Searching and Saving

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to search for the things in life that complement our necessary need for completeness as children of God.

Family Blessings

In the Reading from the Letter to the Romans, Paul exhorts us to Live and Die for Christ.

* [14:8] The Lord: Jesus, our Master. The same Greek word, kyrios, was applied to both rulers and holders of slaves. Throughout the Letter to the Romans Paul emphasizes God’s total claim on the believer; see note on Rom 1:1. (Romans, CHAPTER 14 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 27 declares “I believe” (Ps 27:13), echoing “I trust”

* [Psalm 27] Tradition has handed down the two sections of the Psalm (Ps 27:1–6; 7–14) as one Psalm, though each part could be understood as complete in itself. Asserting boundless hope that God will bring rescue (Ps 27:1–3), the psalmist longs for the presence of God in the Temple, protection from all enemies (Ps 27:4–6). In part B there is a clear shift in tone (Ps 27:7–12); the climax of the poem comes with “I believe” (Ps 27:13), echoing “I trust” (Ps 27:3). (Psalms, PSALM 27 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus teaches using the Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin.

* [15:1–32] To the parable of the lost sheep (Lk 15:1–7) that Luke shares with Matthew (Mt 18:12–14), Luke adds two parables (the lost coin, Lk 15:8–10; the prodigal son, Lk 15:11–32) from his own special tradition to illustrate Jesus’ particular concern for the lost and God’s love for the repentant sinner. (Luke, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB, n.d.)

Rev. Andy Alexander, SJ, comments that Jesus stories in Luke have four things in common. Something/someone precious is lost. An intense search begins. The lost is found. A celebration breaks out.

This marvelous story is a gift for you and me today. Our hearts are warmed to see Jesus as the defender of the sinner. We’re touched to hear how precious we are, and how much Jesus longs to offer us a joyous return. And, it just might help us to be aware of any tendency we might have to judge others or to resent how merciful Jesus is. Finally, a fresh reading of this story might lead us to speak with our Lord, with gratitude, tenderness, and joy. (Axexander, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Joy over the fallen sinner restored in God's image,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).

"This second parable compares what was lost to a drachma (Luke 15:8-9). It is as one out of ten, a perfect number and of a sum complete in the accounting. The number ten also is perfect, being the close of the series from the unit upwards. This parable clearly shows that we are in the royal likeness and image, even that of God over all. I suppose the drachma is the denarius on which is stamped the royal likeness. We, who had fallen and had been lost, have been found by Christ and transformed by holiness and righteousness into his image... A search was made for that which had fallen, so the woman lighted a lamp... By the light, what was lost is saved, and there is joy for the powers above. They rejoice even in one sinner that repents, as he who knows all things has taught us. They keep a festival over one who is saved, united with the divine purpose, and never cease to praise the Savior's gentleness. What great joy must fill them when all beneath heaven is saved and Christ calls them by faith to acknowledge the truth? They put off the pollution of sin and freed their necks from the bonds of death. They have escaped from the blame of their wandering and fall! We gain all these things in Christ."(excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 106) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 15:1-10 comments that to our God, there is no more or less value between people we might call “sinners” and those we might call “saints.” God loves each of us, not because of our good deeds, but out of his own goodness.

You were created to behold God and to be united with him in joy! This is the only thing that can truly fulfill you, and it’s also what makes repentance so worthwhile. So turn and “gaze on the loveliness of the Lord” today (Psalm 27:4). Listen to him tell you your value.

“Thank you, Lord, for the joy of belonging to your family!” (Meditation on Luke 15:1-10, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments that, in Romans 14, Paul declares we live for the Lord and life and death can not divide us from the Lord, We are brothers and sisters. We should not judge. We may counter self destruction. God decides on good or evil, not us. Jesus speaks of compassion to sinners, the lost sheep, one of a hundred, followed by a woman's story, a common structure in Luke. Losing coins in the style of housing of dirt and straw floors was likely. God does not want the condemnation of sinners. God wants the return of sinners. God loves us as beloved sinners. Friar Jude reminds us that when we sin we are poisoning ourselves and that is not what God wants. 

Fr. Mike Schmitz points out how easy it is to take good things and make idols out of them, setting them up as God's rivals for our hearts. We can discover these rivals by noticing the things we prioritize over spending time with God. The readings are 2 Maccabees 13, Wisdom 15-16, and Proverbs 25:15-17.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Theologian Megan McKenna who focuses on the way Luke’s Gospel presents Jesus and the Beatitudes, known as the “blessings and woes.”

In Luke [6:17–35], Jesus … comes down with [the disciples] to a level place that is crowded with hordes of people from all parts of the region and beyond to the coastal cities: believers, unbelievers, outsiders, and probably many not welcome in religious society.  

Before he teaches, he heals; or perhaps as he heals, he teaches. Those who have come to him are ill, diseased, troubled by evil spirits, despised by society. They are desperate, seeking to touch him…. The scene is one of motion, reaching, grabbing, and we are told simply that “the power which went out from him healed them all.” This power, his spirit and presence, is healing, comforting, soothing, calming, promising. But the most startling line of all is the last one: “Then lifting up his eyes to his disciples, Jesus said….”  

