The Interruption of the Day is “The Better Part”

Monday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Galatians 1:6-12

Brothers and sisters:
I am amazed that you are so quickly forsaking
the one who called you by the grace of Christ
for a different gospel (not that there is another).
But there are some who are disturbing you
and wish to pervert the Gospel of Christ.
But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a gospel 
other than the one that we preached to you,
let that one be accursed!
As we have said before, and now I say again,
if anyone preaches to you a gospel
other than the one that you received,
let that one be accursed!

Am I now currying favor with human beings or God?
Or am I seeking to please people?
If I were still trying to please people,
I would not be a slave of Christ.

Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters,
that the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin.
For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it,
but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 111:1b-2, 7-8, 9, 10c

R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:    
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:    
R. Alleluia.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
sure are all his precepts,
Reliable forever and ever,
wrought in truth and equity.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:    
R. Alleluia.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:    
R. Alleluia.

 

 

Alleluia John 13:34

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Luke 10:25-37

There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?
How do you read it?”
He said in reply,
“You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your being,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself.”
He replied to him, “You have answered correctly;
do this and you will live.”

But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus, 
“And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus replied, 
“A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
‘Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.’
Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”
He answered, “The one who treated him with mercy.”
Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

- - -

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.

The Interruption of the Day is “The Better Part”

October 6, 2026 // Tuesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time // Optional Memorial of Saint Bruno, Priest // Optional Memorial of Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher, Virgin [In the Dioceses of the United States]

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Luke 10:38-42

Reflect on the Word // 

Meal planning, grocery shopping, and food prep for family coming over? Done.
A clean-ish kitchen and dishes put away? On the to-do list. 

Set out some napkins, candles, and fluff the pillows on the couch? I’ll do that in the last five minutes before people arrive.

I have a penchant for multi-tasking and list-making. And while this is a system of efficiency, and I’d like to say this efficiency is intended for the good of everyone gathering (I think Saint Martha would agree!), it’s not always a system that allows for interruption. And sometimes, the interruption that comes is the more important thing. Or “the better part,” as Jesus told Martha (Luke 10:42).

Years ago, I read a short and powerful excerpt from a Henri Nouwen book (Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, page 52), where he mentioned a professor who once said, "My whole life I have been complaining that my work was constantly interrupted, until I discovered that my interruptions were my work." 

Maybe the interruption as we go about our day is a neighbor who stopped by, or a phone call from someone you haven’t spoken to in a while, a text from a friend who needs your intercessory prayers, or your husband who is asking for your advice. Maybe it’s the person behind the checkout counter at the grocery store. Maybe the interruption feels like a nuisance. But maybe it’s Jesus. 

To fully attend to it and truly see, we have to slow down, we have to loosen our hold of that to-do list and its importance. We have to be available and present, as Mary was to Jesus. 

Relate to the Lord // Think of Jesus in the quiet moments between errands and work–ask for the grace to see the “better part” throughout your day. 

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