Reflections of Caritas

GOSPEL: Luke 13:22-30.

"Strive to enter through the narrow door!!!"

Dear friends,

In the gospel, Jesus answers a very difficult question: Sir, will there be only a few saved? His response was very simple, smart and of course, an intelligent one, “Strive to enter through the narrow door!!! Through this, Christ reminds us that the invitation to His Feast is open to all. However, each person must struggle to be there. We must do what we have do by playing our roles well. This is the only way we can be guaranteed a place in the feast of the Kingdom of God.

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GOSPEL: LUKE 12:49-53

FIRE UPON THE EARTH

Dear Friends,

On this twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time, the Church encourages us to fight against evil by following the footsteps of Christ who came to bring “fire” upon the earth in order to purify, transform, and save us from the perils that afflict us.

Jesus in today’s gospel wishes to set the earth on fire. He speaks against peace. What sense can we make when Jesus says his coming is to establish division and he desires to set our world ablaze?

The fire he wishes to bring is that which is very positive and objective. It is for our own purification and good. It is meant to consume the debris and fabrics of inordinate attachments, immorality, injustice and corruption in our lives, communities and world at large.

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GOSPEL: LUKE 12:32-48

"FOR WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS, THERE WILL YOUR HEART BE ALSO!"

Dear Friends,

Jesus says in today’s gospel, “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” We can ask ourselves:  “where is my heart, what is my treasure.”  Answering that will give us immense knowledge about ourselves and we will also see the direction of our lives.

Christ warns us to pay attention to what we value in life, because this is what we will retain in eternal life. He tells us that what we treasure will control our hearts. What we value will determine the way that we live. This is important because we do not have enough time and energy to treasure all things equally. We therefore need to make decisions for what we will place first, what we will value most, what our treasure will be. Christ calls us to invest in a treasure that will last, a treasure that cannot be stolen or destroyed. Real wealth is obtained by investing in “treasures in heaven.” How do we secure such a treasure? By choosing to love one another.

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GOSPEL: LUKE 12:(13-21)

"The Vanity of Vanities!"

Dear Sisters and Brothers in the Lord,

Riches and wealth come from God (Prov. 10:22) and no one succeeds by his (her) own strength; it all comes from God (1 Samuel 2:9). With these in mind, we ought to see riches as divine provisions to aid our eternal journey. This means that riches should not be allowed to master our lives; that is, when riches become vain. The Psalmist (62:10b) advised that when riches increase, we should not set our heart upon them.

Beyond vain riches, we are called upon in today’s Gospel to focus on the giver of riches; God Himself. The rich man in the Gospel does not appear to have committed any acts of evil. He is simply consumed by his desire to grow richer and he is totally immune from what goes on around him. Yet he is condemned for being insular and closing himself off from others. Like the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, it is not the sin of commission but that of omission, that failure to act justly that constitutes a reproachable behavior.

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