The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to examine our conscience for the criteria we use to actively participate in the care and healing of the people who come into our journey daily
In the Reading from the Letter to the Galatians, Paul proclaims Loyalty to the Gospel in His Call by Christ.
* [1:6–10] In place of the usual thanksgiving (see note on Rom 1:8), Paul, with little to be thankful for in the Galatian situation, expresses amazement at the way his converts are deserting the gospel of Christ for a perverted message. He reasserts the one gospel he has preached (Gal 1:7–9) and begins to defend himself (Gal 1:10).
* [1:6] The one who called you: God or Christ, though in actuality Paul was the divine instrument to call the Galatians.
* [1:8] Accursed: in Greek, anathema; cf. Rom 9:3; 1 Cor 12:3; 16:22.
* [1:10] This charge by Paul’s opponents, that he sought to conciliate people with flattery and to curry favor with God, might refer to his mission practices (cf. 1 Cor 9:19–23) but the word still suggests it refers to his pre-Christian days (cf. Gal 1:14; Phil 3:6). The self-description slave of Christ is one Paul often uses in a greeting (Rom 1:1).
* [1:11–2:21] Paul’s presentation on behalf of his message and of his apostleship reflects rhetorical forms of his day: he first narrates the facts about certain past events (Gal 1:12–2:14) and then states his contention regarding justification by faith as the gospel message (Gal 2:15–21). Further arguments follow from both experience and scripture in Galatians 3; 4 before he draws out the ethical consequences (Gal 5:1–6:10). The specific facts that he takes up here to show that his gospel is not a human invention (Gal 1:11) but came through a revelation of Jesus Christ (Gal 1:12) deal with his own calling as a Christian missionary (Gal 1:13–17), his initial relations with the apostles in Jerusalem (Gal 1:18–24), a later journey to Jerusalem (Gal 2:1–10), and an incident in Antioch involving Cephas and persons from James (Gal 2:11–14). The content of Paul’s revealed gospel is then set forth in the heart of the letter (Gal 2:15–21).
* [1:12] Although Paul received his gospel through a revelation from Christ, this did not exclude his use of early Christian confessional formulations. See note on Gal 1:4. (Galatians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 111 proclaims how God is revealed in Israel’s history.
* [Psalm 111] A Temple singer (Ps 111:1) tells how God is revealed in Israel’s history (Ps 111:2–10). The deeds reveal God’s very self, powerful, merciful, faithful. The poem is an acrostic, each verse beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
* [111:1] In the assembled congregation of the upright: in the Temple, cf. Ps 149:1.
* [111:10] The fear of the LORD: reverence for God.(Psalms, PSALM 111 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus restates The Greatest Commandment and presents The Parable of the Good Samaritan
* [10:25–37] In response to a question from a Jewish legal expert about inheriting eternal life, Jesus illustrates the superiority of love over legalism through the story of the good Samaritan. The law of love proclaimed in the “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:27–36) is exemplified by one whom the legal expert would have considered ritually impure (see Jn 4:9). Moreover, the identity of the “neighbor” requested by the legal expert (Lk 10:29) turns out to be a Samaritan, the enemy of the Jew (see note on Lk 9:52).
* [10:25] Scholar of the law: an expert in the Mosaic law, and probably a member of the group elsewhere identified as the scribes (Lk 5:21).
* [10:31–32] Priest…Levite: those religious representatives of Judaism who would have been expected to be models of “neighbor” to the victim pass him by. (Luke, CHAPTER 10 | USCCB, n.d.)
Saint Faustina Kowalska died of tuberculosis in Krakow, Poland, on October 5, 1938. Pope John Paul II beatified her in 1993, and canonized her seven years later.
Devotion to God’s Divine Mercy bears some resemblance to devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In both cases, sinners are encouraged not to despair, not to doubt God’s willingness to forgive them if they repent. As Psalm 136 says in each of its 26 verses, “God’s love [mercy] endures forever.” (Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, n.d.)
Cindy Murphy McMahon, like the Scholar of the law, asks Jesus the all-important question, “And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus flips centuries of ill will between Jews and Samaritans in a flash. He asks the scholar who “was neighbor” to the traveler? He shows the scholar, and us, that “being neighbor” is an attitude, and that it is lived out through merciful, generous action.
Jesus also answers the unspoken question: What does this attitude, this “being neighbor” entail? The parable shows it means doing anything and everything within our power to meet someone’s – anyone’s – need.
