Jesus' parable about how the guests might strategize to jockey themselves into more prestigious seats is nothing short of comedy. Rather than speak directly about humility, Jesus creates a slightly outrageous story/parable to make his point. Humility is having accurate knowledge of ourselves and accepting ourselves. In the parable, Jesus looks at motives. humility is elusive, it is a slippery fish. in claiming that we have it, we lose it to pride. He challenges his host, the guests, and us to become humble.

In Today's Gospel, Jesus answers a seeker who asks, '' Will only a few be saved'' with '' Strive to enter through the narrow gate...'' Here, the seeker is on the outside and Jesus is on the inside, but in both stories about entrance to life with our God, some effort is required of us who want to be on the same side of the door as Jesus. Whether it is by turning the doorknob and opening it or by walking through the gate, something is required of us.

Jesus said, ''i have come to set the earth on fire and how I wish it were already blazing.'' Jeremiah, the author of the first reading, wrote, '' within me there is something like burning fire shut up in my bones,'' What is it that is burning within? The fire of enthusiasm. enthusiasm sounds almost too weak a word. Athletes can surely appreciate the ''fire in the gut'' feeling. Being ''fired up'' means maximal effort, the absolute best effort within you. There is fire-filled football on the two-yard line - on both sides of the ball that is never exceeded.

The Gospel is from St. Luke 12:32-48. In a few vivid and expressive similes, our Lord tells the disciples and through them, all the followers, how they should conduct their lives on earth so that they would always be found in God's friendship when their call to judgement comes. In answer to a question put to him by Peter, our Lord says that more will be expected of those who have received greater gifts from God than of those who received lesser gifts.

In today's Gospel we see that when it comes to possessions even the best of people often end up losing their heads and become blind and deaf. they see only their interest and are willing to override even the most sacred sentiments. At times, with the help of a wise friend, the parties are able to agree, at other times instead the hatred lasts for years and the brothers stop talking to each other. Jesus was chosen as a mediator to solve one of these family contrasts. The situation presented to him has arisen because one has attempted to commit an injustice and the other is in danger of suffering it.

In today's readings, we are presented with two powerful moments of intercession and prayer. in the first reading from Genesis, we encounter the familiar story of Abraham negotiating with God for the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah. in the Gospel from Luke, we hear Jesus teaching His disciples how to pray, offering the Lord's prayer and assuring them of God's generosity in answering prayers. Both readings speak to the nature of prayer, particularly the power of intercession and the generosity of God.

In Today's Gospel, we encounter the familiar scene of Jesus visiting the home of Martha and Mary. While Martha is busy with the tasks of serving and preparing for the guest, Mary sits at the feet of Jesus, listening attentively to His words. While Martha complains that Mary is not helping, Jesus gently rebukes her, saying, '' Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her''.

In today's Gospel, we hear the parable of the Good Samaritan, one of the most well-known and impactful teachings of Jesus. The story is simple yet profound: A man is robbed, beaten and left for dead on the side of the road. A priest and Levite pass by, each ignoring the man's plight. But a Samaritan, a figure despised by the jewish people of the time, stops to help the injured man, tending to his wounds and ensuring he receives care. Jesus concludes by asking, '' Which of these three, do you think, was neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?'' The answer, of course, is the one who showed mercy.

In today's Gospel, taken from the Evangelist Luke, we read of the commissioning of the disciples by the Lord. we see that the Lord does something a little bit unusual and perhaps for our modern standards, a bit inefficient! He sends his disciples out two-by-two. Why would the Lord do this? with all the ground that He has to cover, with all the souls that need to hear the message of the Kingdom of God, why wouldn't He just send them out one-by-one? As one homilist put it years ago: '' if these disciples can survive each other, they can survive anything the world, the flesh and the devil can throw at them.

Today's Gospel Reading offers us one of the Most profound questions in all Scripture, asked by Jesus to his disciples:'' Who do you say that I am?'' This is a basic question that I believe all followers of Jesus must answer and not just once but at various times in our life: Who do we say that Jesus is? For us and for our World? Every person on this planet believes something about God. But it can vary a great deal.

Even we Christians can believe different things about the one God whom we all worship. Not only that but our understanding of God, our theology can change over our lifetime. In fact, it should change as we grow in our faith. But the reason why this question is so important. because how we answer this question directly affects how we live out our faith and how we live out our lives.

Today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. This special Feast is celebrated in remembrance of Jesus who gave His life for our salvation and commanded us to celebrate the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist in his memory. The Feast sums up three important confessions about our Faith. First is that God became physically present in the person of Christ, True God and True Man. Secondly, God continues to be present in His people as to form the Mystical Body of Christ in his Church. And thirdly, the presence of God under the form of bread and wine is made available to us on the altar at Mass and preserved there for our nourishment and worship. Our liturgy today recalls the scriptural origins of this devotion.

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Trinity which is a mystery difficult to comprehend. in our daily life, we begin every one of our prayers, activities, programmes or works with the sign of the cross and call upon God, '' In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.'' Even though we remember the Trinity several times a day, it is difficult to comprehend the full meaning because the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit we invoke constitute a great Mystery. The Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity consists of this; the Father is God, The Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God and yet there are not three Gods, but only one God with three attributes.

At Christmas, God became incarnate. He came to share with us His participation in the divine life and in the grace of God. Easter is the feast of the Resurrection of the soul from sin and of the incorporation of man in the mystical body of the Eucharist. Pentecost is the feast of the visible mission of the Holy Spirit to the apostles, to the Church, to each Christian family and to each individual soul.

The Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord commemorates the fortieth day after the Resurrection when Jesus ascended body and soul into Heaven and took His seat at the right hand of His Father. Only Jesus and His Blessed Mother have entered into the glories of Heaven, body and soul. Jesus' Ascension implies that He did so by His own authority and power. The Blessed Virgin Mary's Assumption implies that she entered Heaven, body and soul, by God's power and not her own.