🙏 Opening Prayer
(For both catechumens and the baptized)
Lord God,
You call each of us out of the well of our sins and into the light of your truth.
Grant that we may hear your voice — even when we’re too busy watching sheep, oxen, or scrolling through our phones —
and have the courage to drag ourselves, or someone else, out of the well of indifference.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
First Reading: Romans 9:1-5
“What I want to say now is no pretence; I say it in union with Christ – it is the truth – my conscience in union with the Holy Spirit assures me of it too. What I want to say is this: my sorrow is so great, my mental anguish so endless, I would willingly be condemned and be cut off from Christ if it could help my brothers of Israel …” universalis.com+1
Psalm: Psalms 147:12-15, 19-20
“O praise the Lord, Jerusalem … He sends out his word to the earth and swiftly runs his command … He has not dealt thus with other nations; he has not taught them his decrees.” universalis.com+1
Gospel: Jesus Christ in Luke 14:1-6
“Now on a sabbath day Jesus had gone for a meal to the house of one of the leading Pharisees … There in front of him was a man with dropsy, and Jesus addressed the lawyers and Pharisees. ‘Is it against the law to cure a man on the sabbath day or not?’ … Then he took the man and healed 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 hesitation?’” universalis.com+1
🧐 Explanation & Reflection
For the baptized:
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In the first reading, Paul is basically saying: “My sadness is so big I’d choose eternal condemnation if it meant someone else could be saved.” That’s serious solidarity.
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The Psalm reminds us that God’s word is fast-moving — like a divine courier, or maybe God’s version of same-day delivery.
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In the Gospel, Jesus confronts religious rigidity. Healing someone with dropsy on the Sabbath? That’s like breaking the sacred “no work” rule… but Jesus says compassion > legalism.
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Dark humour moment: Imagine someone arguing “It’s the Sabbath, so you can’t rescue him” — and Jesus responding, “What if your ox fell in instead?” Picture someone’s very expensive ox out of the well, and you're stuck saying “Er… it’s Sunday… can’t help.” That’s absurd… and that’s just the point.
For the catechumen (you’re learning the ropes):
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The readings teach you that following Christ isn’t just about ticking religious boxes. It’s about relationship, mercy, and action.
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You’ll notice: religious rules were meant to serve life, not kill it. In fact, Jesus shows rules exist so we can love better.
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The heavy emotion in Paul’s reading reminds you: faith isn’t casual. There are people behind scripture — with real sorrow, real hope.
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Dark humour note for you: When someone tells you you must “obey every rule before you’re allowed to have compassion,” remember: Jesus pretty much bends the rule-book for mercy. So you don’t need to wear a halo (yet) — just a heart open to God.
🙌 Closing Prayer
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for calling us out of our wells — wells of doubt, wells of indifference, wells of “I’ll wait till later.”
Help us not to stand by on the Sabbath of our souls when someone is suffering.
Let your word run swiftly through us, and may we run faster still in acts of kindness.
We ask this in the name of your Son, who healed on days you thought he wouldn’t. Amen.
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