SPRINGS OF LIVING WATER

October 9, 2026October 9, 2026

11 OCTOBER 2026

Beati gli invitati al banchetto dell'Agnello - XXVIII DOMENICA DEL TEMPO ORDINARIO (ANNO A) – Lectio divina - Chiesa di Matera-Irsina

SUNDAY, TWENTY EIGHTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Is 25: 6-10; Ps 23: 1-6; Phil 4: 12-14, 19-20; Mt 22: 1-14

POOR IN SPIRIT, ANSWER GOD’S INVITATION!

God who is all powerful in his kindness always finds means and ways to lavish his love on all his children. The love of God for humanity is unfathomable story but the way humanity responds to God’s love is another story altogether. Prophet Isaiah’s words in today’s first reading are centered around the eschatological feast. God will prepare a banquet for all the peoples of the earth and destroy death forever. The symbolic sacrifice of fat which the Israelites used to offer to God, now God will share with his people that is, a feast of rich food, of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow. This means that the fat which was normally reserved for God, God will share with the human beings. Thus, humanity sharing in the food which belong to God, once reserved for Him, death will be vanquished.

On the mountain of the Lord, God’s people find refuge and salvation from their enemies. While this was historically fulfilled in Israel’s deliverance from its earthly enemies, the passage points beyond cities or historical events to a deeper mystery of salvation. God now seeks to deliver His people from the tyrant within the pride that takes root in the human heart. Thus, the poor who place their hope in God find true salvation when He frees them from pride and leads them into the spiritual poverty of complete dependence on Him.

We see the secret of this spiritual poverty in Paul. He had learned how to be satisfied in all circumstances and was always grateful for the help he received from others. He knew how to live in poverty and in abundance, he possessed the virtue of sufficiency. For Paul, this “sufficiency” was founded on the help of the Lord who gave him strength. The poor of the Lord participated in the feast prepared by the Lord himself. But each human being must make a choice to respond to God’s feast of love. In the parable of the wedding banquet, Jesus tells us that many do not respond to his invitation. When he sent his prophets, his own people did not listen to them but rather rejected their message. They even went to the extent of insulting and killing them. When we compare today’s parable to the history of the people of Israel, we see that God is the king who sent the invitation of wedding banquet to his people. But Jerusalem, who rejected the invitation and mistreated the prophets, was burned down by Nebuchadnezzar who was God’s instrument of chastisement.

But the celebration does not end, God who is mercy itself now extends his invitation not only to the lost sheep of Israel but to all the peoples of the earth, through his servants the prophets, apostles and evangelists. Even here we see that not all respond with the sincerity of faith. The one who is invited must prove himself/ herself to participate in the heavenly banquet. What does one need to do to be worthy? One must have a sincere desire to change and be committed to live according to the ways of God in his/her sphere of life. The Wedding garment is the willingness to change. God provides grace to everyone who makes effort to answer His invitation. Those who are poor in spirit, realize their need for God and respond to his invitation. Those who do not respond worthily to God’s invitation receive a harsh judgment in the parable of today, which is applied to all who are faithless. But let us not forget what Jesus told St. Faustina. Jesus told her that before he comes as a just judge, He opens the door of mercy to every human being.

Today, St. Paul is an example for us. He was the one, who though ignorant in his pride and zeal, persecuted the church of Christ. But when he realized his mistake after his encounter with the risen Lord, he was a different person transformed through grace. He learnt to face every situation that life afforded him, all because he was dependent on God. The people of Israel saw themselves as God’s chosen; Jesus reminds us that those who faithfully respond to God’s call are the truly “chosen of God.”

Response: In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for length of days unending.

October 9, 2026October 9, 2026

10 OCTOBER 2026

Your Identity in Christ | Bible IQ

SATURDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 3: 22-29; Ps 105: 2-7; Lk 11: 27-28

OUR IDENTITY IS IN CHRIST

St. Paul’s words to the Galatians says that our true identity is found in Jesus Christ. He tells us that through Baptism we have become children of God. Whether one is Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, all are one in Christ Jesus. This does not mean that our differences disappear. Rather, it means that before God every person possesses the same dignity and is equally loved. As members of the Church, we are united as one family because the church is one, holy, catholic and apostolic. This truth has great significance for our daily lives. In today’s world, people often find their identity in wealth, education, social status, nationality or achievements. These things may have their place, but they cannot define who we truly are. Our deepest identity comes from being sons and daughters of God. Through Baptism, we are clothed with Christ and called to live as His disciples. This identity should shape the way we think, speak and treat others. When we recognize Christ in one another, we become more patient, more forgiving and more willing to serve.

