We do not dwell enough on the love we have received from Jesus Christ, our Lord, who unites us all as one body in Him.
Through His death and resurrection, He has set us free to become one in Him. This unity that we share should never be taken for granted, for He has gathered all of us as one unto Himself in one holy communion.
Living as free men and women, we shall stand united with lamps lit, ready to greet Him when He comes again. We shall not be caught off guard, for even if we die today or tomorrow, we will be ready to account for how we have been faithful and fruitful for Him. Amen.
Saint Paul of the Cross, Priest pray for us…
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First reading
Ephesians 2:12-22 ·
In Christ you are no longer aliens, but citizens like us
Do not forget that you had no Christ and were excluded from membership of Israel, aliens with no part in the covenants with their Promise; you were immersed in this world, without hope and without God. But now in Christ Jesus, you that used to be so far apart from us have been brought very close, by the blood of Christ. For he is the peace between us, and has made the two into one and broken down the barrier which used to keep them apart, actually destroying in his own person the hostility caused by the rules and decrees of the Law. This was to create one single New Man in himself out of the two of them and by restoring peace through the cross, to unite them both in a single Body and reconcile them with God: in his own person he killed the hostility. Later he came to bring the good news of peace, peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near at hand. Through him, both of us have in the one Spirit our way to come to the Father.
So you are no longer aliens or foreign visitors: you are citizens like all the saints, and part of God’s household. You are part of a building that has the apostles and prophets for its foundations, and Christ Jesus himself for its main cornerstone. As every structure is aligned on him, all grow into one holy temple in the Lord; and you too, in him, are being built into a house where God lives, in the Spirit.
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Gospel
Luke 12:35-38
Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘See that you are dressed for action and have your lamps lit. Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. I tell you solemnly, he will put on an apron, sit them down at table and wait on them. It may be in the second watch he comes, or in the third, but happy those servants if he finds them ready.’
