Tuesday, October 14 2014; Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 468

Reading 1
gal 5:1-6

Brothers and sisters:
For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

It is I, Paul, who am telling you
that if you have yourselves circumcised,
Christ will be of no benefit to you.
Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcised
that he is bound to observe the entire law.
You are separated from Christ,
you who are trying to be justified by law;
you have fallen from grace.
For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of righteousness.
For in Christ Jesus,
neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,
but only faith working through love.

Responsorial Psalm
ps 119:41, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48

R. (41a) Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
Let your mercy come to me, O LORD,
your salvation according to your promise.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
Take not the word of truth from my mouth,
for in your ordinances is my hope.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will keep your law continually,
forever and ever.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will walk at liberty,
because I seek your precepts.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will delight in your commands, 
which I love.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.
And I will lift up my hands to your commands
and meditate on your statutes.
R. Let your mercy come to me, O Lord.

Gospel
lk 11:37-41

After Jesus had spoken,
a Pharisee invited him to dine at his home.
He entered and reclined at table to eat.
The Pharisee was amazed to see
that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.
The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you.”

REFLECTION
SOURCE: One Bread One Body
THEME: THE POINT OF MOST RESISTANCE

"If you give what you have as alms, all will be wiped clean for you." –Luke 11:41

To have all our sins wiped clean, we must repent and give our lives to Jesus. This conversion is an interior decision expressed in a tangible way. For some, conversion is most pointedly expressed by changing jobs or changing friends. For others, forgiving an enemy or returning to church are critical issues. For still others, such as the Pharisees, the concrete expression of conversion is a matter of money, since the love of money is the root of all evil (1 Tm 6:10).

Many of the Pharisees observed only the letter of the law. They tithed (Lk 11:42) and gave alms. However, they did not live the spirit of the law, for they were avaricious men who gave themselves to money rather than to God (Lk 16:13-14). Jesus challenged them to heartfelt almsgiving. This would have been a sign of their conversion, and all would have been wiped clean for them.

What would be evidence that you have repented and given your life to Jesus? (see Lk 3:8) Where do you need to swallow your pride? Where are you holding back on the Lord? What are you doing only in the letter of the law and not the spirit? Give in; give all, and "all will be wiped clean for you" (Lk 11:41).

PRAYER: Father, I give in to Your will at my point of most resistance.

PROMISE: "Let Your kindness come to me, O Lord, Your salvation according to Your promise." –Ps 119:41

PRAISE: Pope St. Callistus I, one of the early pope-martyrs, praised God by living a life of extraordinary forgiveness.

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