Bad Fruit vs. Good God

Wednesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Galatians 5:18-25

Brothers and sisters:
If you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are obvious:
immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry,
sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy,
outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness,
dissensions, factions, occasions of envy,
drinking bouts, orgies, and the like.
I warn you, as I warned you before,
that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law.
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their flesh
with its passions and desires.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit. 

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4, 6

R. (see Jn 8:12) Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Not so the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.

 

 

Alleluia  John 10:27

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Luke 11:42-46

The Lord said:
“Woe to you Pharisees!
You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb,
but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God.
These you should have done, without overlooking the others.
Woe to you Pharisees!
You love the seat of honor in synagogues
and greetings in marketplaces.  
Woe to you!
You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.”

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply,
“Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.”
And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law!
You impose on people burdens hard to carry,
but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.”

- - -

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.

Bad Fruit vs. Good God

October 15, 2026 // Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: John 15:1-8

Reflect on the Word // 

Please, Lord, don’t let it be him, I silently begged as the priest’s booming voice thundered through my home parish.  

I hadn’t expected our new, long-awaited pastor to begin celebrating Masses on this particular morning, and my lack of eyeglasses prevented me from seeing him clearly. But I couldn't imagine someone so, well, loud, being called to lead us. Don’t get me wrong, his homily was beautiful and full of bold truth, but here’s the thing: I was accustomed to shepherds who spoke with a strong yet tender tone, and my heart—not to mention my nerves—were thoroughly jarred.  

Soften him, Jesus, I pleaded, as a dart of remorse immediately pierced my heart. No, Lord, I offered up instead, Soften my heart to him.  

I believe this interior conversion was only possible because of the words Jesus speaks to us in today’s Gospel: “He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit” (John 15:2). Grafted onto Jesus the Vine, it becomes glaringly obvious what “branches” in my mind and heart need to be cut away, the twigs and thorny areas that need His gentle touch of pruning to bear life.   

Because the truth is, on my own, I would overlook all that hinders my growth in Him: the sinful and disordered “fruits” that choke the life of divine love in the garden of my soul. But our good God doesn’t leave me—or any of us—on our own. With audacious love, He invites us to a relationship in which we share the same life source, just like a vine and its branches (see John 15:4-5). And the offshoots of this intimate bond are the sanctifying fruits of grace. 

Sister, rotten fruit cannot stay when we are rooted in Life Himself. So let us remain. Like Saint Teresa of Avila, whose closeness to Christ bore abundant fruit, may we always cling to Him, the Master Gardener. For the work of His hands is holy.

And bad fruit doesn’t stand a chance against His abiding love.  

Relate to the Lord // Pray with us Saint Teresa’s prayer and let nothing separate you from the Vine today.

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