October 30, 2026
Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 483
Reading 1
Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus,
to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi,
with the bishops and deacons:
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you,
praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you,
because of your partnership for the Gospel
from the first day until now.
I am confident of this,
that the one who began a good work in you
will continue to complete it
until the day of Christ Jesus.
It is right that I should think this way about all of you,
because I hold you in my heart,
you who are all partners with me in grace,
both in my imprisonment
and in the defense and confirmation of the Gospel.
For God is my witness,
how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.
And this is my prayer:
that your love may increase ever more and more
in knowledge and every kind of perception,
to discern what is of value,
so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness
that comes through Jesus Christ
for the glory and praise of God.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (2) How great are the works of the Lord!
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. How great are the works of the Lord!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Majesty and glory are his work,
and his justice endures forever.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
R. How great are the works of the Lord!
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has given food to those who fear him;
he will forever be mindful of his covenant.
He has made known to his people the power of his works,
giving them the inheritance of the nations.
R. How great are the works of the Lord!
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
On a sabbath Jesus went to dine
at the home of one of the leading Pharisees,
and the people there were observing him carefully.
In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy.
Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking,
“Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?”
But they kept silent; so he took the man and,
after he had healed him, dismissed him.
Then he said to them
“Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern,
would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?”
But they were unable to answer his question.
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103026.cfm
Commentary on
Philippians 1:1-11
Today we begin reading what is possibly the most attractive
of all the Pauline letters. It is full of so many good things, some of which we
will enjoy during the rest of this week and the whole of next week. All the
commentators mention the spirit of joy which pervades the letter. This is all
the more striking as it was written from prison.
The city of Philippi, situated in Macedonia, north of
Greece, was named after King Philip II of Macedon, father of Alexander the
Great. It was a prosperous Roman colony, which meant that the citizens of
Philippi were also citizens of the city of Rome itself. They prided themselves
on being Romans, dressed like Romans and even spoke Latin. The fact that it was
primarily a Roman colony may explain why there were not enough Jews there to permit
the establishment of a synagogue. We remember that Paul had to meet with some
Jewish women in the city by a river bank (Acts 16:13) and perhaps this is why
Paul does not quote the Old Testament in the letter.
According to Acts (16:11-40), Paul, along with Timothy,
Silas, and others, had visited this city some years before (about 50 AD) during
his second missionary journey and founded there a church for whose members—most
of them Gentiles—Paul shows special affection and deep longing (see Phil 1:8;
2:19,24).
Although the letter was written in prison, it is unclear
exactly as to which prison, but now it is thought that it was very likely in
Ephesus. Rome is thought to have been too far away to make easy communication
with Philippi (as mentioned, in Macedonia, northern Greece) practicable
(no emails or telephones in those days!). When we think of Paul in prison,
we are inclined to think of Rome, but in fact, he was in prison a number of
times in different places.
The Letter opens in the conventional style of the day,
identifying the sender, the recipient(s) and giving a greeting. It comes from
Paul and Timothy, although it is understood that Timothy is mentioned in
courtesy as a valued colleague and not as co-author.
They identify themselves modestly not as apostles, but as
“slaves” of Christ Jesus, servants of the gospel. Paul usually refers to
himself at the beginning of a letter as an “apostle”. Here he substitutes a
term suggesting the unconditional dedication of himself and Timothy to the
service of Christ. It is also possible that, in view of his warm relationship
with the Philippians, he wishes to stress his status as a co-servant rather
than emphasise his apostolic authority.
The letter is addressed to the “saints”, that is, all the
baptised members of the community as well as their “overseers” and “deacons”.
This is the only place in Paul’s writings where church community leaders are
explicitly mentioned as recipients of a letter.
“Saints” means people set apart (by their allegiance to
Christ), but does not indicate they are ready for canonisation! We know that
many of them had shortcomings that Paul did not hesitate to point out when
writing to them.
“Bishop” is a translation of the Greek word episkopos
and literally means one who ‘oversees’ or ‘supervises’. In Greek culture the
word was used of a presiding official in a civic or religious organisation.
Here it refers to a man who oversees a local Christian community. The
equivalent word from the Jewish background of Christianity is ‘elder’. The
terms ‘bishop’, ‘overseer’ or ‘elder’ (presbyteros) are used
interchangeably in Acts. The duties of an overseer were to teach and preach, to
direct the affairs of the church, to shepherd the flock of God and to guard the
church from error.
From the 2nd century on the term used would be ‘bishop’,
then meaning the leader of a local church. It would not have had this meaning
in the early church, although development can already been seen taking place in
the ‘pastoral letters’ of 1 and 2 Timothy, and Titus. At Philippi, however,
(and at Ephesus, according to Acts 20:28), there was more than one episkopos
and their precise role is not certain.
‘Minister’ is a translation of the Greek term diakonos
and used frequently in the New Testament to designate ‘servants’, ‘attendants’,
or ‘ministers’. The “deacons” are the overseer’s assistants, who take care of
the more practical areas of church administration.