In the Gospel when a woman praises Jesus by honouring His mother, Jesus points to the source of Mary’s greatness: “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it.” The Church has always understood that Mary is blessed not only because she gave birth to Jesus but because she welcomed God’s word with faith and lived it wholeheartedly. Her whole life was a faithful response to God’s will. Mary, therefore, becomes the perfect example of what St. Paul teaches. She belonged completely to Christ and allowed God’s word to shape every part of her life. As members of Christ’s Body, we too are called to follow her example by listening to God’s word and putting it into practice. Today, let us thank God for the gift of our Baptism, through which we have become God’s children. May we never forget that our greatest identity is to belong to Christ, and may our lives reflect that identity through our faith hope and charity.

Response: The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.

October 7, 2026October 7, 2026

8 OCTOBER 2026

Persevere in Prayer | TRINITY SEASONS

THURSDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 3: 1-5; Lk 1: 69-75; Lk 11: 5-13

PERSEVERANCE IN PRAYER

In the first Reading St. Paul speaks about justification by faith. He reminds the Galatians that when they had become Christians, they had received the Holy Spirit and some of them had worked miracles through the Spirit; and he asks them why they were turning to the law now. All of us need to persevere in faith and prayer. And Jesus speaks to us in today’s parable about a friend who knocks at a friend’s door at midnight. The late traveler confronted the householder with an embarrassing situation. Most probably to avoid the heat of the day he travelled at night and reached his friend’s house at midnight. He set out to ask for bread from his friend. At his friends’ persistence the latter was forced to get up and give what was asked of him.

Jesus speaks of the importance of intercessory prayer for ourselves and for others. ‘Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.’ It is of vital importance that we pray for others. St. Teresa of Avila says in the Way of Perfection that we should live in such a way that our prayers will be answered. Prayer and life are inter-connected. Gaudium et spes teaches us: ‘The Joys and hopes, the grieves and anxieties of the people of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these too are the joys and hopes, the grieves and anxieties of the followers of Christ. We must be concerned for all our brothers and sisters.’

At the end of the parable Jesus says: ‘How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those ask Him.’ We do not know how to pray but the Holy Spirit prays in us. When we surrender ourselves in God’s hands, He takes care of our needs and wants. He knows better than we, what is best for us. What He wants from us is our childlike confidence in Him and total surrender. The greatest gift we can ask of God is His Holy Spirit.

Response: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people.

October 6, 2026October 6, 2026

7 OCTOBER 2026

The Rosary is a long chain that links heaven and earth. One end of it is in our hands and the other end is in the hands of the holy Virgin. St.

WEDNESDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Our Lady of the Rosary

Gal 2:1-2,7-14; Ps 117; Lk 11:1-4

THE CHAIN OF SALVATION

Today’s reading highlights the role of Mary in salvation history. Who is this valiant ‘Woman’ to whom so much is entrusted and of whom so much is asked? Indeed, she is the very Mother of God and our mother too. So being our mother, we ought to love her and have devotion to her. For us Catholics, devotion to Mary is necessary for our salvation.

We must never fear to love her too much for as a saint puts it: we could never love her more than Jesus loved her or think that by loving her too much, God may be offended or think that we give her more importance even than God. Such erroneous thinking would not find favour with God as St. Grignion de Montfort states: ‘let them not seek mercy from God, those who offend his Holy Mother. Devotion to Mary therefore is the safest and surest way to Jesus Christ and thus to salvation as the saints affirm and testify. The most pleasing prayer to Mary is the Holy Rosary. So, the best way to express our devotion is through the rosary. Yet the rosary is not a magic formula or a superstitious repetition or a devotion meant for the lowly and uneducated. Pope St. Paul VI calls it a ‘compendium of the Gospel.’ Pope St. John Paul II states that the rosary is an exquisitely contemplative prayer.

The rosary is a prayer especially relevant to our times as Sr. Lucia of Fatima states, that it is given a new efficacy in these last times so much so that there is no problem however difficult whether temporal or spiritual that cannot be resolved by praying the rosary. Finally, let us not forget that the evil one who is the ‘Father of lies’ hates Mary and seeks to obscure her in the life of her children and in the church as the book of Revelation states, but in faith in scripture, we believe that she is the one who will crush the head of the serpent through the fragile chain of the holy rosary.

