{"id":52394,"date":"2014-09-19T20:25:53","date_gmt":"2014-09-20T01:25:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.austincnm.com\/?p=52394"},"modified":"2014-09-23T12:57:18","modified_gmt":"2014-09-23T17:57:18","slug":"sunday-says-podcast-september-21-2014-mass-readings-reflections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2014\/09\/sunday-says-podcast-september-21-2014-mass-readings-reflections\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Says Podcast \u2013 September 21, 2014 Mass Readings and Reflections"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SundaySaysPodcast-logo\"<\/a>[powerpress]<\/p>\n

Sunday September 21, 2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Lectionary: 133<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time <\/strong>(NAB Translation)<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Welcome to the Sunday Says podcast for September 21, 2014, the Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time.\u00a0 Thank you for joining us as we begin preparing our hearts and minds for Mass by previewing and reflecting on the readings.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0The selected readings this week challenge us to remember that God\u2019s ways are not our ways especially when it comes to judging the merits of our good works.\u00a0 Just like Saint Paul, despite the sins of our past, God can use whatever we offer him to work towards good. \u00a0\u00a0As always, we are using the Jerusalem translation for copyright purposes.\u00a0\u00a0 Let\u2019s take a look at the readings.<\/p>\n

Reading 1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Isaiah 55:6-9<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Our first reading, from the Old Testament, comes from the book of the great prophet Isaiah who gives us here a timeless message regarding the very nature of God.\u00a0 The message is simple:\u00a0 seek the Lord while he may be found, call him while he is near.\u00a0 \u00a0Repent and you will find forgiveness and mercy.\u00a0\u00a0 Then comes then comes the real zinger:\u00a0 \u201cFor my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In other words, God is more generous s than would seem reasonable to us, more forgiving and merciful than we are.\u00a0\u00a0 We should always look to God in repentance, never presuming upon his mercy or taking it for granted.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Even though the Lord\u2019s thoughts and ways are far beyond ours, Jesus challenges us to become more like him.<\/p>\n

Responsorial Psalm<\/strong><\/p>\n

Psalm 145:2-3,<\/strong>8-9,17-18<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The response for the responsorial Psalm is <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201c\u00a0The Lord is close to all who call him.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Second reading<\/strong><\/p>\n

Philippians 1<\/strong>:20C-24,27a<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The Second Reading is from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians.\u00a0 In this passage St. Paul compares earthly life to life in heaven, freed from physical constraints, and the value of both earthly life and life in heaven.\u00a0 Paul says, \u201cChrist will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0In other words, St. Paul is confident to leave his personal fate in the hands of God, knowing that whether he lives or dies, God will make use of all he has done to make the Gospel more widely known and the Church more firmly established on earth. Paul says, \u201cLife to me, of course, is Christ, but then death would bring me something more.\u201d\u00a0 Paul knew that his remaining alive on earth would be helpful to prepare the Church for the trials and persecutions that were soon to follow.\u00a0 At the same time, Paul yearned to be in heaven with Christ, freed from suffering and temptation and could therefore say, that \u201cdeath would bring me something more.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Paul concludes this segment saying, \u201cAvoid anything in your everyday lives that would be unworthy of the gospel of Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gospel<\/strong><\/p>\n

Matthew 20:1-16a<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

In our reading from the Gospel of Matthew Jesus uses the image of the vineyard to make his point.\u00a0 Vineyards were very common in Palestine during Biblical times and the Bible speaks in more than a hundred places about vineyards and their cultivation.\u00a0 The parable Jesus gives echoes a strand of the theme from our first reading from the prophet Isaiah that \u201cGod\u2019s ways are not our ways\u201d, especially when it comes to grace and mercy.\u00a0\u00a0 By human standards, it would seem a matter of justice that the workers who worked all day long in the hot sun would be paid more than the workers who only worked part of the day in shade.\u00a0 But Jesus\u2019 parable seems to warn us that there may be some surprises at the end of time when God rewards His faithful.<\/p>\n

While it is true that we reap what we sow, it is also true that our Father doesn\u2019t operate under simply human standards, but rather is generous in bestowing gifts according to his own will.\u00a0\u00a0 Many people then and now operate under a contractual mindset where everything is recorded, measured, and rewards are calculated precisely according to a set of rules.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0But perhaps God takes a broader view.\u00a0 Like the day laborers in the market place, different people may be called in a special way to serve God at different times of the day, that is, in different stages of life.<\/p>\n

The voluntary goodness of God towards the latecomers reminds us again of Father in the story of the Prodigal Son.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0And those who were blessed enough to be have responded earlier in life to God\u2019s promptings should never react to the latecomers like the older son, with envy or greed: \u00a0for this not how love operates.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Everything we have, including our ability to do good and to respond to God, has been granted to us as a gift.\u00a0 There is nothing we can truly take credit for so we should only rejoice over God\u2019s generosity which may be beyond our comprehension.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[powerpress] Sunday September 21, 2014 Lectionary: 133 \u00a0Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (NAB Translation) Welcome to the Sunday Says podcast for September 21, 2014, the Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time.\u00a0 Thank you for joining us as we begin preparing our hearts and minds for Mass by previewing and reflecting on the readings.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0The selected readings… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[3,27,258],"tags":[2497,215,37,491,598],"class_list":["post-52394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-acnm","category-podcast","category-sundaysays","tag-25th-sunday-of-ordinary-time","tag-bible","tag-gospel","tag-scripture","tag-theology","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t