27th Sunday of the Year (C)

Sunday Lectionary Readings from Liturgical Years 2011 (A), 2012 (B), and 2013 (C)
October 6, 2013 (edited for October 5, 2025)
Liturgical readings
Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4
Psalm 95
2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14
Luke 17:5-10

"We have done no more than our duty."

The apostles said to the Lord,


"Increase our faith."


and he answered:


"If you had faith
the size of a mustard seed,
you could say to this sycamore,


'Be uprooted
and
transplanted into the sea,'


and it would obey you.


"If one of you had a servant
plowing or herding sheep
and he came in from the fields,
would you say to him,


'Come and sit down at table'?


Would you not rather say,
'Prepare my supper.
Put on your apron
and wait on me
while I eat and drink.
You can eat and drink afterward'?


Would he be grateful
to the servant who was only
carrying out his orders?


It is quite the same
with you who hear me.


When you have done
all you have been commanded to do,
say,
'We are useless servants.
We have done no more
than our duty.'"

Scripture verses from the lectionary readings:
"Let us kneel before the Lord who made us...for he is our God." (Psalm 95)
"With the strength which comes from God bear your share of the hardship which the gospel entails." (2 Timothy)
"The just man, because of his faith, shall live." (Hebrews 1)

27th Sunday of the Year (C) - October 3, 2010 (Edited for 10/05/2025)
Liturgical readings
Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4
Psalm 95
2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14
Luke 17:5-10

"Increase our faith."

In reading the New American Bible translation, we will notice that the 27th Sunday of the Year (C)'s gospel is part of a wider passage entitled, "Four Sayings of Jesus". That is why at first reading, some may not see the direct connection between the themes of the two sayings mentioned in the gospel: "faith the size of a mustard seed" (in reference to faith) and "we have done no more than our duty" (in reference to servanthood).

Even if there is no direct connection between the two separate sayings of Jesus, one can discover a link between them if you focus your attention on the Person of Christ. Christ Jesus taught all about faith and servanthood by His very humble life-example and mission to the people Israel. And what better image would link the two themes of faith and servanthood, than by Christ's self-sacrificing act of obedience to God, His Father.

What does this faith and servanthood have to do with all faithful believers today? Most of the time, those with work and professional commitments, often can, unawarely, set aside his faith and values for a while because of the "objective reality" he has to deal with. In the context of this "objective reality", one would naturally shirk at the thought of servanthood. In the context of power and money, the secular values of domination, profit, and a worldly understanding of human rights is surely not in line with the teachings of Christ. But Jesus was clear in His mission: to show that it is in faith and service that guides us on the way of salvation He promises. And faith and service is what is really called for in a time of climate change challenges and socio-political disruptions.

Perhaps, this quote of Blessed John Henry Newman can help us reflect on this theme of faith and servanthood in the gospel in the context of a chaotic and disruption-filled world:

"Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene - one step enough for me."

Faith leads to a Light that guides all amidst the darkness of this world's challenges and disruptions. And that Light is always available to anyone in need of it. It is a Light that never sets, nor dims in the midst of any "dark night". It is a Light that produces in each soul a courageous faith, a certainty of God's abiding presence, and a sense of His holiness dwelling in families or communities working for the good of one another. This Light gives us the courage to move on in uncertain times...one step of faith and hope is enough everyday.

26th Sunday of the Year (C)

Reflections from Liturgical Years 2011 (A), 2012 (B), and 2013 (C)
Sunday, September 29, 2013 (edited for 9/28/25)
Liturgical readings
Amos 6:1, 4-7
Psalm 146
1 Timothy 6:11-16
Luke 16:19-31

"Eventually...the soul of the beggar Lazarus...was carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham."

Jesus said to the Pharisees:


"Once there was a rich man
who dressed in purple
        and linen
        and feasted splendidly
        every day.


At his gate lay a beggar
        named Lazarus
        who was covered with sores.


Lazarus longed to eat the scraps
that fell from the rich man's table.


The dogs even came
and licked his sores.


Eventually the beggar died.


He was carried by angels
to the bosom of Abraham.


The rich man likewise died
and was buried.


From the abode of the dead
where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes
and saw Abraham afar off,
and Lazarus resting in his bosom."


"He called out,


'Father Abraham,
have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip
the tip of his finger in water
to refresh my tongue,
for I am tortured in these flames.'


'My child,'


replied Abraham,


'remember that you were well off
in your lifetime,
while Lazarus was in misery.


Now he has found consolation here,
but you have found torment.


And that is not all.


Between you and us
there is fixed a great abyss,
so that those who might wish to cross
from here to you cannot do so,
nor can anyone cross from your side to us.'


"'Father,
I ask you then,'


the rich man said,


'send him to my father's house
where I have five brothers.


Let him be a warning to them
so that they may not end
        in this place of torment.'


Abraham answered


'They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them hear them'.


'No, Father Abraham.'
replied the rich man.


'But if someone would only go
to them from the dead,
then they would repent.'


Abraham said to him,


'If they do not listen to Moses
and the prophets
they will not be convinced
even if one should rise from the dead.'"

Scripture quotes:
"The fatherless and the widow he sustains." (Psalm 146)
"Seek after integrity, piety, faith, love, steadfastness, and a gentle spirit." (1 Timothy)
"The Lord shall reign forever; your God, O Sion, through all generations." (Psalm 146)

Liturgical readings
Amos 6:1a, 4-7
Psalm 146
1 Timothy 6:11-16
Luke 16:19-31

"He was carried by the angels to the bosom of Abraham."

