Sunday, October 23, 2011 (Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time)

REFLECTION FOR TODAY
The Eucharist is a burning coal that sets us on fire. Fire is active by nature and tends to spread. When the soul is under the action of the Eucharist, it is forced to cry out; "O my God, what shall I do in return for so much love?" And Jesus answers; "Thou hast to resemble Me, to live for Me, and to live of Me." The transformation will be easy; when it is a matter of love; one does not walk; one runs and flies.
-- St. Peter Julian Emyard

READINGS FOR TODAY
First Reading: Exodus 22:20-26
20 “Condemn to death anyone who offers sacrifices to any god except to me, the Lord.
21 “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner; remember that you were foreigners in Egypt.
22 Do not mistreat any widow or orphan.
23 If you do, I, the Lord, will answer them when they cry out to me for help,

24 and I will become angry and kill you in war. Your wives will become widows, and your children will be fatherless.
25 “If you lend money to any of my people who are poor, do not act like a moneylender and require him to pay interest.
26 If you take someone's cloak as a pledge that he will pay you, you must give it back to him before the sun sets,

Psalms: Psalm 18:2-4, 47, 51
2 The Lord is my protector; he is my strong fortress. My God is my protection, and with him I am safe. He protects me like a shield; he defends me and keeps me safe.
3 I call to the Lord, and he saves me from my enemies. Praise the Lord!
4 The danger of death was all around me; the waves of destruction rolled over me.
47 He gives me victory over my enemies; he subdues the nations under me

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10
5 For we brought the Good News to you, not with words only, but also with power and the Holy Spirit, and with complete conviction of its truth. You know how we lived when we were with you; it was for your own good.
6 You imitated us and the Lord; and even though you suffered much, you received the message with the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit.
7 So you became an example to all believers in Macedonia and Achaia.
8 For not only did the message about the Lord go out from you throughout Macedonia and Achaia, but the news about your faith in God has gone everywhere. There is nothing, then, that we need to say.
9 All those people speak about how you received us when we visited you, and how you turned away from idols to God, to serve the true and living God
10 and to wait for his Son to come from heaven—his Son Jesus, whom he raised from death and who rescues us from God's anger that is coming.

Gospel: Matthew 22:34-40
(The Great Commandment)
34 When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they came together, 35 and one of them, a teacher of the Law, tried to trap him with a question.

36 “Teacher,” he asked, “which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 

38 This is the greatest and the most important commandment.  

39 The second most important commandment is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’  

40 The whole Law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets depend on these two commandments.”