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Our Sunday Reflection - November 26, 2023
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" The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want."
Psalm 23
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Introduction to the Liturgy of the Day
Today we are given the chance of a lifetime: a preview of what we
will face at the end of time, straight from the lips of the One who will come in glory on that day. This is Christ the King, who rules over God’s creation. In today’s Gospel, Jesus confides to his disciples how he will pass judgment on us all. Keep in mind that it’s never too late. Let us take heed so that we may do what Jesus expects from us. Then one day may we inherit the kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world.Introduction to the Liturgy of the Word
When Jesus identified himself as the Good Shepherd, his disciples probably recalled the passage from Ezekiel that we hear today. God’s words are comforting at first, lovingly caring for the sheep, but at the end God stands in judgment, and some sheep God will destroy. This is the kind of shepherd Jesus suggests in the Gospel, separating the sheep from the goats in order to determine who is sent to eternal life and who to eternal punishment. May we listen attentively.Reflections
- This entire year, Jesus has been calling us to discipleship. Week after week, we have heard Jesus’ teachings through the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus has taught us to be poor in spirit, to let our light shine upon others, to love our enemies, to avoid hypocrisy, to take up our cross, to take God’s word to heart, to forgive others seventy-seven times, to bear fruit, to accept his invitation, to love God with all our being, to love our neighbor as ourselves, to practice what we preach, to humble ourselves, to always be ready for his coming in glory, to be good and faithful servants, and to make disciples of all nations. Today, on this final Sunday of the liturgical year, Jesus, in a scene with his disciples that Matthew says occurred just two days before he would be crucified, gives them the key to gaining the treasure he’d said was worth selling everything one has to get: eternal life in the kingdom of God..
- What is the secret? How can we gain the kingdom? Easy. Give food to Jesus when he is hungry, drink when he is thirsty. Welcome him and clothe him as a poor stranger. Care for him when he is ill. Visit him when he is in prison. But clearly it will not be the Son of God personally that is any of these things. No, it will be the least of his brothers and sisters. The secret, then, is to see beyond our superficial vision. Our eyes may see a homeless person, a poor beggar, a refugee, a person in pain, a convict. Our eyes of faith must look harder. With eyes of faith, we can see Christ in everyone in need.
- Near the end of his first letter to the Corinthians, in the passage we heard today, Paul tells them that in the end God will be all in all. From God came all of creation. All of creation, as it developed and reproduced and evolved, is still connected ultimately to God. All creation is connected to each other, for all is connected to God. At the end of time, all creation—from Christ himself to the least of his sisters and brothers—will return to God..
Question of the Week
Whom do I overlook and in whom do I fail to see Christ? How can I force myself to look past surface impressions?
-from Pastoral Patterns
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readings of the mass
LISTEN HERE to the Audio Recordings of the Readings of Sunday, November 26, 2023
SELECT HERE for the Readings of Sunday, November 26, 2023
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Offerings
The Sunday offerings are a portion of our blessings that we give to God (Church) in gratitude to what God has done for us...ONLINE GIVING OPTIONS -
Reflections on the readings
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