Last Sunday, we learned the message of the gospel on money as a means and not an end in itself. If we read the gospel for this Sunday, and place it in the context of last Sunday's gospel, we can see how the rich man's grave sin was rooted in his relationship to money as an end in itself. If the rich man saw his wealth as only a means, he would not have been blind to the plight of Lazarus and would have practiced charity with Lazarus the beggar.

Life can be uncertain at times; especially in times of crises and disruptions. We do not know what will happen next. Since the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis and the September 2008 financial crisis that forced Lehman Brothers to file for bankruptcy, many wealthy people's fortunes suddenly dwindled. But there were also others who experienced good fortune. In a time of crisis, "the tables can turn." Those who experience adversity can have a reversal of good fortune, while those who experience prosperity can have a reversal of misfortune. Whatever God wills to be the experience of each of His faithful ones, good fortune or misfortune, the call to follow His will and be kind to others (as well as ourselves) still "holds water". Those who experience good fortune are called to practice charity, while those who experience misfortune are called to practice humility. As long as each one never forsakes the path to virtue, God will never abandon nor hide His face from him. Thus, we are all called to treat money only as a means: to practice patience and respect in transactions with others that involves money.

25th Sunday of the Year (C)

Paraphrasing the Sunday Readings

Author's note: Reformatting or Paraphrasing the Sunday gospel is a method I learned from CICM Maryhill School of Theology. The method I use in these Sunday reflections is only an adaptation of the original, which was formatted on a blackboard by a theology professor in Scripture (Fr. Ver Miranda, CICM). The method used by our theology professor was for exegetical purposes - to understand the very words of the gospel and the context of meaning in which they are situated. My purpose is to reformat it in prose form for clarity of reading, understanding, and reflection. Formatting this way makes the gospel easy to digest for reflection.

25th Sunday of the Year (C)

Liturgical readings
Amos 8:4-7
Psalm 113
1 Timothy 2:1-8
Luke 16:1-13

What the Lord says is this: that we place our trust in Him.



Jesus said to his disciples:


"A rich man had a manager
who was reported to him
        for dissiplating his property.


He summoned him
and said,


'What is this I hear about you?


Give me an account of your service,
for it is about to come to an end.'


The manager thought to himself,


'What shall I do next?
My employer is sure to dismiss me.
I cannot dig ditches.
I am ashamed to go begging.


I have it!


Here is a way to make sure
that people will take me into their homes
when I am let go.'


"So he called in each of his master's debtors,


and said to the first,


'How much do you owe my master?'


The man replied,
'A hundred jars of oil.'


The manager said,
'Take your invoice,
sit down quickly,
and make it fifty.'


Then he said to a second,


'How much do you owe?'


The answer came,
'A hundred measures of wheat.'


and the manager said,
'Take your invoice
and make it eighty.'


"The owner then gave his devious employee
credit for being enterprising!


Why?


Because the worldly take more initiative
than the other-worldly
when it comes to dealing with their own kind".


"What I say to you is this:


Make friends for yourselves
through your use of this world's goods,
so that when they fail you,
a lasting reception will be yours.


If you can trust a man in little things,
you can also trust him in greater.'


If you cannot be trusted with elusive wealth,
who will trust you with lasting?


And if you have not been trustworthy
with someone else's money,
who will give you what is your own?


"No servant can serve two masters.
Either he will hate the one
and love the other
or be attentive to the one
and despise the other.


You cannot give yourself to God and money."

25th Sunday of the Year (C) September 19, 2010 (Edited for September 21, 2025)

Liturgical readings
Amos 8:4-7
Psalm 113
1 Timothy 2:1-8
Luke 16:1-13

"You cannot give yourself to God and money."

The gospel speaks about money - something we all have to deal with in the world. Jesus teaches through the parable of the unjust steward what should be one's Christian attitude towards money.

• First, the parable teaches us to be enterprising.
• Second, it also teaches us to be faithful and responsible with small amounts, so that we can be trusted with greater.
• Thirdly, Jesus finally says after the parable: "you cannot give yourself to God and money".

In his "Spiritual Exercises", St. Ignatius of Loyola teaches that the exercitant has only one end in life: "to praise and serve God our Lord". The other things of the world are created for all humanity, to be used only as means to attain to the end of serving the Lord. From this perspective given by St. Ignatius, one can now see what Jesus means in relation to all forms of wealth: that money is only one means of serving God; it is never an end in itself.

This gospel teaching of Jesus from an Ignatian perspective can help humanity see that God is the only end, and money is only one of the means to that end. It is a clear teaching but very difficult to follow without discipline, due to humanity's basic sinfulness and the corruptibility of political and socio-economic structures. Man cannot resist the temptation to make money as an end in itself by one's own strengths alone. By his broken nature, all need Jesus and the Spirit of His strong "No", to help one resist the temptation from all forms of greed. The source of this strength to resist that temptation is always available: through prayer, the Sacraments, the Church's small communities, and a self-discipline gained from experience and a wide network of like-minded family members and friends - all mutually influencing and reinforcing each other to do what is right and just.

Scripture quotes from the readings:
"High above all nations is the Lord; above the heavens is his glory." (Psalm 113)
"God wants all men to be saved and come to know the truth." (1 Timothy)
"Petitions, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be offered for all men, especially for kings and those in authority." (1 Timothy)