32ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - 2023

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Stay awake and stand ready,
because you do not know the hour
when the Son of Man is coming. MT 24: 42, 44

WISDOM 6:12-16 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You do not hide Your Face from us but are revealed to us in full glory and majesty in the understanding that we receive from the Holy Spirit abiding in us. You are the image of our glorious Father. You are the Son of the Living God. You are the love of God and the power of God made visible to us through the Holy Spirit. You are hidden behind the Bread and the Wine but You are present wholly and substantially. When we eat You and drink You we eat and drink the Son of God and for a while, we are transformed and transfigured in intimate union in the Holy Eucharist. 

Nothing is denied by the Father to those who believe in You, hope in You, endeavor to imitate You and act on Your Word. The Wisdom of God is lavished on those who desire her as it was lavished on King Solomon - what we do with this grace and gift of God will transform us from weak, sinful, powerless people into warriors for God, slaves of love to our neighbor as we lay down our lives in service to anyone in need. Set us free from our enslavement to concupiscence for it is only in dying to ourselves that we are born to eternal life.  

You give more eagerly all that we ask for and need. Grant me today a fresh outpouring of Your Holy Spirit so once again renewed and strengthened I will go forth with fresh vigor to work in Your vineyard.

PSALM 62(63):2-8 ©

O God, you are my God, for you I long;

for you my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for you
like a dry, weary land without water.

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary

to see your strength and your glory.
For your love is better than life,
my lips will speak your praise.

So I will bless you all my life,

in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,
my mouth shall praise you with joy.

On my bed I remember you.

On you I muse through the night
for you have been my help;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.

For you my soul is thirsting, O God, my God.

1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Grief at the loss of loved ones is part of our fallen human experience. You understand my Lord, for You wept at the tomb of Lazarus even though You were going to raise him to life. You hold us close, comfort us, wipe our tears, and strengthen us when we lose a child, a babe in the womb, a spouse, a sibling, or a dear relative or friend. It is right to grieve for those whom we loved and who have gone before us but thank You, Lord, that we do not grieve as those who have no hope as St. Paul reminds us in today's 2nd reading.

As the Liturgical year soon comes to a close we are reminded of eternal things. We are grateful for our faith in You. We are privileged to belong to the family of God and we dare to address Him at Your invitation as Abba for that is who He truly is to those who are grafted to Your Body, the Church You established.

As we grow older, as the years go swiftly by, and as our bodies age, grow frail, and prone to sickness our spirits ought to grow alive, aglow with faith and hope. Our longing for heaven and for final and eternal union with God our Creator, our Redeemer, and our Sanctifier must increase and our spirits must be fully occupied with the desire for the things that are eternal. 

Personal judgment awaits every soul before Your second coming in glory and the final judgment of all humanity. Help us to prepare for our end O Lord with fear and trembling even as we wait eagerly to behold You face to face. Have mercy on us O Lord and grant us always Your saving help lest we perish.

MATTHEW 25:1-13 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

The vast majority of people in the world including us, the faithful, live as if today will never end and we make no provision at all in preparing for our heavenly home. Too many of us fall by the wayside for lack of wisdom, instruction, lack of spiritual realities, and the Truth of God's Word. The necessity for obeying God's Laws lest we perish eternally.

The foolish virgins are left behind when the Bridegroom arrives and the gates are locked. Once You arrive Lord and we find ourselves unprepared there are no more chances. We have run out of time and time will come to an end for all of us.

Now O Lord is the hour of our salvation. Now is the time for us to repent, to go to Confession, to amend our lives. To align our lives to the revealed truth of the Gospel. Yes, You are a God of second chances but only until our last breath and then comes judgment and our final destiny either with You eternally or eternal separation from You. 

Let us heed Your words to us today, Lord, lest we hear You say to us, “I tell you solemnly, I do not know you.” 

Grant me the grace today and always, and also those I love and pray for daily to  ‘stay awake, because you do not know either the day or the hour.’