October 3
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Give a Mass Offering
Mass Intention
Sat. 4:00 PM – Bridget, Ted & Matt Kelly / Family
Sun. 7:30 AM – Irene & Bernard Kelly / Their Children
Sun. 10:30 AM – Anthnet Moore / Family
Sun. 5:00 PM – Clinton Carr / Rita & Peter Bergamo
Prayer for Spiritual Communion
My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there, and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
Readings
First Reading
Genesis 2:18-24
The LORD God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him." So the LORD God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of the air, and all wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man.
So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said: "This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called 'woman, ' for out of 'her man’ this one has been taken." That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalms 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (cf. 5) May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
May you see your children's children.
Peace be upon Israel!
R. May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.
Second Reading
Hebrews 2:9-11
Brothers and sisters: He "for a little while" was made "lower than the angels, " that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
For it was fitting that he, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the leader to their salvation perfect through suffering. He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated all have one origin. Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them “brothers.”
Gospel Acclamation
1 John 4:12
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If we love one another, God remains in us
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mark 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked, "Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" They were testing him. He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?" They replied, "Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss her." But Jesus told them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate." In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this. He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."
And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it." Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.
“May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.”
Reflection
“God himself is a communion of persons, an eternal exchange of love, and he has destined us to share in that exchange” (CCC 221).
Our Scripture readings this weekend on human love and the divine plan are consoling, but yet they are also quite challenging. Consoling because they present to us the profound truth that—yes, here and now—we can experience a pure, authentic level of communion between man and woman that is reflective of, and a participation in God’s unfathomable union with humanity. Challenging because we know all too well the fractured state of marriage in our culture and world, and the reality that married life, at times, is very hard.
In a sense, when a man and woman lovingly consent to become “one flesh” with each other united intimately with God, while unspoken, it means consenting to understand that “I am marrying an imperfect person…in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, I am committed to helping my spouse love the Lord and reach eternal life with God forever…” The total gift of self each spouse makes to the other is to be a reflection of Jesus’ own words when he says, “This is my body…this is my blood…given for you.” This is not easy! It only happens through the generous outpouring of God’s grace.
May we fervently pray for the married couples among us in our faith community, that they may be renewed in living out their vocation that is absolutely essential to the life of the Church.
May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives. (cf. Ps. 128:5)
Peace,
Fr. Foley
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