21 October 2026 Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time Gospel: Luke 12:39-48
Today is Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time. The Scripture passage taken from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke presents to us Jesus’ teaching on the end times. Let us try to understand it. First, Saint Luke tells us that Jesus said to His disciples: “You may be sure of this: if the householder had known what time the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into. You too must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Cf. Luke 11:39-40)
We often understand these words literally. In our view, being watchful means not sleeping, staying awake without rest. A thief means someone who illegally takes everything we have. If we understand it this way, then we misunderstand what Jesus said.
The watchfulness that Jesus speaks of is to keep our spirit alert. So how can we achieve this? It is by communicating with Him through prayer. When a person offers prayer to God, his spirit is with God. We know that God is living, full of life in Him. He is not a lifeless God, but a vibrant God. The merciful God will never make those who commune with Him freely become lifeless.
The thief mentioned by Jesus is very common in the New Testament. Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians, also used this image, saying: “You yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.” We also find in the Second Letter of Saint Peter: “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.” And in the Revelation, in the letter of the Risen Lord to those who are not watchful in the Church of Sardis, we see: “But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you.”
Sometimes, we think of a thief as a threat. However, the thief Jesus speaks of no longer carries a threatening meaning. On the contrary, the thief Jesus speaks of does not come to take away everything we have, but to remind us to pay attention to the grace that God has bestowed upon each of us, to make good use of all that He has given us, so that all He has given us may continue to be effective in this changing world.
Almighty ever-living God, grant that we may always conform our will to yours and serve your majesty in sincerity of heart. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever
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