Saturday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
A Grain Of Faith
Other Celebrations for this Day:
Liturgical Cycle: A | Lectionary Cycle: II
Introduction
Year II. The prophet Habakkuk assures the people of God. He says: Even if you do not understand God’s ways, remain faithful to God, for he is a God on whom you can rely.
Gospel. If we look back to the Bible and to history, even recent history about persons we have known or who are perhaps still alive, even discreet, humble people, but people of faith who take the word of Jesus seriously, we see that with them God can do very great things, can do the impossible. But we must really believe. Even a grain of faith can work miracles. Let us ask for this grain of faith.
Opening Prayer
Faithful God,
we thank you for our faith,
which we have received from you
as a gift to be developed with your help
Make our faith grow day after day.
Let it give meaning to our life
and express itself in love and justice.
Let it bring us joy and understanding
and make us very close to you and to people.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
First Reading
Plea and Description
But you, are you not the Lord from old ages? You, my holy God, cannot die. You have set these people to serve your justice, and you have made them as firm as a rock, to carry out your punishment.
The Lord, your eyes are too pure to tolerate wickedness, and you cannot look on oppression. Why, then, do you look on treacherous people and watch in silence while the evildoer swallows up one better than himself?
You treat human beings like fish in the sea, like reptiles who are nobody’s concern.
This nation catches everyone on its hook, pulls them out with its net, and heaps them up in its dragnet.
Pleased and delighted with their catch, they offer sacrifices to their net and burn incense to their dragnets, since these have supplied them with plenty of fish and abundant food.
Will they then continue, endlessly emptying their nets, slaughtering nations without mercy?
Waiting and Oracle
I will stand on my watchtower and take my position on the battlements; I will see what he replies if there is an answer to my question.
Then the Lord responded and said: “Write down the vision, inscribe it on tablets so it can be easily read,
since this is a vision for an appointed time; it will not fail but will be fulfilled in its proper time. If it is delayed, wait for it, because it will come a and will not be late. Look:
I don’t look with favor on the one who gives way; the upright, on the other hand, will live by his faithfulness.”
Responsorial Psalm
R. (11b) You forsake not those who seek you, O Lord.
The LORD sits enthroned forever;
he has set up his throne for judgment.
He judges the world with justice;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. You forsake not those who seek you, O Lord.
The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of distress.
They trust in you who cherish your name,
for you forsake not those who seek you, O LORD.
R. You forsake not those who seek you, O Lord.
Sing praise to the LORD enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations his deeds;
For the avenger of blood has remembered;
he has not forgotten the cry of the poor.
R. You forsake not those who seek you, O Lord.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
He Heals an Epileptic Child
When they reached the crowd, a man approached Jesus, knelt before him and said”
Sir, have mercy on my son, who is epileptic and suffers greatly. He has often fallen into the fire and sometimes into the water.
I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.
Jesus replied:
“O you people, faithless and misguided! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.”
And Jesus commanded the evil spirit to leave the boy, and the boy was instantly healed.
Later, the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked:
“Why couldn’t we drive out the spirit?”
Jesus said to them:
“Because you have little faith. I tell you: if only you had faith as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would obey you. Nothing would be impossible for you.”
Prayers of the Faithful
– That the Church may bring the light of faith where there is darkness and indifference, hope where there is fatalism and despair, love where there is hatred and strife, we pray:
– That leaders, prophets, witnesses of faith and all others who have the task of keeping alive our hope in a better world, may be guided by the Holy Spirit, we pray:
– That those who are discouraged by trials, by their doubts and fears, may keep believing and hoping in a God who brings everything to a good end, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
God our Father,
we firmly believe that Jesus, your Son
will change into himself
these simple gifts of bread and wine,
so that he might be with us
with all his strength and love.
Help us to believe with all that is in us
that he is also with us in everyday life
as the Lord of our lives and our friend,
who gives meaning to all we do.
Let him make our faith a way of life
that gives you all honour and praise,
now and forever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, our God.
accept our thanks for giving us, Jesus
to revive and strengthen our faith.
Reassure us that he stays with us
in the cares and the heat of the day,
and that, with him walking by our side,
everything becomes possible.
Keep this faith and hope alive in us
and help us to bear witness to it
through him who is with us always,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
“If you had faith the size of a tiny seed.” Perhaps it is good that, at times, our faith is tested through difficulties and questions, so as not to become complacent. Let us place our trust in the love and concern of God, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
Matthew 17:14-20
Drive the evil out by prayer
There are moments in life when we are simply helpless. Like the father in today’s Gospel, who brings his suffering son to Jesus, we too carry the weight of our loved ones’ pain. His son’s epilepsy, a terrible illness, causes him to lose control, fall, and injure himself. The father cannot help him. He stands by, watching—loving, suffering, and waiting. How many mothers and fathers today, how many friends and family members, know this helplessness, this silent anguish?
But there is another illness that many of us carry—a kind of spiritual epilepsy. It doesn’t convulse the body, but it shakes the soul. It makes people feel worthless, as if they don’t matter. It leaves others confused, unstable, unable to finish what they begin. Some feel voiceless, as if their cry cannot be heard, even by God.
To all of this, Jesus offers a gentle yet firm response: “Bring him here to me.” And so we must bring ourselves, too—just as we are—into the presence of the Lord. The disciples once asked why they couldn’t heal the boy. Jesus said plainly: “This kind can only come out through prayer.”
Yes, prayer. Real, honest, intimate prayer. Even if all we do is sit in silence, letting Jesus look at us with love. Even if all we can do is cry in His presence. There, in prayer, our hearts are restored. The Lord listens. He heals. He lifts us up.
So today, let us not be afraid to pray. Let us bring to Jesus our sufferings, our doubts, even our spiritual chaos. In His love, there is power. In His presence, there is peace.
And in prayer, there is the miracle of healing.