Word Wide Open: The Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A) - 10/29/23

First Reading (Exodus 22:20-26)

A reading from the Book of Exodus.

Thus says the LORD:

"You shall not molest or oppress an alien,

for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt. 

You shall not wrong any widow or orphan. 

If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me,

I will surely hear their cry. 

My wrath will flare up, and I will kill you with the sword;

then your own wives will be widows, and your children orphans.

"If you lend money to one of your poor neighbors among my people,

you shall not act like an extortioner toward him

by demanding interest from him. 

If you take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge,

you shall return it to him before sunset;

for this cloak of his is the only covering he has for his body. 

What else has he to sleep in?

If he cries out to me, I will hear him; for I am compassionate."

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How does our belief in God change how we treat other people?

Second Reading (1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10)

A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians. 

Brothers and sisters:

You know what sort of people we were among you for your sake. 

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord,

receiving the word in great affliction, with joy from the Holy Spirit,

so that you became a model for all the believers

in Macedonia and in Achaia.

For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth

not only in Macedonia and in Achaia,

but in every place your faith in God has gone forth,

so that we have no need to say anything. 

For they themselves openly declare about us

what sort of reception we had among you,

and how you turned to God from idols

to serve the living and true God

and to await his Son from heaven,

whom he raised from the dead,

Jesus, who delivers us from the coming wrath.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions:  Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How do we know if we are living a life worthy of imitation? How does living out our faith also spread it?

Gospel (Matthew 22:34-40)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,

they gathered together, and one of them,

a scholar of the law tested him by asking,

"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" 

He said to him,

"You shall love the Lord, your God,

with all your heart,

with all your soul,

and with all your mind.

This is the greatest and the first commandment.

The second is like it:

You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 

The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? What does it mean to put God above all things and how do we do that? How can we love others as ourselves?

Word Wide Open: The Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A) - 10/22/23

First Reading (Isaiah 45:1, 4-6)

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.

Thus says the LORD to his anointed, Cyrus,

whose right hand I grasp,

subduing nations before him,

and making kings run in his service,

opening doors before him

and leaving the gates unbarred:

For the sake of Jacob, my servant,

of Israel, my chosen one,

I have called you by your name,

giving you a title, though you knew me not.

I am the LORD and there is no other,

there is no God besides me.

It is I who arm you, though you know me not,

so that toward the rising and the setting of the sun

people may know that there is none besides me.

I am the LORD, there is no other.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? What are the titles God gives us?

Second Reading (1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b)

A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians. 

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians

in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

grace to you and peace.

We give thanks to God always for all of you,

remembering you in our prayers,

unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love

and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ,

before our God and Father,

knowing, brothers and sisters loved by God,

how you were chosen.

For our gospel did not come to you in word alone,

but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions:  Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How can we grow in endurance of faith? What is conviction and how do we grow in it?

Gospel (Matthew 22:15-21)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.

The Pharisees went off

and plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech. 

They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying,

"Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man

and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.

And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion,

for you do not regard a person's status.

Tell us, then, what is your opinion:

Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?" 

Knowing their malice, Jesus said,

"Why are you testing me, you hypocrites? 

Show me the coin that pays the census tax." 

Then they handed him the Roman coin. 

He said to them, "Whose image is this and whose inscription?" 

They replied, "Caesar's."

At that he said to them,

"Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar

and to God what belongs to God."

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? How do we often test Jesus? What are we supposed to give to the world versus what are we supposed to give to God?

Word Wide Open: The Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A) - 10/15/23

First Reading (Isaiah 25:6-10a)

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.

On this mountain the LORD of hosts

will provide for all peoples

a feast of rich food and choice wines,

juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.

On this mountain he will destroy

the veil that veils all peoples,

the web that is woven over all nations;

he will destroy death forever.

The Lord GOD will wipe away

the tears from every face;

the reproach of his people he will remove

from the whole earth; for the LORD has spoken.

On that day it will be said:

"Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!

This is the LORD for whom we looked;

let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!"

For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? Why are people so easily separated and judgmental of others?

