November 19, 2026 Thursday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time Gospel: Luke 19:41-44
Today is Thursday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. The passage taken from the Gospel of Saint Luke tells us of the lament Jesus uttered when He beheld Jerusalem, foreseeing all that would befall it. Let us seek to understand.
In times past, before we came to know Christ, we were like that Jerusalem over which Jesus wept. This Jerusalem is born of Hagar. Because of the disobedience of our first parents, from the moment we left our mother’s womb, we lived under the dominion of sin and death. The whole of creation, too, because of the sins we committed, groans in travail together with us. Our enemy — the source of all evil — the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (cf. 1 Pet 5:8). Those whom the devil devours are those whose faith is weak. In our daily lives, we are often assailed by the devil and his minions and are thereby drawn into strife. In those moments, our condition is no different from that Jerusalem over which Jesus wept (cf. Luke 19:41-44). Yet the infinitely merciful God does not abandon us to perish, so that we might fall into eternal death at the second death. He wills that we receive the Baptism of Christ, that we might be united to Him, and that our old self, subject to death, be crucified together with Christ, so that the self which belonged to sin might perish, and we might no longer be slaves to sin (cf. Rom 6:6). He also wills that we follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and with the aid of the Holy Spirit, put to death the deeds of the flesh, receive His guidance, and become children of God (cf. Rom 8:13-14). Thus we are children of the Jerusalem above, children of freedom (cf. Gal 4:21-27), and by sharing the one cup of blessing and the one bread that is broken, we are united in the Body and Blood of Christ (cf. 1 Cor 10:16-17), growing together in mutual exhortation toward holiness, and by professing the one faith on earth, becoming the visible Church for the world.
As we approach the end of Ordinary Time, let us, with full faith, offer our prayers to God:
O Lord our God, grant us the joy of being unfailingly devoted to You, for to serve the Creator of all good with constancy is full and lasting happiness. 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. Amen.
November 18, 2026 Wednesday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time, or Dedication of the Basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles Gospel: Luke 19:11-28 and Matthew 14:22-33
Today is Wednesday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. According to the General Roman Calendar, the Church celebrates today the Optional Memorial of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles.
The Missal published by the Catholic Truth Society tells us:
The dedication of these two major basilicas allows us to express our communion with the Church in Rome. Both basilicas were completed in the fourth century and commemorate the two great Apostles: St. Peter’s Basilica on the Vatican Hill was built above the tomb of the first Pope, and St. Paul’s Basilica Outside the Walls likewise stands above the final resting place of the Apostle to the Gentiles.
Today, the Gospel for Wednesday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time is taken from the Gospel of Saint Luke; if the Optional Memorial of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles is celebrated, the Gospel is taken from the Gospel of Saint Matthew. From these two Gospels we see the inspirations that Our Lord Jesus gives us in two different scenes.
From the inspiration Jesus gives us through the Gospel of Saint Matthew, we see a frightened community of disciples. After Jesus left them, they were sailing alone on the sea of the world, and they were sensitive to everything around them. Sometimes we also encounter such situations, especially when we are in adversity. Adversity makes us become as timid as Peter, because at that time, we have not yet discovered the unique grace God has given to each of us, nor the unique call He has for us. At that time, we live in distress, and we long to walk toward Jesus like Peter. But when we truly begin to walk toward Jesus, the factors that hinder us from approaching Him reappear, preventing us from moving toward God. At this time, we must draw inspiration from another teaching of Jesus told to us by Saint Luke. Jesus tells us: the merciful God, according to the measure of each person’s ability, gives us the strength to approach Him. If we make good use of the strength God gives us and completely trust in God, we will not become timid like Peter but will be as brave as Saint Paul the Apostle. Because at that time, our complete longing for God helps us remove all obstacles that prevent us from approaching God, enabling us to walk toward the God who is always ready to love us. For Jesus still loves us, and He is always ready to rescue us when we need Him.
O Lord our God, grant us the joy of being unfailingly devoted to You, for to serve the Creator of all good with constancy is full and lasting happiness. 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. Amen.
Tuesday, 17 November 2026 Tuesday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time | Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary Gospel: Lk 19:1–10
Today is Tuesday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. According to the General Roman Calendar, the Church today celebrates the Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.
The Missal published by the Catholic Truth Society tells us:
Saint Elizabeth of Hungary (1207–1231) was the daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary. She was born at either Sárospatak (Hungary) or Bratislava (then in Hungary, now in Slovakia). She married Ludwig IV, Landgrave of Thuringia (Germany), and had three children. Saint Elizabeth was widowed at the age of twenty and thereafter devoted herself to serving the poor and the sick. She founded a hospital at Marburg and joined the Third Order of Saint Francis.
Today, the passage from the Gospel of Saint Luke tells us about an encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector in Jericho, as Jesus was passing through. As I write this reflection on today’s Gospel passage, I see our own image in this tax collector named Zacchaeus. For we too often rush about on the road of seeking Jesus, just like this tax collector Zacchaeus. We too urgently need the sycamore tree to lead us to Jesus, so that Jesus may heal us and restore to us our identity as children of God.
Today, through the Gospel recorded by Saint Luke, Jesus tells us: He is not a God who keeps His distance from anyone. Like a compassionate Father, even before we speak to Him, He takes the initiative to approach us, desiring to stay in our homes and be with us. Because we have become children of God through the Baptism of Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, we must live out the spirit of the Word of God. We should take the initiative to welcome those who are marginalized, showing them the love God has for them. We should help those who have lost themselves in life to rediscover the love they have lost, by contemplating all that God has done in us. Through acts of charity in our daily lives, they can cover their sins, and together with us, put on anew the righteousness that belongs to the children of God, so as to share in the inheritance of the Kingdom of God.
O Lord our God, grant us the joy of being unfailingly devoted to You, for to serve the Creator of all good with constancy is full and lasting happiness. 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. Amen.
您必须登录才能发表评论。