Response: Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.

October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

6 OCTOBER 2026

The Mary and Martha Duet

TUESDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 1: 13-24; Ps 139: 1-3. 13-15; Lk 10: 38-42

BE MARY!

Today’s readings are extraordinarily beautiful. The contrast between Martha and Mary represents the two extremes of life that each of us encounter every day. While we long to sit at the feet of our Lord and listen to every word He speaks, the demands, struggles, and responsibilities of daily life often leave us with little opportunity to do so. We desire to be transformed by the words of Jesus, yet the cares and anxieties of the world constantly pull us away. Mary’s life, however, stands as a profound inspiration. Though many of us identify more with Martha, our true aspiration should be to become like Mary: setting aside time to be in the Lord’s presence and attentively listening to Him. Even if we cannot spend long hours in prayer, we should faithfully dedicate some time to the Lord.

At the same time, St. Teresa of Avila reminds us that “the Lord walks among pots and pans.” In other words, even while carrying out the ordinary duties of life, we can remain united with God. Martha’s work was not the problem; it was her anxiety and distraction. When our daily tasks are done with love and with our hearts fixed on the Lord, even the busiest moments become opportunities for prayer. This is precisely what St. Paul reminds the Galatians that he experienced a complete transformation through his encounter with Christ. Likewise, the psalmist recognizes that the Lord has formed him, and by faithfully embracing God’s word, he allows himself to be continually transformed. Mary, too, was transformed simply by listening to Jesus.

Today’s readings invite us not merely to get caught up in the busyness of life, but to allow ourselves to be transformed by the Word of God. It is never too late. Every day is a new beginning, a fresh opportunity to let the Lord shape our hearts through His word. We simply need to recognize His gentle, life-giving voice and distinguish it from the countless noisy voices of the world. When we listen to Him, whether at His feet or among the pots and pans, He transforms both our hearts and our lives.

Response: Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.

October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

5 OCTOBER 2026

Galatians 1:6-12 - Watchman Ministries

MONDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 1: 6-12; Ps 111: 1-2, 7-8-10; Lk 10: 25-37

THE TRUE GOSPEL COMES FROM ABOVE

The Galatians are being seduced by a “different gospel.” this different gospel is a message that sounds Christian but is actually “a perversion of the gospel of Christ.” Paul’s fierce response reveals something essential: there is a true Gospel and there are counterfeits. What makes the Gospel authentic? “The gospel preached by me is not of human origin… but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” The true Gospel cannot be manufactured by human wisdom, packaged by human strategy, or modified to suit human preferences. It comes from God alone, and it often contradicts our natural inclinations.

Both, Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross warned their readers against the subtle danger of substituting human effort for divine grace, of trying to construct a spiritual life based on our own ideas rather than surrendering to God’s self-revelation. Teresa constantly fought against those who wanted to reduce prayer to techniques and formulas; that is, to human effort. She insisted that authentic prayer is receptivity to God’s action, not mastery of methods. We cannot engineer our way to holiness. We can only open ourselves to receive what God freely gives. John, in his writings, warns against spiritual seekers who cling to visions, consolations, and extraordinary experiences, creating their own “gospel” of spiritual sensation rather than accepting the naked faith God asks of us. We must be willing to let go of everything we think we know about God, every consolation we have received, every spiritual achievement we are proud of, to receive the truth that comes only through divine revelation.

False gospels – whether the gospel of works, the gospel of spiritual achievement, the gospel of consolation-seeking – ultimately lead to bondage, not freedom. Paul challenges us to examine what we believe, reminding us that the true Gospel always moves us to become nothing so that Christ can become everything. May we strive for the grace to recognize the true Gospel of Christ, and to resist the temptation to remake it according to our liking.

Response: The Lord will remember his covenant forever.

October 2, 2026October 3, 2026

4 OCTOBER 2026

Surrender in His love

SUNDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Is 5: 1-7; Ps 80: 9, 12-16, 19-20; Phil 4: 6-9; Mt 21: 33-43

NEED TO BE RESPOSIBLE STEWARD

God speaks to us in different forms and different ways. Only if we are responsible and watchful, shall we receive his real message and eventually be able to respond to it. Otherwise, we will be failures because we have lost something very important and precious, and we may not even realize that we have lost this great pearl. As we celebrate Twenty Seventh Sunday of the Ordinary Time, today’s readings invite us to reflect and find out how each of us have lived our lives as responsible stewards of what is entrusted to us!