Let us pray today that we allow the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to “be neighbor” whenever and wherever we see a need, whether it is a kind greeting, a listening ear, or a generous helping hand. And we ask the Spirit help us overcome temptations to ignore those in need or limit our actions to people within our comfort zones. (Murphy McMahon, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes God desires to be our neighbor, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"God our Lord wished to be called our neighbor. The Lord Jesus Christ meant that he was the one who gave help to the man lying half-dead on the road, beaten and left by the robbers. The prophet said in prayer, 'As a neighbor and as one's own brother, so did I please' (Psalm 34:14 ). Since the divine nature is far superior and above our human nature, the command by which we are to love God is distinct from our love of our neighbor. He shows mercy to us because of his own goodness, while we show mercy to one another because of God's goodness. He has compassion on us so that we may enjoy him completely, while we have compassion on another that we may completely enjoy him. (excerpt from CHRISTIAN INSTRUCTION 33) (Schwager, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winker comments on the texts for today. In Galatians, Paul writes a seemingly angry letter. The usual opening with a thanksgiving is missing. The people addressed live In central Turkey in an area settled by Celtic people. Paul had evangelized there and a later missionary from Jerusalem arrived exhorting them to follow Jewish Law. Paul reminds the Galatians about the Gospel of Christ and warns them to reject anyone who preaches another gospel. He asks if the message is to curry the favour of people or of God? Paul gave testimony that the message he teaches is directly from a revelation of Christ following an encounter on the road and spiritual visit in the seventh heaven. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus responds to the query of what Law to follow for internal life. Jesus cites the Great Commandment to love God with heart, soul, and strength, or in terms for today, intellect, while in persecution, and with our possessions. In other texts the need to love God with our mind or conscience appears. Love our neighbour as our self is the second part of the Commandment to Love. The dangerous road from Jerusalem to Jericho is the scene in the parable of the “Good Samaritan”. First a Levite then a priest ignores the person who had been assaulted by robbers perhaps out of fear or the religious practice of keeping purity. The one who helps is a Samaritan. Today perhaps the hero would be “the good Taliban.” The Samaritan is the true neighbour. Friar Jude reminds us that we all need to see the ones who need and continue acting on our mission to care for the needs of others in our life, family and including someone of another race or culture following the example of the “Good Samaritan”.
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 10:25-37 comments that all around us, there are still many victims left in the ditch. They have been overpowered by dark forces like addiction, war, economic injustice—add to the list whatever “robbers” you can think of. They may appear “half-dead” until you try seeing them the way Jesus does: as wounded but not beyond help.
Who might they be? The stressed-out colleague who needs someone to ask, “Can I take something off your plate today?” The family member whose heart has been hardened by loneliness and who is carrying hurt that a simple phone call could soothe. The outsider who is treated with suspicion or simply ignored, for whom a smile or an offer of help could restore a sense of dignity.
In this parable, Jesus paints a picture of someone—a good Samaritan—whose priority is tending to the wounded. But it’s not just a touching story; it’s a challenge for you to “go and do likewise” (Luke 10:37). It all starts by asking the Lord to open your eyes so you can see hope and potential in a wounded, hurting world.
“Lord, give me eyes of love and a heart moved with compassion.” (Meditation on Luke 10:25-37, 2026)
Father Richard Rohr, OFM, considers how Christianity throughout history lost touch with the natural world as a place of grace and divine presence.
We grasped for meaning in merely mental ways when it was all around us in tangible and visible ways. We failed to kiss the ground on which we stood and preferred to fly off into the heavens. “The first level of perception,” according to Bonaventure, “is toward exterior material objects,” and only when we see respectfully and lovingly at that level can we “ascend” to his second and third levels of full spiritual seeing. [2] Francis knew and taught that “God does not lose energy by plunging into form,” as Cynthia Bourgeault so forcefully puts it [3], and that true transcendence is to be found in immanence and materiality itself. What a surprise!
Most of us were trained to be good Platonists, where body and soul are enemies, much more than Christian incarnationalists, where body and soul are friends. And where were we to experience this incarnation? Precisely everywhere and all the time, not just in places defined as sacred, special, churchy, or religious. That is why Paul could confidently tell us we could and should “pray always” (I Thessalonians 5:17). (Rohr, n.d.)
We invoke the Spirit to enlighten our perception of the needs of others and strengthen our will to be “Good Samaritans” who give time, talent, and treasure in Jesus' Way of care and compassion for all.
References
Galatians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/galatians/1?
Luke, CHAPTER 10 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings, Audio and Video Every Morning | USCCB. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/10?25
Meditation on Luke 10:25-37. (2026, October 5). The Word Among Us. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://wau.org/meditations/2026/10/04/1687059/
Murphy McMahon, C. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-october-5-2026
Psalms, PSALM 111 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings, Audio and Video Every Morning | USCCB. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/111?1
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Rediscovering Our Connection to Nature. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/rediscovering-our-connection-to-nature/
Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska. (n.d.). Franciscan Media. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-maria-faustina-kowalska/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Go and Do Likewise. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/
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