Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
God Sees What Is in Us
Alternative Celebration: Learn more here.
Liturgical Cycle: C | Lectionary Cycle: I
Introduction
Poor and Humble Before God
God Sees What Is in Us
Greeting (See Second Reading)
The Lord stands by me and gives me power.
The Lord will rescue me from all evil
and bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.
May the Lord be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction by the Celebrant
Poor and Humble before God
Too often we pretend that we are better than we really are. We wear masks and dare not show our true selves, not even before God. The Lord’s message for today says: Stand before God the way you are, be honest and humble with yourself, and you will learn to be without pretense before God and the people around you. Such an attitude brings us close to God, close to our real self, close to people. Let us ask the Lord to hear our prayer today.
God Sees What Is in Us
If we try our best to live decently as good Christians who serve God well, would we still deserve a scolding from God? The message of today says yes. What is really our attitude before God? Do we think God should be grateful to us for all the things we have done for him? Do we look down on others who fail, who are weak and turn wrong? Are we aware that they also do good things? He sees what is good in them and he loves them for it. We pray that Jesus may give us an attitude of honesty with ourselves, with God and with people.
Penitential Act
Let us examine ourselves before the Lord
to see who we really are
and in what ways we have to change.
(pause)
Lord Jesus, be merciful to us,
for we are sinners in need of conversion:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you always hear
the cries of the poor:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you are close to the brokenhearted
and you hear the prayer of the humble:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy on us, sinners.
Restore us, make us free and alive
and lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray to God
for we expect from him all that is good
(pause)
Kind and merciful Father,
we stand before you empty-handed
and we feel small and frail before you.
Forgive us for the times we boast
of the good that you gave us the grace to do.
Fill our poverty with your gifts,
keep us from looking down
on any of our brothers and sisters,
and give us grateful hearts
for all that we have received from you.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading
The Prayer of the Humble Pierces the Clouds: God hears the prayer of the humble who are aware of how poor they are before God.
The LORD is a God of justice,
who knows no favorites.
Though not unduly partial toward the weak,
yet he hears the cry of the oppressed.
The Lord is not deaf to the wail of the orphan,
nor to the widow when she pours out her complaint.
The one who serves God willingly is heard;
his petition reaches the heavens.
The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds;
it does not rest till it reaches its goal,
nor will it withdraw till the Most High responds,
judges justly and affirms the right,
and the Lord will not delay.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (7a) The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
The LORD redeems the lives of his servants;
no one incurs guilt who takes refuge in him.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
Second Reading
I Have Fought the Good Fight to the End: Paul knows that the end of his life is approaching. He has remained loyal to God, who is his hope. He professes his trusting faith in God, who has been loyal to him to the end.
Beloved:
I am already being poured out like a libation,
and the time of my departure is at hand.
I have competed well; I have finished the race;
I have kept the faith.
From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me,
which the Lord, the just judge,
will award to me on that day, and not only to me,
but to all who have longed for his appearance.
At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf,
but everyone deserted me.
May it not be held against them!
But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength,
so that through me the proclamation might be completed
and all the Gentiles might hear it.
And I was rescued from the lion's mouth.
The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat
and will bring me safe to his heavenly kingdom.
To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
and entrusting to us the message of salvation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
God Hears Those Aware of Their Poverty: God rejects the prayer of the self-righteous person, but listens to that of the sinner who is aware of his inner poverty.
Jesus shared another parable to some people who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on others:
“Two men went up to the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
The Pharisee stood by himself and said: ‘
I thank you, God, that I am not like other people, grasping, crooked, adulterous, or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all my income to the temple.’
In the meantime, the tax collector, standing far away, would not even lift his eyes to heaven but beat his chest, saying:
‘O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’
I tell you, when this man returned to his house, he had been reconciled with God, but not the other. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be lifted up.”
Prayers of the Faithful
Let us pray to the Father in heaven who hears the cries of the humble, and let us say: R/ Lord, hear your people.
– For the Church, we the people saved by God’s love, that we may not rebuff or alienate anyone through superior attitudes, let us pray: R/ Lord, hear your people.
– For those in the Church to whom the ministry of reconciliation has been especially entrusted, that they may be uncompromising with evil yet welcome sinners with respect and mercy, let us pray: R/ Lord, hear your people.
– For the leaders of nations and public servants, that like God they may be especially attentive to the poor and marginal people, let us pray: R/ Lord, hear your people.
– For those who are rich in possessions and God-given talents, that they may not look down on the less privileged but invest their wealth and potentials in the growth of the country and all its people, let us pray: R/ Lord, her your people.
– For each of us in this community, that we may realize how poor we are before God and one another and be open to continuous renewal and conversion, let us pray: R/ Lord, hear your people.