Second Reading (Phillipians 4:12-14, 19-20)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Phillipians. 

Brothers and sisters:

I know how to live in humble circumstances;

I know also how to live with abundance.

In every circumstance and in all things

I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry,

of living in abundance and of being in need. 

I can do all things in him who strengthens me. 

Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.

My God will fully supply whatever you need,

in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

To our God and Father, glory forever and ever. Amen.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions:  Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How can we do all things through Christ? What are the things we can do?

Gospel (Matthew 22:1-14)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.

Jesus again in reply spoke to the chief priests and elders of the people 

in parables, saying, 

"The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king

who gave a wedding feast for his son. 

He dispatched his servants

to summon the invited guests to the feast,

but they refused to come.

A second time he sent other servants, saying,

'Tell those invited: "Behold, I have prepared my banquet,

my calves and fattened cattle are killed,

and everything is ready; come to the feast."'

Some ignored the invitation and went away,

one to his farm, another to his business. 

The rest laid hold of his servants,

mistreated them, and killed them. 

The king was enraged and sent his troops,

destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. 

Then he said to his servants, 'The feast is ready,

but those who were invited were not worthy to come. 

Go out, therefore, into the main roads

and invite to the feast whomever you find.'

The servants went out into the streets

and gathered all they found, bad and good alike,

and the hall was filled with guests. 

But when the king came in to meet the guests,

he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. 

The king said to him, 'My friend, how is it

that you came in here without a wedding garment?'

But he was reduced to silence.

Then the king said to his attendants, 'Bind his hands and feet,

and cast him into the darkness outside,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'

Many are invited, but few are chosen."

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? Why do people often reject God's invitation? What does it mean to be set apart by God?

Word Wide Open: The Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (A) - 10/8/23

First Reading (Isaiah 5:1-7)

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.

Let me now sing of my friend,

my friend's song concerning his vineyard.

My friend had a vineyard

on a fertile hillside;

he spaded it, cleared it of stones,

and planted the choicest vines;

within it he built a watchtower,

and hewed out a wine press.

Then he looked for the crop of grapes,

but what it yielded was wild grapes.

Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah,

judge between me and my vineyard:

What more was there to do for my vineyard

that I had not done?

Why, when I looked for the crop of grapes,

did it bring forth wild grapes?

Now, I will let you know

what I mean to do with my vineyard:

take away its hedge, give it to grazing,

break through its wall, let it be trampled!

Yes, I will make it a ruin:

it shall not be pruned or hoed,

but overgrown with thorns and briers;

I will command the clouds

not to send rain upon it.

The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel,

and the people of Judah are his cherished plant;

he looked for judgment, but see, bloodshed!

for justice, but hark, the outcry!

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? Why do our lowest moments bring us back to the Lord? Why do people turn away from God in those moments?

Second Reading (Phillipians 4:6-9)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Phillipians. 

Brothers and sisters:

Have no anxiety at all, but in everything,

by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,

make your requests known to God.

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters,

whatever is true, whatever is honorable,

whatever is just, whatever is pure,

whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,

if there is any excellence

and if there is anything worthy of praise,

think about these things.

Keep on doing what you have learned and received

and heard and seen in me.

Then the God of peace will be with you.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions:  Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How can we make sure anxiety does not rule our lives? Why is gratitude/thanksgiving so important to our faith lives?

Gospel (Matthew 21:33-43)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:

"Hear another parable.

There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,

put a hedge around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower. 

Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.

When vintage time drew near,

he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce. 

But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,

another they killed, and a third they stoned. 

Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,

but they treated them in the same way. 

Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking,

'They will respect my son.'

But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,

'This is the heir.

Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.'

They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 

What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?"

They answered him,

"He will put those wretched men to a wretched death

and lease his vineyard to other tenants

who will give him the produce at the proper times." 

Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures:

The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

by the Lord has this been done,

and it is wonderful in our eyes?

Therefore, I say to you,

the kingdom of God will be taken away from you

and given to a people that will produce its fruit."

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Do you have any questions about this reading? Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? How can you better respond to rejection about your faith? In what ways do we reject Christ in our daily lives?