Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist
Reading I 2 Tm 4:10-17b
Beloved:
Demas, enamored of the present world,
deserted me and went to Thessalonica,
Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.
Luke is the only one with me.
Get Mark and bring him with you,
for he is helpful to me in the ministry.
I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,
the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments.
Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;
the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
You too be on guard against him,
for he has strongly resisted our preaching.
At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf,
but everyone deserted me.
May it not be held against them!
But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength,
so that through me the proclamation might be completed
and all the Gentiles might hear it.
Responsorial Psalm 145:10-11, 12-13, 17-18
R. (12) Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Making known to men your might
and the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Your Kingdom is a Kingdom for all ages,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom.
Alleluia See Jn 15:16
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I chose you from the world,
to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 10:1-9
The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples
whom he sent ahead of him in pairs
to every town and place he intended to visit.
He said to them,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.
Into whatever house you enter,
first say, ‘Peace to this household.’
If a peaceful person lives there,
your peace will rest on him;
but if not, it will return to you.
Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,
for the laborer deserves payment.
Do not move about from one house to another.
Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,
eat what is set before you,
cure the sick in it and say to them,
‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.’”
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
“These signs will accompany those who believe . . . ” (Mark 16:17).
In today’s Gospel, Our Lord tells the eleven Apostles to go out and tell the whole world the Good News. He also gives them the indications that someone is a believer with a series of signs—things they’ll do and be able to do.
My daughter sat kicking her legs in my direction under the dining room table. “She’s never going to be my friend again,” she proclaimed as only a seven year old can. Kind of a grunt, hiss, shriek. There had been a misunderstanding (the nice adult term for it) about whether or not a friend had called her artwork bad.
“I heard someone say it and it couldn’t have been the boy sitting at our table. It must have been heeerrrrrrrrrr,” the crying started now.
I sipped the end of my now-flat carbonated water drink and glanced into the kitchen where two kids had dumped out the legos everywhere and a third was dawdling over his homework. “Let’s look at this in the totality of the circumstances. That means, let’s see if she’s ever done anything like this before.”
We parsed through this little girl’s actions. Had she ever been unkind before? Is it possible it slipped out of her mouth but she didn’t mean to insult you? How can we look at this in the greater context of who she is? She cooled off, we prayed, she wrote a note to her friend, the mom reached out, everything ended up fine.
But I kept coming back to this idea of how we evaluate people’s actions.
You’ve also probably struggled to place someone in context. Would they mean that? Are they going off the deep end? Can I follow their Instagram still? Is that book recommendation solid? I try to examine them and their sharing online and off-line in the “totality of their circumstances.” So not quick to judge but careful to observe.
Let’s give one another the benefit of the doubt but also be ready to gently provide sisterly feedback as needed, friends.
I kept coming back to this idea of how we evaluate people's actions. // @WholeParenting Click To TweetLord, we humbly ask You to call all our hearts and mind closer to You. Help us evaluate our own actions and thoughts so that they can stay rooted in our Faith.
Nell O’Leary is a recovering lawyer turned blogger, speaker, and sewer of baby goods while tending to her husband and four kiddos in the great city of Saint Paul, Minnesota. She serves as Managing Editor for Blessed is She and can down a hot cocoa in no time flat. Find out more about her here. She is the editor of our Blessed Conversations Series and guide for the Gift of You course.
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Thanks, sister!
You’re a captivating writer and a wise mom. Thanks for letting us glimpse into your life and heart.
You’re so kind. Thanks, friend! It’s such an honor to share.