LUKE 16     19 ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham.* The rich man also died and was buried. 23In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side.* 24He called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.” 25But Abraham said, “Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. 26Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.” 27He said, “Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— 28for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.” 29Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.” 30He said, “No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” 31He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”---------------------
[16:19–31] The parable of the rich man and Lazarus again illustrates Luke’s concern with Jesus’ attitude toward the rich and the poor. The reversal of the fates of the rich man and Lazarus (Lk 16:22–23) illustrates the teachings of Jesus in Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:20–21, 24–25).
* [16:19] The oldest Greek manuscript of Luke dating from ca. A.D. 175–225 records the name of the rich man as an abbreviated form of “Nineveh,” but there is very little textual support in other manuscripts for this reading. “Dives” of popular tradition is the Latin Vulgate’s translation for “rich man” (Lk 16:19–31)

LUKE 16    10 ‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth,* who will entrust to you the true riches? 12And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? 13No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’*

14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him. 15So he said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.

16 ‘The law and the prophets were in effect until John came; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is proclaimed, and everyone tries to enter it by force.* 17But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one stroke of a letter in the law to be dropped.

luke 15        11 Then Jesus* said, ‘There was a man who had two sons. 12The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” So he divided his property between them. 13A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. 14When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. 15So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. 16He would gladly have filled himself with* the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. 17But when he came to himself he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.’ ” 20So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”* 22But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!” And they began to celebrate.

25 ‘Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27He replied, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.” 28Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” 31Then the father* said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.” ’

LUKE                     38 After leaving the synagogue he entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked him about her. 39Then he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she got up and began to serve them.
40 As the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various kinds of diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on each of them and cured them. 41Demons also came out of many, shouting, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah.*
42 At daybreak he departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowds were looking for him; and when they reached him, they wanted to prevent him from leaving them. 43But he said to them, ‘I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.’ 44So he continued proclaiming the message in the synagogues of Judea.

9/1/19   126         22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - C             Sir 3:17-18, 20, 28-29      Ps 68:4-5, 6-7, 10-11        Heb 12:18-19, 22-24a           Matt 11:29ab     Luke 14:1, 7-14

Sir 3:17-18, 20, 28-29

Humility* 17 My son, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. 18 Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find mercy in the sight of God.† f 20 For great is the power of the Lord; by the humble he is glorified. 21 What is too sublime for you, do not seek; do not reach into things that are hidden from young 22 What is committed to you, pay heed to; what is hidden is not your concern. 23 In matters that are beyond you do not meddle, when you have been shown more than you can understand. 24 Indeed, many are the conceits of human beings; evil imaginations lead them astray. Docility* 25 Without the pupil of the eye, light is missing; without knowledge, wisdom is missing. 26 A stubborn heart will fare badly in the end; those who love danger will perish in it. 27 A stubborn heart will have many a hurt; adding sin to sin is madness. 28 When the proud are afflicted, there is no cure; for they are offshoots of an evil plant.29 The mind of the wise appreciates proverbs, and the ear that listens to wisdom rejoices.

Psalm 68  To the leader. Of David. A Psalm. A Song. 1 Let God rise up, let his enemies be scattered;    let those who hate him flee before him.  2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;    as wax melts before the fire,    let the wicked perish before God.  3 But let the righteous be joyful;    let them exult before God;    let them be jubilant with joy.   4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name;    lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds*— his name is the Lord—    be exultant before him.   5 Father of orphans and protector of widows    is God in his holy habitation.  6 God gives the desolate a home to live in;    he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,    but the rebellious live in a parched land.   7 O God, when you went out before your people,    when you marched through the wilderness,           Selah  8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain    at the presence of God, the God of Sinai,    at the presence of God, the God of Israel.  9 Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad;    you restored your heritage when it languished;  10 your flock found a dwelling in it;    in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.   11 The Lord gives the command;    great is the company of those* who bore the tidings:  12   ‘The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!’ The women at home divide the spoil,  13   though they stay among the sheepfolds— the wings of a dove covered with silver,    its pinions with green gold.  14 When the Almighty* scattered kings there,    snow fell on Zalmon.   15 O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan;    O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!  16 Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain,    at the mount that God desired for his abode,    where the Lord will reside for ever?   17 With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand,    thousands upon thousands,    the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.*  18 You ascended the high mount,    leading captives in your train    and receiving gifts from people, even from those who rebel against the Lord God’s abiding there.  19 Blessed be the Lord,    who daily bears us up;    God is our salvation.           Selah  20 Our God is a God of salvation,    and to God, the Lord, belongs escape from death.   21 But God will shatter the heads of his enemies,    the hairy crown of those who walk in their guilty ways.  22 The Lord said,    ‘I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,  23 so that you may bathe* your feet in blood,    so that the tongues of your dogs may have their share from the foe.’   24 Your solemn processions are seen,* O God,    the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—  25 the singers in front, the musicians last,    between them girls playing tambourines:  26 ‘Bless God in the great congregation,    the Lord, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!’  27 There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,    the princes of Judah in a body,    the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.   28 Summon your might, O God;    show your strength, O God, as you have done for us before.  29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem    kings bear gifts to you.  30 Rebuke the wild animals that live among the reeds,    the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples. Trample* under foot those who lust after tribute;    scatter the peoples who delight in war.*  31 Let bronze be brought from Egypt;    let Ethiopia* hasten to stretch out its hands to God.   32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth;    sing praises to the Lord,           Selah  33 O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens;    listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.  34 Ascribe power to God,    whose majesty is over Israel;    and whose power is in the skies.  35 Awesome is God in his* sanctuary,    the God of Israel;    he gives power and strength to his people.

