Monday 31 October
Monday of week 31 in Ordinary Time Gospel - Luke 14:12-14 Giving lunch or dinner to your friends, brothers, relatives or rich neighbors, is essentially for ourselves. We need to feel surrounded by people whom we think that they are close to us. This is not our generosity, because in this we await reciprocity and appreciations. This is truly our selfishness in the biblical language. For me to feel good, I invite those who are close to me. But if you want to be generous, be with the poor and the needy. That is what the language of Jesus is speaking. Love those who need your love. Give food to whom needs food. Give cloth to whom needs clothes. No need of theories and seminars on poverty. Be with the poor and share what you have. Giving in order to be selfless must be to the one who has nothing. Only then it becomes incarnation!
Sunday 30 October
31st Sunday in Ordinary Time Gospel - Luke 19:1-10 “Zacchaeus, come down. Hurry, because I must stay at your house today.’” Until the moment you let Jesus into your heart you are filled with yourself and with the things you have. All your efforts in your life are to protect yourself and to accumulate more and more things for yourself. You do everything to achieve this. That is why we see people never satisfied with what they have. They want more. But the moment you encounter Jesus and listen to His words, “come down. Hurry, because I must stay at your house today”, everything changes. You start emptying yourself, you start repairing for what you did, you start doing penitence. This encounter with Jesus comes a desire followed by a pursuit. This desire, this desire to see Jesus, is a gift of God Himself. We must accept that gift with a pursuit against all excuses. Zacchaeus did not stop his search before his shortness. He climbed the tree on the way Jesus would pass. Jesus reached and looked up. We also follow the gift of desire to see Jesus in our vocation. We face with weaknesses. There are trees on the way Jesus is passing – the Sacraments, Word of God, good friendships etc. Are we following our desire to see Jesus climbing upon those trees at our disposal or are we giving up? Actually, Jesus is walking that way awaiting to see you there on that tree.
Saturday 29 October
Saturday of week 30 in Ordinary Time Gospel - Luke 14:1,7-11 “…For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the man who humbles himself will be exalted.’” We will be thinking how are we exalting ourselves? I exalt myself in all those moments in which I pretend to be something more than what I am. I exalt myself in all those moments in which I associate with someone who is in power, or I want to be friends with people in power, for my selfish reasons. I exalt myself in all those moments in which I search for banners or slogans to project myself. All these moments you are acting contrary to the gospel because you are acting contrary to God who wants that you be yourself. That is why you get humbled. On the contrary when you are humble and accept and be what you are, God takes control of your life and will be exalted.