20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

1. Isaiah 56: 1, 6-7
2. Psalms 67: 2-3, 5, 6, 8
3. Romans 11: 13-15, 29-32
4. Matthew 15: 21-28

• The challenge of the Sabbath
• Dedicating an entire day each week to rest seems all but delusional these days.  Many of us barely make it to the weekend and Sunday becomes a grab bag day of catching up on things that we thought for sure would have gotten done a long time ago.
• How would you define work, just in general?
• Define "rest" in your life.
• Clearly all rest loses its appeal soon because time ceases to have any real meaning, there's no sense of accomplishment, no real investment of self if all that we do is take rest.
• Could the same be true if we never take rest?
• Is prayer work, or rest?
• Can we have moments in life that are both work and rest?

• The God of empathy
• It is often very difficult to be both empathetic and just at the same time.
• Think of a time when you had to administer some "tough love" to someone else.  Maybe it was one of your children, or a coworker who didn't know how much they hurt someone else, or someone else who you deeply cared about who needed to see another perspective on their actions and words.
• How did you approach that person?
• What made you speak up at all?
• Did that experience draw you closer to God?

• To whom much is given ...
• How would you define mercy?
• How has God shown you mercy?
• How much mercy do you think that you deserved in that instance?
• How did that mercy change you?

• Getting put into your place
• Humility is simply seeing, understanding, and embracing our place in the universe, and then fulfilling that destiny already laid out for us.
• With that understanding of humility, what have been some humbling experiences in your life?
• Do you think that we can ever get too much genuine humbling?
• How can we become more open to opportunities in humility?

• Preparation for Reconciliation

1. Where can I bring more justice?
2. Where can/should I be more prophetic?
3. Have I been as merciful as God would have me be this week?
4. How have I grown in humility?

Shalom!