 (Sun Is 42:1,4-6/Ps 96:1,3,4-5,7-8,9-10/1Thes 1:1-5/Mt 22:15-21
October 20, 2014 (Mon) Eph 2:1-10/Ps 100:2,3,4,5/Lk 12:13-21
October 21, 2014 (Tues) Eph 2:12-22/Ps 85:9-10,13-14/Lk 12:35-38
October 22, 2014 (Wed) Eph 3:2-1 2/Is 12:2-3,4,5-6/Lk 12:39-48
October 23, 2014 (Thurs)Eph 3:14-21/Ps 33:1-2,4-5,11-12,18-19/Lk 12:49-53
October 24, 2014 (Fri) Eph 4:1-6/Ps 24:1-2,3-4,5-6/Lk 12:54-59
October 25, 2014 (Sat) Eph 4:7-16/Ps 122:1-2,3-4,4-5/Lk 13:1-9
“Ignorance of the Bible is ignorance of Christ. Read your Bible daily!”
