The Open Door to Grace

Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

Reading 1 Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14

Brothers and sisters:
After fourteen years I again went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas,
taking Titus along also.
I went up in accord with a revelation,
and I presented to them the Gospel that I preach to the Gentiles–
but privately to those of repute–
so that I might not be running, or have run, in vain.
On the contrary, 
when they saw that I had been entrusted with the Gospel to the uncircumcised,
just as Peter to the circumcised,
for the one who worked in Peter for an apostolate to the circumcised
worked also in me for the Gentiles,
and when they recognized the grace bestowed upon me,
James and Cephas and John,
who were reputed to be pillars,
gave me and Barnabas their right hands in partnership,
that we should go to the Gentiles
and they to the circumcised.
Only, we were to be mindful of the poor,
which is the very thing I was eager to do.

And when Cephas came to Antioch,
I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong.
For, until some people came from James,
he used to eat with the Gentiles;
but when they came, he began to draw back and separated himself,
because he was afraid of the circumcised.
And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him,
with the result that even Barnabas
was carried away by their hypocrisy.
But when I saw that they were not on the right road
in line with the truth of the Gospel,
I said to Cephas in front of all,
"If you, though a Jew,
are living like a Gentile and not like a Jew,
how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?"
 

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 117:1bc, 2

R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
Praise the LORD, all you nations,
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
 

Alleluia Romans 8:15bc

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You have received a spirit of adoption as sons
through which we cry: Abba! Father!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
 

Gospel Luke 11:1-4

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples."
He said to them, "When you pray, say:

Father, hallowed be your name,
your Kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test."
 

- - -

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 Open Door to Grace

October 8, 2026 // Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Luke 11:5-13  

Reflect on the Word // I would lie in bed at night, agonizing, just begging the Lord to “fix it.” In my very brief first marriage, there were serious problems right from the start. I longed for the Lord to open the door of my husband’s heart to me. I pleaded, fasted, prayed endlessly, and sought counsel. Things only got worse. The pain was almost unbearable; at times I thought it would stop my heart.

In the end, my husband’s heart remained closed to me. I’m certain this was at least, in part, out of his control. We divorced just one year after we were married. (Years later we were granted a declaration of nullity.)

Then comes this challenging Gospel from Luke. The Lord is so clear when he says, “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Luke 11:9-10, emphasis added). He says so confidently that the Father is the giver of good gifts.

How can I possibly reconcile this with my experience? What are we to make of it when a door does not open? Is God’s Word false?

Maybe, some of the answer is found later in the passage. Jesus concludes this teaching by saying, “If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” (Luke 11:13, emphasis added) That is, the Father will always give us grace when we need it. Grace in the Sacraments, like Confession and the Holy Eucharist. Grace in prayer and friendship. The grace to weather the great strains of a broken heart and to wish my ex-husband well—even to pray for him. 

I begged for a specific resolution but what the Father sent was infinitely more powerful: He sent the Holy Spirit to walk me through the darkest pain of my life. He gave the good gift of grace. And, when you need it most, He will do the same for you, sister.

Relate to the Lord // Pray today with Luke 11:13–challenge the doubts about your unanswered prayers and ask for deeper trust in the Holy Spirit given to you.

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