Lord our God, we know that beautiful words mean little if they do not spring from humble and sincere hearts. Help us to do as we say and to live as we pray, that you may hear our prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God, merciful Father,
you are partial to the poor.
From your own gifts
we bring before you bread and wine.
Make us as humble and genuine
as these offerings,
that we may experience your forgiveness and love
through him who humbled himself for us,
Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
Let us offer our praise to God and pray that his name may be known and worshipped over all the earth.
Invitation to the Lord’s Prayer
By the grace of God we dare to pray the prayer of the humble Jesus: R/ Our Father...
Deliver Us
Deliver us from every evil
and grant us your peace in our day.
Set us free from our self-sufficient pride,
which blinds us to our inner poverty,
hardens our hearts
and makes us look down on others.
Help us to seek you and your kingdom,
that we may hasten the full coming among us
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus, the Lamb of God
who humbled himself to be with us
and to take our sins away.
Happy are we to be invited to the table
that he has set for the poor,
the little ones, and sinners. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer after Communion
God, our merciful Father,
we realize that we are sinners
in constant need of your mercy.
We thank you in the poverty of our hearts
that you have let us eat from Jesus’ table,
notwithstanding our little faith,
and our lukewarm love.
Keep accepting us the way we are,
help us to be and to do better,
and receive our wholehearted thanks
for all the good you have done for us
and for our brothers and sisters.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
In this Eucharist we have thanked God
for having made us rich
by the grace of Jesus and his gospel.
May God fill you with his good gifts
and bless you all:
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Go in the peace of the Lord,
and may he go with you on all your ways.
R/ Thanks be to God.
REFLECTIONS
26 October 2025
Luke 18: 9-14
Today Jesus gives us a parable that cuts right to the heart: two men went up to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, the other a tax collector. Both stood before God, but they did not go home the same.
The Pharisee stood tall. His words sounded like prayer, but they were really addressed to himself. He listed his merits—his fasting, his tithing, his obedience to the law. He even compared himself to others, saying, “I am not like the rest of men.” His attitude was not gratitude, but pride. He did not pray to God—he praised himself in God’s presence.
The tax collector, by contrast, stood at a distance. He would not even lift his eyes. He beat his chest and said only this: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” He did not defend himself. He did not excuse himself. He placed his whole trust in God’s mercy.
And Jesus declares: it was the tax collector, not the Pharisee, who went home justified. What does this teach us about prayer?
First, no one who is proud can truly pray. The gate of heaven is too low for the proud to enter. Prayer is not an exercise in comparison, as if the question were, “Am I better than others?” The only question that matters is: “Am I standing before the holiness of God?” When we set our lives beside the life of Christ, all we can say is, “Lord, have mercy on me.”
Second, no one who despises others can truly pray. True prayer unites us with all of humanity—suffering, sinning, hoping before the throne of God’s mercy. To pray while looking down on others is to pray with a divided heart. God listens to the voice of the humble, not the voice of the proud.
Finally, true prayer comes from humility. The Pharisee’s fasting and tithing may have been real, but his heart was closed. The tax collector’s prayer was simple, but it opened heaven. When we strike our chest at Mass and say, “through my fault, through my most grievous fault,” it is not empty ritual. It is the same prayer of the tax collector. It is the prayer of sinners who know that mercy is greater than sin.
There is an old image: a whitewashed cottage looks dazzling in the green fields. But when snow falls, pure and untouched, the cottage suddenly looks dull and grey. So too, when we compare ourselves with others, we may feel righteous. But when we compare ourselves with the holiness of God, we see the truth. And that truth leads us not to despair, but to mercy.
So let us learn from the tax collector. Let us make his prayer our own: “God, be merciful to me, the sinner.” This prayer, spoken with humility, is always heard. And it is this prayer that leads us home justified. Amen.
Prayer of the Humble
Read:
The book of Sirach declares that whereas God is impartial, the prayers of the humble have a way of claiming God’s attention. Paul declares that he has fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith; and God will reward him. Through the parable on prayer, Jesus declares that God hears the prayer of the humble.
Reflect:
The Pharisee’s prayer is one of comparative triumphalism. His prayer was not heard, because his was not a prayer; but a self-parading. In contrast, the tax collector presents himself before God with a sense of embarrassment. Beating his breast, he acknowledges his sinfulness and pleads for mercy. His was a true prayer and hence, was heard. Listening to Paul’s words (second reading), one might wonder if he isn’t doing a Pharisee, boasting of himself. Not so, because, Paul goes on to state that all of them was possible because “the Lord was at my side, giving me strength.” Thus, essentially, his boasting is a boasting in the Lord (cf. 1 Cor. 1:31). Delighting in God’s doing in us is an act of humility as well—as we see in Mary’s Magnificat.
Pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me” (‘Jesus Prayer’)
Act: Make a good confession this week.