Wednesday of the Twenty-Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

God Wants All To Be Saved

Liturgical Cycle: C | Lectionary Cycle: I

Introduction

God is a saving God. He calls all people to salvation in Jesus Christ, and he does not discriminate or segregate. His kingdom is open to all people, all races, all cultures, all languages, and all walks of life. And those who are most in need are given preference. For he is the Father of all and cares for those for whom people do not care. Do we do enough to bring his Son to all? Do we open the Christian community to all, without any discrimination? Or is there a bit of Jonah alive in us?

The disciples must have admired Jesus when he prayed, for when he had finished, they asked him to teach them to pray. This is indeed what we too should ask him in this eucharist, that our prayer may be wide and deep like his, giving honor to the Father and bringing to him the stream of the needs and concerns of all. And like him too, in our prayers we try not to bend God’s will to ours, but ours to God’s will and Intercessions.

Opening Prayer

God, you are tender and compassionate,
slow to anger, rich in graciousness,
and reluctant to punish.
You want all people to share in your love.
God, make our love as worldwide as yours.
Make us grateful for all you have given us
through your Son Jesus Christ,
that the zeal of a missionary Church
may gather everyone into your kingdom,
and that all may call you Father,
for ever and ever.

First Reading

Jonah 4:1-11

Jonah was greatly displeased
and became angry that God did not carry out the evil
he threatened against Nineveh.
He prayed, "I beseech you, LORD,
is not this what I said while I was still in my own country?
This is why I fled at first to Tarshish.
I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God,
slow to anger, rich in clemency, loath to punish.
And now, LORD, please take my life from me;
for it is better for me to die than to live."
But the LORD asked, "Have you reason to be angry?"

Jonah then left the city for a place to the east of it,
where he built himself a hut and waited under it in the shade,
to see what would happen to the city.
And when the LORD God provided a gourd plant
that grew up over Jonah's head,
giving shade that relieved him of any discomfort,
Jonah was very happy over the plant.
But the next morning at dawn
God sent a worm that attacked the plant,
so that it withered.
And when the sun arose, God sent a burning east wind;
and the sun beat upon Jonah's head till he became faint.
Then Jonah asked for death, saying,
"I would be better off dead than alive."

But God said to Jonah,
"Have you reason to be angry over the plant?"
"I have reason to be angry," Jonah answered, "angry enough to die."
Then the LORD said,
"You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor
and which you did not raise;
it came up in one night and in one night it perished.
And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city,
in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons
who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left,
not to mention the many cattle?"

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 86:3-4, 5-6, 9-10

R. (15) Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
Have mercy on me, O Lord,
for to you I call all the day.
Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in kindness to all who call upon you.
Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer
and attend to the sound of my pleading.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
All the nations you have made shall come
and worship you, O Lord,
and glorify your name.
For you are great, and you do wondrous deeds;
you alone are God.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious.

Alleluia Verse

Romans 8:15bc

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You have received a spirit of adoption as sons
through which we cry: Abba! Father!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Luke 11:1-4

One day, Jesus was praying in a certain place; and when he had finished, one of his disciples asked him:

“Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”

And Jesus said to them:

“When you pray, say this:

Father, hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins,

for we also forgive all

who are in debt to us;

and do not bring us

to the time of trial.”

Prayers of the Faithful

– That the Church itself may be the first to practice God’s example of forgiving her difficult and erring children, we pray:

– That missionaries may discover first what is good in the people to whom they are sent and their culture rather than condemning and faultfinding, we pray:

– That we may pray for people who do not yet know God and the One he has sent, Jesus Christ, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

God our Father,
accept this bread and this wine,
that your Son may renew among us
his saving death and resurrection for all.
And may the time come, we pray you,
that he may break his bread of life
and pour his wine of joy
for every person on earth,
that your name may be praised everywhere
for ever and ever.

Prayer after Communion

God our Father,
do not allow us to lie self-contented
in a patch of shade under her own little tree
to seek relief from disappointments.
Give us the courage to go out
on the roads where there are people
who seek you, even if they don’t know it,
and be to them in our limited way
signs of your unifying love
and of the freedom and happiness
you have prepared for all
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing

We call ourselves “Catholics,” don’t we? That is, people universal by definition. How concerned are we about other people and their lasting happiness? People, near or far, should be our concern. Keep them in mind, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

REFLECTIONS

8 October 2025

Roadmap for our lives

In today’s Gospel, the disciples ask Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray.” They had seen Him pray often, and they longed to share in that intimacy with the Father. Jesus responds by giving them the prayer we now call the “Our Father.” Simple, brief, yet containing everything.

Prayer begins not with fear but with trust. We approach God not as a reluctant giver but as a loving Father who delights in our needs. Already, Jesus changes the way we understand prayer: it is not a technique, but a relationship.

The order of the prayer is also important. Before asking anything for ourselves, we place God first: “Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.” When God is at the centre, our needs find their proper place. Then we pray for daily bread—not tomorrow’s or next year’s, but today’s. We ask forgiveness for our sins, as we forgive others. And we ask for strength to face trials, knowing that temptation and testing are part of life, but never beyond God’s help.

This prayer speaks to all of life: our present needs, our past failings, and our future struggles. It reminds us to live one day at a time, always rooted in God’s mercy and care.

The first reading from Jonah highlights the same truth from a different angle. Jonah was angry when God spared Nineveh, because his heart could not yet grasp God’s boundless compassion. How different from the “Our Father,” which places forgiveness and mercy at the centre! Prayer is not about bending God to our will, but about allowing God to bend our hearts to His mercy.

Today, let us pray the Lord’s Prayer not as routine words but as a roadmap for our lives: trusting the Father, seeking His kingdom, receiving His forgiveness, and extending it to others.

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"Lord, teach us to pray" opens up a whole mystery. Do we realize how powerful these two words “Our Father” coming out from Jesus' lips are? When we call God “our father” we are on one side affirming that we are brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ who is the one who links us with the Father, his Abba. On the other side, we affirm our filiation with God; we are too sons and daughters of God, each one of us, not just an “image of God” but sons and daughters… no one is above…or below; there is no privileged race, there is no nobility by blood, by linking to some titans or gods like former emperors or kings… we are sons and daughters, that’s all… and that’s everything.

Indeed, how can we dare to say “Our Father” without trembling from our most inner entrails?

Check your lockers and wardrobes

Paul firmly believed that the Jewish law did not bind Christians and was unapologetic about it. Despite his strong Jewish background and upbringing, he underwent a transformative experience in which he realised that God chose him to spread the message of God's Son to the Gentiles. After consulting with Peter and James in Jerusalem, he was reassured and confirmed in his mission. This resolved the question of the Gentiles not being bound to follow the Jewish law.

Paul did not mince words when faced with double standards from the apostles. He was pleased that Peter dined openly with Gentile Christians in Antioch but later abstained from doing so when Jewish Christians arrived from Jerusalem. Paul addressed Peter about this hypocrisy, stressing that the Law of Christ goes beyond the Jewish law and requires love for God and neighbour.

Today, in a world marked by division, inequality, and individualism, the Lord’s prayer urges us to work towards peace and reconciliation.

When we pray for our "daily bread," it has profound implications, especially in a time dominated by materialism and self-sufficiency. By repeating this prayer, we are essentially promising the Lord that we will be content with what we have for today. This aligns with the Book of Proverbs, which states, “Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that I need, or I shall be full, and deny you, or I shall be poor, and steal, and profane the name of my God.” (30:8-9)

It's important for us to examine our lockers, wardrobes, and storage spaces to identify any excess possessions that could render our recitation of the Lord’s prayer meaningless.