Monday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Invite Those in Distress
Liturgical Cycle: C | Lectionary Cycle: I
Introduction
In the first reading, Paul says that God has never revoked his choice of Israel. Everyone and all are called to be saved by God’s mercy. That Israel did not accept Christ led to salvation being offered to the gentiles.
As there were divisions also in Philippi, Paul asked his Christians to work toward unity, a unity based on unselfishness, humility and concern for the good of others.
We are inclined to love and invite those who love and invite us. Is this genuine love according to God’s standards? True love is gratuitous and opens itself to the poor and to outcasts. This is beautiful to say but hard to do. What is our practice?
Opening Prayer
Lord our God, our Father,
we come together here as a people
to share in the feast of Jesus, our Savior.
Let this celebration be the sign of the feast without end
which you have prepared for us.
Make us rejoice with you
and welcome all with open arms,
people from everywhere, all nations,
the poor and the rich, the weak and the strong.
May all accept your invitation,
that we may rejoice with all
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.
But I am afflicted and in pain;
let your saving help, O God, protect me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
"See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not."
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
For God will save Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah.
They shall dwell in the land and own it,
and the descendants of his servants shall inherit it,
and those who love his name shall inhabit it.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus also addressed the man who had invited him and said, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t invite your friends, or your brothers and relatives, or your wealthy neighbors. For surely, they will also invite you in return and you will be repaid.
When you give a feast, invite instead the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
Fortunate are you then, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the upright.”
Prayers of the Faithful
– That those we encounter at the crossroads of life, too, may hear and accept the invitation to the table of the Lord, we pray:
– That the Lord who destroys death may give consolation and strength to all who mourn the death of a loved one, we pray:
– That also the communities without priests, isolated as they often are, may receive the Lord as their food, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord God,
we are preparing your table.
Like your Son,
may we open life’s happiness and share it
first of all with the most deprived.
Make us set your and our table
for those who have no access
to most of life’s goods and resources.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, our hospitable God,
we have shared the table of Jesus your Son.
Let this mean for us that we have also to share our table
with the humble and the dispossessed,
even people who are difficult and not very lovable.
Inspire us to help them back on their feet
and to restore to them that which no one can dispense with:
self-esteem, self-confidence
and the indestructible courage
to be human persons.
Grant us this through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
An impossible task? Something which only the naïve would try? Jesus has asked us today to care about the unlovable – or so we think – for no one is unlovable to God. Jesus cared and loved outcasts and sinners. Dare we follow him? May almighty God give you wisdom and courage and bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
3 November 2025
Luke 14:12-14
In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives us a teaching that cuts straight to the heart: “When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you.” His words invite us to look deeply at the motives behind our generosity.
Very often, we give with mixed intentions. Some give out of duty, as if fulfilling a tax or paying a debt to God. Others give with the hope of gaining something in return—perhaps recognition, respect, or even a sense of spiritual “credit.” Still others give to feel superior, to stand above those in need, and in doing so wound the very dignity of the person they claim to help. Such giving is not love, but pride disguised as charity.
Jesus shows us a different way: true giving flows from love, not calculation. It does not seek reward, applause, or repayment. It mirrors the very heart of God, who gives freely and abundantly, “for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.” Real generosity is the outpouring of a heart that cannot help but love.
The Rabbis once said: the highest form of giving is when neither the giver nor the receiver knows the other. This protects dignity and keeps love pure. Likewise, when we give as Jesus asks, quietly and freely, we share in God’s own way of loving.
Today, let us ask ourselves: why do I give? Do I give to be noticed, or do I give because Christ’s love compels me? May we learn to give as God gives—without counting the cost—so that our reward may be found not in this world, but in His Kingdom. Amen.
Luke 14:12-14
Pay it forward is the breath of life
When I realised the gift of my life, I always feel indebted to others and nature and my entire life is insufficient to return back what I’ve received. When I don’t realise this giftedness, even a precious gift remains just a commodity to be exchanged. There is nothing more beautiful in life than a sense of gratitude and this attitude necessitates a life with inner freedom whichseeks nothing but the joy of doing anything generously and lovingly. It flows from within independent of anything in return.
Jesus, in today’s gospel, proposes a practical way to be a gift unto others by offering to those who cannot repay us. Perhaps the materials we offer are not repaid but the paradox is that we are returned with enormous joy which is greater than the material that can be bought even. Thus, the giver in turn becomes the receiver. Whereas St. Paul in the first reading indicates a gratuitous gift of God to all of us which is salvation that cannot be repaid.
The secret lies not so much in our efforts, or in the series of motivational reasoning about it, but simply in letting this to become our experience. In fact, only those who experience such gift are also capable of doing the same.
Today is that precious gift that you got from Him. The very fact you did, the divine thinks you are worthy of another ‘Today’, then how about wasting a day of your life.
Today does not care about the blemishes of your past, nor is it affected by the uncertainties of the future – it is a day in itself, an opportunity in itself, and a portion of life by itself. So, take care of your today(s) and you will take care of your life.
Pray, “Oh my Lord, this day of mine is your gift unto me and the way I live this day will be my gift unto you.”