The first reading and the Gospel passage speak about the Vineyard. As we know very well whoever plants the vineyard always expects good harvest because of the hard work and the care which accompany the efforts. In the first reading God is the owner of the vineyard. The vineyard which He planted was the nation of Israel, the people whom He chose as his own. He sent prophets time and again to teach them to live in the right way and to show them the true and saving paths. From reading the history of Israel, we understand that the people of Israel, they did not listen to the prophets instead they rejected them and lived as they wanted and even persecuted the prophets, not even refraining from killing some. In other words, they failed to produce good fruits. The first reading ends saying: “…and He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, a cry!”

In the Gospel, we see almost the same story. Jesus tells the parable to inspire us how in the Old Testament people of Israel who represented the vineyard, failed to listen to the prophets and how they rejected them even to the extent of persecuting them. On the other hand, we also notice the scrupulous care taken by God who is the owner of that vineyard and His patience and mercy. He repeatedly gives opportunities for repentance. The tenants who represented the religious leaders knew what Jesus claims to be but choose to reject and stay neutral as well as indifferent for the sake of own power and authority. Though they knew it, they chose not to stand by that just to hold on to their high position in society. In other words, they produced sour grapes.

In the parable, Jesus wanted to make us realize that after the prophets God sent His own Beloved Son that is Christ Himself who was nailed to the Cross. We could very much understand that the life which we enjoy at present is the vineyard which God has planted and which He has entrusted to each one of us that we may take care of it and produce good fruits. Do we make him proud through our actions? Jesus is the Living Word that we hear always, to which we need to respond! Do we do that in life? He comes to us through our parents, through our teachers, through our elders, through all those in authority, and even through our good friends, how generously do we listen to them? What is our response? Do we produce good fruits or bad fruits? How is our behavior and attitudes? So how could we qualify ourselves if we consider us as the tenants of our own lives?

We are not the owners of our lives but only the tenants who must give an account to the owner! We need to be consciously aware of this truth and try to produce good fruits and surely not sour ones. Besides we need to be consciously aware of God’s blessings and gifts which He bestows on us every day and every moment and respond to it more creatively and effectively. It does not mean that God abandons His promises rather, Jesus is saying that those who reject Him will lose their privileged role in God’s kingdom. The kingdom will be entrusted to the people who are responsible stewards who bear fruit. This includes all faithful Jews and gentiles together, the community of believers. The vineyard was planted to produce grapes. Likewise, God expects lives marked by faith, justice, love, obedience and righteousness, not just religious activity only. The tenants reject both the servants and the Son, symbolizing Israel’s history of rejecting God’s messengers and ultimately, the Messiah. Jesus warns that rejecting Him leads to judgment, while those who receive Him and bear spiritual fruit will share in God’s kingdom.

Response: The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel.

October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

3 OCTOBER 2026

Real Life Church: Ankeny, IA > Humility

SATURDAY, TWENTY SIXTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Job 42: 1-3, 5-6, 12-17; Ps 119:66,71,75,91,125,130; Lk 10: 17-24

FROM EMOTIONAL OVERSHOT, TO HUMBLE REPENTANCE

The readings today have a remarkable consonance. In the first reading, Job comes before God after having poured out his anguish in the midst of terrible suffering. Earlier, in the intensity of his pain, he had spoken harshly, even wishing that God would simply take his life. He had also assumed that God was punishing him, although he knew himself to be innocent. Now, however, Job has passed through the darkness and gained a deeper understanding. He realizes that his suffering cannot be explained by the rigid logic of retributive justice that his friends had imposed upon him. God is not a merciless judge waiting to punish him for every failure. Rather, Job encounters a God whose wisdom is greater than human understanding and whose mercy embraces even our anguished questions and outbursts. Though Job spoke with harsh words, God recognizes the sincerity of his heart. Job is eventually restored, while his friends are corrected for presenting a distorted image of God.

Something similar happens in today’s Gospel. The disciples return from their mission filled with enthusiasm because they have witnessed remarkable things in Jesus’ name. They are excited about their success, but Jesus gently redirects their attention. The true reason for their joy is not the power they have exercised or the wonders they have accomplished, but the fact that their names are written in heaven. Jesus teaches them to move from the excitement of achievement to the deeper joy of belonging to God. Their mission is not about personal glory but about growing in love and communion with the Father.

