29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Sunday Mass - Oct 20, 2019 - 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Fr. Jason Malave
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Homily Video

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time Homily Transcript

We find in all of the readings, a reminder about perseverance, both in the Old Testament, the New Testament reading, also the Gospel. Ladies, come on over this way. One over here and one over here. And sometimes, it’s helpful, to have visual aides. I’m not sure if you heard this in the Old Testament reading. Did you hear about it? Where Moses was praying for those at battle, and Aaron and Hur had to come to his help, because any time he lifted up his arms, the Israelites prevailed. But you know what happened? You know what happened? His arms got tired, and so Aaron on one side held his arms up. Go ahead. Go and hold my arm up. And Hur on the other held. And so there Moses stood for days and days and days so that they might prevail, so the Israelites might prevail. Talk about persistence. Persistence in prayer to God, right? Thank you, ladies. Give them a round of applause. Excellent job. Perseverance in prayer, perseverance in all that we do. We heard it also in Paul’s reading and we certainly heard about it in the parable of the widow looking for justice and typically the reading of that Gospel is that the widow is persevering until she gets justice. If you continue the gospel a little bit longer, also, we hear about the friend knocking on the door looking for a place to stay is also persevering in looking for a place to stay or a loaf of bread. We hear in both those readings about how we are called to persevere in our own prayer, but think about it in just a little bit different way. Think about it like this. Think about God, being the one, like the widow, who’s looking for justice from us. Think about it in terms of God being the friend outside the door knocking looking to enter our own hearts. Think about God being the one who perseveres, in pursuit, after us. Not giving up. Not allowing us to dive deeper into what it means to forgive. Not giving up it means for us to love more deeply our brothers and sisters. Not giving up on us to be the bearers of justice for the world. Oh, well, wait a second. God is nagging at us to transform the world? God is asking us to be his conduits of justice or forgiveness or love for the world around us? God never gives up on us. In fact, nags us to be the best we can? I like that interpretation of the gospel. I like thinking about our God who never ceases to go after us. In one particular way, please pray that God continued to support all people who are looking at vocation to marriage, to the priestly life, to religious life, to the single life. Please pray that God never stops nagging us to live out our vocation, whatever our vocation is that God never stops nagging us to do it well to transform the world.

Readings

First Reading:

Exodus 17:8-13

Second Reading:

2 Timothy 3:14—4:2

Gospel:

Luke 18:1-8 (147)

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