Generally, the assistant’s service was meant to free
the elders to give full attention to prayer and the ministry of the
word. The only two local church offices mentioned in the New Testament are
those of “overseer” and “deacon”.
Paul refers to himself and to other apostles as “servants of
God” (2 Cor 6:4), or “ministers of Christ” (2 Cor 11:23). In the Pastoral
Letters (e.g. 1 Tim 3:8,12) the diakonos has become an established
official in the local church. As with the episkopoi, the diakonoi
at Philippi seem to represent an earlier stage of development of the office,
and again we are uncertain about their precise functions. In a passage in
Romans (16:1), Phoebe is described as a diakonos of the church at
Cenchreae, leading to speculation that there were women deacons.
Later, ‘overseer’ and ‘presbyter’ will become divided into
the distinct offices of ‘bishop’ and ‘priest’. Our word ‘bishop’ is a distorted
form of the Greek episkopos; our word ‘priest’ a distorted form of the
Greek presbyteros, from which also comes ‘presbyter’, ‘presbytery’, and
‘Presbyterian’.
Paul opens the letter by thanking God and praying with joy
when he remembers all the Philippians have done for the spread of the gospel
from the very day of their conversion right up to the present:
I thank my God…for your partnership in the gospel from
the first day until now.
They have done this both by the material help they gave to
poorer churches and by the sufferings they have gladly endured for
the sake of the gospel. The word ‘joy’ will recur many times in the letter.
Prayers of joyful thanksgiving for his readers’ response to the gospel are a
hallmark of the opening sentences of Paul’s letters.
Paul is confident that Jesus, “the one who began a good
work in you”, will continue right up to the day he returns again at the end to
bring all his own to himself. Paul is confident, not only of what God has done
‘for’ the readers in forgiving their sins, but also of what he has done ‘in’
them. “Work” here refers to God’s activity in saving them. It is God who
initiates salvation, who continues it and who will one day bring it to its
consummation.
Paul’s strong feelings of affection for them stem from their
common sharing in “partnership”: both his prison chains and his work in
defending and establishing the gospel. They did this by sending Epaphroditus
with financial gifts to Paul (see Phil 2:25). For this he is deeply grateful.
The Phillipians had become one with Paul in his persecution. Not surprisingly,
they have a permanent place in his heart and he misses them so much, loving
them with the same love that Jesus extends to them.
He longs for them “with the tender affection of Christ
Jesus”. This is the deep yearning and intense, compassionate love exhibited by
Jesus himself and now fostered in Paul by his union with Christ. This affection
reaches out to all impartially and without exception.
Then comes a lovely prayer which he makes on their behalf.
It is one we, too, can use for each other. He prays:
…that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge
and full insight to help you to determine what really matters, so that in the
day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of
righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.
It is similar to a prayer we saw in the Letter to the
Ephesians:
I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may
grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his
Spirit and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being
rooted and grounded in love. (Eph 3:16-17)
Love alone is not enough: the gift of discernment is also
very precious. It is the skill by which, with God’s help, we can see more
clearly which choice is closer to God’s will, so that we can “determine what
really matters”. Christian love is not a mere matter of devotional feeling; it
is rooted in knowledge and understanding.
Only in this way can we become “pure and blameless” and be
ready for the “day of Christ”. That is the day when:
…the harvest of righteousness…comes through Jesus Christ
for the glory and praise of God.
If only we could realise that here, and here alone is the
purpose of all our living! Let us say that prayer of Paul for ourselves and for
all those around us.
Commentary on Luke
14:1-6
Today we enter a series of four teachings from Jesus, all
connected with meals. It begins with another example of a confrontation between
Jesus and some religious leaders on a Sabbath. Altogether there are seven
Sabbath healings recorded in the Gospels, of which Luke mentions five. The
other two are in John—the healing of the paralysed man at the Sheep Gate (see
John 5:10 and following) and the healing of the man born blind (John 9:14 and
following).
Jesus had apparently been invited to have a meal in a
Pharisee’s house on a Sabbath day. We have mentioned before that the word
‘Pharisee’ means ‘separated one’. They numbered about 6,000 and were found all
over Palestine. They taught in synagogues, saw themselves as religious
paragons, and were self-appointed guardians of the Law and its observance. They
regarded their interpretations of traditions to be virtually as authoritative
as Scripture (see Mark 7:8-13). The scribes studied, interpreted and taught the
Law, both written and oral. Most of them were also Pharisees and hence they are
often paired in the Gospels.
It certainly looks as if the invitation was what is known as
a ‘set up’ because, we are told, “they were watching him closely”. And there
right in front of him (what a coincidence!) was a man suffering from edema, an
accumulation of fluid in the body caused by some other illness (this is the
only place in the original Greek of the New Testament where the term Luke uses
for this sickness is found).
Far from being put on the defensive, Jesus immediately
throws down a challenge:
Is it lawful to cure people on the Sabbath or not?
Strictly speaking, according to the letter of the Law as
interpreted by the scribes and Pharisees present, it was not lawful. Because
‘curing’ involved medical work and it could take time and energy. By asking
them his question before the healing, Jesus made it difficult for them to
protest afterwards. And in fact they dared not give him an answer. To say ‘yes’
could make them seem lax in their interpretation; to say ‘no’ would seem cruel
to the man.