Luke.14 [1]  One sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him.  [2] And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy.  [3] And Jesus spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath, or not?"  [4] But they were silent. Then he took him and healed him, and let him go.  [5] And he said to them, "Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well, will not immediately pull him out on a sabbath day?"  [6] And they could not reply to this.  [7]  Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he marked how they chose the places of honor, saying to them,  [8] "When you are invited by any one to a marriage feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest a more eminent man than you be invited by him;  [9] and he who invited you both will come and say to you, `Give place to this man,' and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place.  [10] But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, `Friend, go up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you.  [11] For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  [12]  He said also to the man who had invited him, "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid.  

[13] But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind,  [14] and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."  [15]  When one of those who sat at table with him heard this, he said to him, "Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!"  [16] But he said to him, "A man once gave a great banquet, and invited many;  [17] and at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, `Come; for all is now ready.'  [18] But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, `I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it; I pray you, have me excused.'  [19] And another said, `I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them; I pray you, have me excused.'  [20] And another said, `I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.'  [21] So the servant came and reported this to his master. Then the householder in anger said to his servant, `Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and maimed and blind and lame.'  [22] And the servant said, `Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.'  [23] And the master said to the servant, `Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.  [24] For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.'"  

LUKE 14:  [25]  Now great multitudes accompanied him; and he turned and said to them,  [26] "If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.  Εἴ τις ἔρχεται πρός με καὶ οὐ μισεῖ τὸν πατέρα ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα καὶ τὰ τέκνα καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ τὰς ἀδελφάς, ἔτι τε καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἑαυτοῦ, οὐ δύναται εἶναί μου μαθητής.

* [14:25–33] This collection of sayings, most of which are unusual to Luke, focuses on the total dedication necessary for the disciple of Jesus. No attachment to family (Lk 14:26) or possessions (Lk 14:33) can stand in the way of the total commitment demanded of the disciple. Also, acceptance of the call to be a disciple demands readiness to accept persecution and suffering (Lk 14:27) and a realistic assessment of the hardships and costs (Lk 14:28–32). * [14:26] Hating his father…: cf. the similar saying in Mt 10:37. The disciple’s family must take second place to the absolute dedication involved in following Jesus (see also Lk 9:59–62).

[27] Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple.  [28] For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?  [29] Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,  [30] saying, `This man began to build, and was not able to finish.'  [31] Or what king, going to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  [32] And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends an ambassador and asks terms of peace.  

[33] So therefore, whoever of you does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.  [34]  "Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltness be restored?  [35] It is fit neither for the land nor for the dunghill; men throw it away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

A second gesture came in remarks by Wilton Gregory, the recently appointed archbishop of Washington, D.C. Archbishop Gregory is well known for his efforts to welcome L.G.B.T. people in his former archdiocese of Atlanta, where he supported “Fortunate and Faithful Families,” a group for family members of L.G.B.T. Catholics.

In a “Theology on Tap” event, a person named Rory, a transgender person, asked whether there was place in the church for transgender people. Archbishop Gregory answered:
You belong to the heart of this Church. And there is nothing that you may do, may say, that will ever rip you from the heart of this Church. There is a lot that has been said to you, about you, behind your back, that is painful and is sinful.

And so that’s why I mentioned my conversations with Fortunate Families. We have to find a way to talk to one another. And to talk to one another, not just from one perspective, but to talk and to listen to one another. I think that’s the way that Jesus ministered. He engaged people, he took them where they were at, and He invited them to go deeper, closer to God.
So if you’re asking me where do you fit? You fit in the family.

MARK 6       Feeding the Five Thousand
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. 33Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. 34As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 35When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; 36send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.’ 37But he answered them, ‘You give them something to eat.’ They said to him, ‘Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?’ 38And he said to them, ‘How many loaves have you? Go and see.’ When they had found out, they said, ‘Five, and two fish.’ 39Then he ordered them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40So they sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. 41Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. 42And all ate and were filled; 43and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.
1Shirley Bruch
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