Both readings, therefore, invite us to look beyond our immediate experiences and discover the heart of God. God is not a distant, mechanical dispenser of rewards and punishments. He is a loving Father who understands our weakness, receives our questions, and patiently leads us towards maturity in love. Let us, then, learn to recognize those around us who are angry, wounded or struggling with God. Instead of judging them, let us accompany them patiently and help them rediscover the merciful Father who understands the cries of the human heart.

Response: Lord, let your face shine on me.

October 1, 2026October 10, 2026

2 OCTOBER 2026

The Sign of Jonah (Luke 11:29-32) | Enactedword

MONDAY, TWENTY EIGHTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 4: 22-24,26-27,31–5:1; Ps 113:1-7; Lk 11: 29-32

MYSTERY OF JESUS TRANSCENDS THE HUMAN

God as a mystery is beyond human comprehension. Down the centuries many were fascinated by Jesus Christ for good reason or bad. There are millions who cannot accept Jesus Christ. It is a question of mindset and human thought categories. We need to realize that as creatures we lack a platform outside our realm to be able to look at God and man from another perspective. We cannot claim to know God objectively!

St. Paul stars to reflect with the Israelite historical narratives. He cites the example of the birth of Ishmael to Hagar and of Isaac from Sarah. Sarah however ensures the birth right to her son. Though both boys are sons of Abraham, they have different natures and roles; which in a metaphorical manner reveals the distinction between the spiritual and the material. Here St. Paul very reasonably invites us to make the leap of faith to accept the difference between the Old Testament vision of life and experience of salvation here and beyond the boundaries of the earth that is embodied in the New Testament, namely that all Christians are by the greater reason of faith are the children of Abraham than the Jewish people.

In the Gospel too Jesus confronts his people refusing to accept his identity as the Messiah, by criticizing their matrix of evaluating the wisdom of Solomon and conversion of pagan people of Nineveh at the preaching of Jonah. He declares univocally that he is the fulfillment of the promises of God in the Old Testament. Today as we admire the person of St. Carlo Acutis who had no qualms to make the leap of faith in Jesus self-revelation as embodiment of love, revealed in God who is love itself, we are invited to rise beyond asking God to do what we want in our pious devotions, but go beyond and leap joyfully in God’s hands and accept what he has planned for us. We do not look at Jesus from the measure of mere social or political or financial greatness, but as the merciful face of God to the humanity revealed in his sacrifice on the cross embodied in the Eucharist.

Response: Blessed be the name of the Lord forever.

September 28, 2026October 7, 2026

9 OCTOBER 2026

indwell

FRIDAY, TWENTY SEVENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Gal 3: 7-14; Ps 111: 1-6; Lk 11: 15-26

THE HEART: A DWELLING PLACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The image of the house in Luke 11:24–26 provides a profound biblical reflection on the mystery of the human heart and its relationship with God. Jesus speaks of an unclean spirit leaving a person and wandering through waterless regions in search of rest. When it cannot find a place, it returns to the same person and finds the empty house “swept and put in order.” The spirit then brings seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and the final condition of that person becomes worse than the first. The striking element here is that, although the person has been set free from the evil spirit, he has not filled his life with divine grace. His heart remains empty. This emptiness allows the evil spirit to return and take possession of him again.

This image of the “house” has a rich biblical resonance. Scripture repeatedly presents the human person and the people of God in terms of dwelling and habitation. From the beginning, God desires to dwell among his people. In Exodus, God commands Israel to build a sanctuary so that he may dwell in their midst: “Let them make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). The movement of biblical revelation is therefore not simply from impurity to purity, but from alienation to communion, from emptiness to divine indwelling. The purpose of cleansing is ultimately that God himself may inhabit what has been cleansed.

This theme becomes even more significant in the context of Luke 11. Jesus has just cast out a demon, and the people witness the manifestation of God’s power. Jesus declares, “If it is by the finger of God that I cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you” (Luke 11:20). The casting out of the demon is therefore not merely an isolated miracle. It is a sign that the kingdom of God has come near. The ‘stronger one’ has entered the human situation and conquered the power that held the person captive. The “house” has been liberated because the kingdom of God has drawn near in the person of Jesus.

Response: The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.