So Jesus took the man, healed him on the spot and sent him
off. He then turns to his critics with another question:
If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into a
well, will you not immediately pull it out on a Sabbath day?
They had no answer because no answer was necessary or
possible. What Jesus had done was unlawful only according to rabbinic
interpretations, but not according to the Mosaic Law itself.
Their mindset was revealed and it was not the mindset of
Jesus. For them people came second to legalities. For Jesus the law was there
for people. Jesus was moved by compassion and the well-being of people. Sometimes
that meant the law had to be put aside—a principle which they also recognised
as proved by the examples that Jesus gave.
How many times have we become the victim of our desire for
human ‘respect’—of failiing to go to the help of a person because we were
afraid of what people might say or how they might judge us? They may even throw
Church ‘rules’ and ‘commandments’ in our face as criticism. But no one who acts
out of genuine love for others can go far wrong. No truly loving act can be
sinful.
https://sacredspace.com/commentary
Ordinary Time
Opening Prayer
Almighty and
ever-living God, strengthen our faith, hope and love.
May we do with loving hearts what you ask of us and come to share
the life you promise.
We ask this
through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Gospel Reading - Luke 14: 1-6
It happened that on a Sabbath day Jesus had gone to share a meal
in the house of one of the leading Pharisees and they watched Him closely. Now
there in front of Him was a man with dropsy. Jesus addressed the lawyers and
Pharisees with the words "Is it against the law to cure someone on the
Sabbath or not?" But they remained silent, so He took the man and cured
him and sent him away.
Then
He said to them, "Which of you here, if his son falls into a well, or his
ox, will not pull him out on a Sabbath day without any hesitation?" And to
this they could find no answer.
Reflection
Today’s
Gospel narrates an episode of the discussion between Jesus and the Pharisees
which took place along His journey from Galilee up to Jerusalem. It is very
difficult to situate this fact in the context of the life of Jesus. There are
similarities with a fact narrated in the Gospel of Mark (Mk 3: 1-6). It is probably
a question of the many stories transmitted orally, and, in the oral
transmission, they were adapted in accordance to the situation, the needs and
hopes, of the people of the communities.
• Luke 14: 1:
The invitation on a Saturday. “On a Sabbath day Jesus went to share a meal in
the house of one of the leading Pharisees and they watched Him closely.” This
initial information on the reception in the house of a Pharisee gives Luke the
possibility to present several episodes which speak about welcoming and
accepting the invitation to have a meal: the cure of the sick man (Lk 14: 2-6),
choice of places where to eat (Lk 14:
7-11), choice of the guests invited (Lk 14: 12-14), and those invited
who do not accept the invitation (Lk 14: 15-24). Many times, Jesus is invited
by the Pharisees to share a meal. Perhaps the reason for inviting Him was out
of curiosity as well as malice, wishing to observe Jesus to see how He observes
the prescriptions of the law.
• Luke 14: 2:
The situation which brings about the action of Jesus. “There was a man with
dropsy.” It is not said how a man with dropsy could enter the house of the head
of the Pharisees. But if he is in front of Jesus, it is because he wants to be
cured. The Pharisees observe Jesus. It was a Saturday, and it is forbidden to
cure on a Saturday. What to do? Can it be done or not?
• Luke 14: 3:
The question of Jesus to the scribes and the Pharisees. “Jesus addressing the
lawyers and the Pharisees asked, Is it against the law to cure someone on the
Sabbath or not? With His question Jesus explains the problem which they had
before them: “Can one cure or not on Saturday? Does the law permit this, yes or
no? In Mark’s Gospel the question is even more provocative: “Is it permitted on
the Sabbath day to do good, or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” (Mk 3: 4).
• Luke 14: 4-6:
The cure. The Pharisees do not respond and remain in silence. Before the
silence of the one who neither approves nor disapproves, Jesus takes the man by
the hand, cures him, and sends him away. Afterward, in response to a possible
criticism, He explains the reason that has moved Him
to cure: “Which of you here, if
his son falls into a well, or his ox, will not pull him out on a Sabbath day
without any hesitation?” With this question Jesus shows the incoherence of the
lawyers and of the Pharisees. If one of them has no problem, on Saturday, to
help his son or even an animal, then Jesus also has the right to help the man
with dropsy. Jesus’ question recalls the Psalm which says that God Himself helps
men and animals (Ps 36: 8). The Pharisees “Could not respond anything to these
words”; because before the evidence, there are no arguments which can deny it.
Personal Questions
• The liberty
of Jesus before a situation. Even though He is being observed by those who do
not approve of him, He does not lose His liberty. What liberty do I have?
• There are
difficult moments in life in which we are obliged to choose between the
immediate need of our neighbor and the letter of the law. How should we act?
Concluding Prayer
I give thanks
to Yahweh with all my heart,
in the meeting place of honest people, in the assembly. Great are
the deeds of Yahweh,
to be
pondered by all who delight in them. (Ps 111: 1-2)
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