Thursday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time
God’s Kingdom Is Among Us
Other Celebrations for this Day:
Liturgical Cycle: A | Lectionary Cycle: II
Introduction
Year II. The warm, charming letter of St Paul to Philemon makes us almost forget that Paul has no outright condemnation of slavery as it existed in his time. Yet he states the principles that will gradually eradicate that kind of slavery from most of the world. Love and brotherhood in Christ cannot tolerate slavery; interior liberty will not permit this slavery. And yet, many people today are not free: they cannot withstand or escape from being enslaved to the machine, to business methods, advertising, the social pressures of keeping up with the Joneses, fashions, political systems.
Gospel. To the Pharisees and perhaps to the disciples too, anxiously looking for signs, Jesus says: The kingdom of God is among you, right in your midst. It is already present in our lives. In other words, be wise and be committed to the present, to building up God’s kingdom now. Seek eternity and eternal life in the present, and God’s good day will come in God’s good time.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
your kingdom is not an established order
but something that is alive and always coming.
Make us aware that it is to be found
where we let you reign,
where we and the kingdom of people
give way to your kingdom,
where we let your justice and love and peace
take the place of our fumbling and stumbling.
Lord, establish your kingdom among us
through Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (5a) Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord:
whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
The Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God would arrive. He replied:
“The kingdom of God is not like something you can see,
and say of it, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘See, there it is!’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
And Jesus told his disciples:
“The time is near when you will long to see one of the glorious days of the Son of Man, but you will not get to see it.
Then people will tell you, ‘Look over there! Look here!’ ‘Do not go with them, do not follow them.’
As lightning flashes from one end of the sky to the other, so will it be with the Son of Man;
but first, he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
Prayers of the Faithful
– For the Church, which is not yet the kingdom, that it may be may be a visible sign of God’s kingdom on earth by its openness to all, its spirit of love and service, we pray:
– That all Christians may contribute to make the gospel credible by our commitment to justice and love, we pray:
– That we may build roads of peace and service to one another and that we may prepare ourselves and the world to welcome Jesus and the kingdom of God, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord God,
if we let you reign in us
rather than our self-will
or the people and things around us,
we would recognize that there is
a holy communion of love between you and us.
Come among us in Christ,
in this eucharist and in daily life,
and take possession of us
to rule and forgive, to sanctify and enlighten,
to order all things for the good of all
and to renew us by your grace.
Grant us this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Loving and all-wise Father,
in this eucharistic celebration
you have again given us Jesus your Son.
Through his Spirit of wisdom,
make us fully aware
that our human personality and existence
and people and events around us
are the way in which you call us
and in which we respond to your call.
Develop your kingdom among us
through him who is in our midst,
Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord.
Blessing
The kingdom of God is among us. It is here if we have accepted Christ and let him light up our lives, in realities that are not so directly measurable: justice, forgiveness, love, peace, goodness. May almighty God help us to build up this kingdom with Christ our Lord and bless you for this task, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
REFLECTIONS
God's Kingdom is not a show
Luke 17:20-25
Jesus says, “The reign of God is already in your midst”. Christ's teachings, his many healings of the sick, his release of people from evil spirits and his compassion for sinners and outcasts reveal the reign of God. Yes, this is Emmanuel - God “in their midst”.
Pope Francis explains this passage by saying, “Do not give in to the temptation of thinking that the Kingdom of God is a spectacle, like those who make a pageant of their wedding, turning it into a showplace for vanity and an opportunity to be seen. Instead, it is already present in the everyday holiness, lived unseen by the families. The Kingdom of God will grow like wheat, not surrounded by things of beauty but amid weeds," the Pope said.
“The Kingdom of God is not a spectacle”. A display of power or might was one of the three temptations Jesus faced in the desert. That temptation accompanied him throughout his life – the temptation to show a spectacle – so that everyone might believe! Even on the Cross, the devil's voice was heard again: “If you are the Son of God, come down from the Cross!” However, the Kingdom of God grows within, but slowly and silently.
Do we fall into the temptation of showing off our power in the Church too often? The Pope renews the challenge before the people of God that we do not succumb to the temptation of giving a show before the world, especially in celebrating sacraments. While celebrating weddings, in particular, couples must discern whether they “have come to receive a sacrament, to have a feast like at Cana in Galilee, or to have a pageant, to be looked at, for vanity?”.
The Pope recommends a brief examination of conscience by asking ourselves a few simple questions:
“Are you a Christian?" Yes!
Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Yes!
Do you believe in the Sacraments? Yes!
Do you believe that Jesus is there and that He has come here now?
If your answer is “Yes”, then why don’t you go to adore Him in the Mass, and why do you not take Communion so that His Kingdom may “grow” within you?