Thursday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

The selections for today’s readings make an interesting pair. In the gospel passage from Luke, Jesus continues along a strand of “woe to you” statements. Undoubtedly, it was not a pleasant message to hear. The people listening were meant to feel convicted for their participation in the past persecution of God’s prophets; Jesus intended to affront them with accusations regarding their behavior. In fact, the least surprising part of this passage is the last two verses: “When Jesus left, the scribes and the Pharisees began to act with hostility toward him and to interrogate him about many things, for they were plotting to catch him in something he might say” (Lk. 11:53-54). It’s no surprise that the people would be upset by Jesus’ words. And yet it is perhaps a bit surprising that they felt they needed to interrogate him further. This indicates that his accusations were not unfounded; Jesus’ statements in today’s passage were not cause for Jesus’ own conviction. In contrast to this “woeful” passage, St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians begins with what seems to be a hymn, extolling the blessings granted to those who follow Christ. These beautiful lines are a reminder of all that God has given us in and through Christ: redemption, forgiveness, grace, and, the formal adoption as sons and daughters of God. Unlike other Pauline epistles, Ephesians seems not to have been inspired by any particular issue, but rather contains a reminder of the blessings of God and an exhortation to live in those blessings.

What we see then today is indicated by the psalm response: “The Lord has made known his salvation” (Ps. 98:2a). Jesus’ warnings of woe indicate the failings of the people and the need for repentance. Paul’s description of blessings, meanwhile, indicates that the Lord has made known his salvation. Jesus’ message did not end with a string of “woe to you” statements, it ended with his own selfless passion and death on the cross, followed by his resurrection. It was through this ultimate act of love that all those who believe in Christ can receive the blessings featured in the passage from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

This is a communication handed down to us today. Though humanity has a long history of sinfulness, we are also saved through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. Our task, then, is to live in these blessings, open to the grace of God, with lives centered in Christ. There is some cause for confidence here: our redemption does not rest on ourselves, but on Christ. We need only cooperate with God. Today, let us pray that we might learn to appreciate the blessings in our lives, particularly the great blessing that is Christ.

- Maria Morrow