Introduction to the Liturgy of the Day

Introduction to the Liturgy of the Word

Reflections

• Again and again, Jesus warns us about inheritances. Remember the prodigal son? His troubles begin when he takes his share of the inheritance and squanders it on dissolute living. In another parable, he tells of wicked tenants who kill the vineyard owner’s heir so that they will get his inheritance. Today it’s a person in the crowd who’s upset because his brother received an inheritance and not him. Jesus could have said that fairness demands the inheritance be split in half. Or he could have asked if there may be a good reason he wasn’t given a share of it. Instead, he cautions us all about greed. Possessions, inherited or not, are not the goal of life. As we have seen, inheritances can lead to tragedy and often do. As Saint Paul wrote later, “the love of money is the root of all evils” (1 Timothy 6:10).

• The rich man has a problem that would be the envy of any farmer: a harvest greater than he can handle. Immediately he decides that he will hoard the entire harvest so that he can “rest, eat, drink, be merry” for many years (Luke 12:19). Note that he repeatedly says, “I shall,” assuming that he is in control of the situa tion. He seems to have ignored the adjective that describes his harvest. As Jesus says, it is a bountiful harvest. A bounty is something that is given generously and received undeservedly. Why did it not occur to him to give generously himself, to share it with others who did not deserve it? What’s more, the bountiful harvest was produced by the land, the sun, and the rain. What made him feel entitled to take it all for himself? To share generously from our bounty is to become rich in imitation of God.
   
• Do you recall the story of the good Samaritan, which we heard a few weeks ago? It begins with a lawyer asking, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25). That’s a much better use of the word inherit. This questioner is concerned about inheriting spiritual wealth, not material wealth. The selfish man of today’s Gospel, on the other hand, doesn’t give any thought to God or neighbor, only to himself and his material treasure. 
  
  Question of the Week
  What or whom have I thought of when I have received an unexpected bounty? How can I be a more generous person?
  

• from Pastoral Patterns
  
  

LISTEN HERE to the Audio Recordings of the Readings of Sunday, August 3, 2025

SELECT HERE for the Readings of Sunday, August 3, 2025

The Sunday offerings are a portion of our blessings that we give to God (Church) in gratitude to what God has done for us...ONLINE GIVING OPTIONS