He lifts up his eyes: he is positioned below them, probably kneeling on the ground, tending to those in pain and suffering, attentive to the needs of those reaching for him…. He is in a position of vulnerability, of solidarity with the masses of people in need. From this position he speaks the beatitudes: the blessings and the woes…. In Luke’s Gospel Jesus is more comfort-giver than teacher; more attentive than discursive; more tender than instructive; more embracing of the pain of others than distant as law-giver. (Rohr, n.d.)

We are searchers and we seek the Wisdom of the Spirit to continue to search for full life in a Way of love, mercy, care, and compassion even as we contend with counter narratives that use the valuation of the world to guide our activity.

References

Axexander, A. (n.d.). Daily Reflection. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-november-6-2025 

Luke, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/15?1 

Meditation on Luke 15:1-10. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/11/06/1422913/ 

Psalms, PSALM 27 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/27?1 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. CAC.org. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-healer-teaches/ 

Romans, CHAPTER 14 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/romans/14?7 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved November 6, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/ 

Morality and Blessing

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to assess our blessings and how we use them to support the practice of Jesus Way in our environment.

Home and Hunger

The Reading from the Letter to the Colossians proclaims Mystical Death, Resurrection and Renunciation of Vice.

* [3:1–4] By retaining the message of the gospel that the risen, living Christ is the source of their salvation, the Colossians will be free from false religious evaluations of the things of the world (Col 3:1–2). They have died to these; but one day when Christ…appears, they will live with Christ in the presence of God (Col 3:3–4).

* [3:5–17] In lieu of false asceticism and superstitious festivals, the apostle reminds the Colossians of the moral life that is to characterize their response to God through Christ. He urges their participation in the liturgical hymns and prayers that center upon God’s plan of salvation in Christ (Col 3:16).

* [3:5, 8] The two lists of five vices each are similar to enumerations at Rom 1:29–31 and Gal 5:19–21.

* [3:6] The wrath of God: see note on Rom 1:18. Many manuscripts add, as at Eph 5:6, “upon the disobedient.”

* [3:8–10] Put…away; have taken off; have put on: the terms may reflect baptismal practice, taking off garments and putting on new ones after being united with Christ, here translated into ethical terms.

* [3:10] Image: see note on Col 1:15.

* [3:11] Scythian: a barbarous people from north of the Black Sea. (Colossians, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 145 declares God’s mighty acts show forth divine kingship.

* [Psalm 145] A hymn in acrostic form; every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Acrostic poems usually do not develop ideas but consist rather of loosely connected statements. The singer invites all to praise God (Ps 145:1–3, 21). The “works of God” make God present and invite human praise (Ps 145:4–7); they climax in a confession (Ps 145:8–9). God’s mighty acts show forth divine kingship (Ps 145:10–20), a major theme in the literature of early Judaism and in Christianity. (Psalms, PSALM 145 | USCCB, n.d.)

The Gospel of Luke presents the Sermon on the Plain.

* [6:20–49] Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain” is the counterpart to Matthew’s “Sermon on the Mount” (Mt 5:1–7:27). It is addressed to the disciples of Jesus, and, like the sermon in Matthew, it begins with beatitudes (Lk 6:20–22) and ends with the parable of the two houses (Lk 6:46–49). Almost all the words of Jesus reported by Luke are found in Matthew’s version, but because Matthew includes sayings that were related to specifically Jewish Christian problems (e.g., Mt 5:17–20; 6:1–8, 16–18) that Luke did not find appropriate for his predominantly Gentile Christian audience, the “Sermon on the Mount” is considerably longer. Luke’s sermon may be outlined as follows: an introduction consisting of blessings and woes (Lk 6:20–26); the love of one’s enemies (Lk 6:27–36); the demands of loving one’s neighbor (Lk 6:37–42); good deeds as proof of one’s goodness (Lk 6:43–45); a parable illustrating the result of listening to and acting on the words of Jesus (Lk 6:46–49). At the core of the sermon is Jesus’ teaching on the love of one’s enemies (Lk 6:27–36) that has as its source of motivation God’s graciousness and compassion for all humanity (Lk 6:35–36) and Jesus’ teaching on the love of one’s neighbor (Lk 6:37–42) that is characterized by forgiveness and generosity.

* [6:20–26] The introductory portion of the sermon consists of blessings and woes that address the real economic and social conditions of humanity (the poor—the rich; the hungry—the satisfied; those grieving—those laughing; the outcast—the socially acceptable). By contrast, Matthew emphasizes the religious and spiritual values of disciples in the kingdom inaugurated by Jesus (“poor in spirit,” Mt 5:3; “hunger and thirst for righteousness,” Mt 5:6). In the sermon, blessed extols the fortunate condition of persons who are favored with the blessings of God; the woes, addressed as they are to the disciples of Jesus, threaten God’s profound displeasure on those so blinded by their present fortunate situation that they do not recognize and appreciate the real values of God’s kingdom. In all the blessings and woes, the present condition of the persons addressed will be reversed in the future. (Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB, n.d.)

A Member of Creighton University Community invites us to consider the question: “Where do I get caught up in the earthly things, and when do I find myself focusing on the wrong things?”

It seems to me that Jesus is inviting us to reconsider who might be the people who are most loved or in tune with their reliance on God….not the successful, the satisfied, the happy, the popular, the protected. Those who are grieving, weeping, excluded and victimized are the ones who are close to God’s care. Are they the ones that I could be spending more of my time and effort with? How might I learn from them?

These readings are not just inviting us to question where our hearts are, where our focus should be. These words of Jesus also give hope that there is a more wonderful place and time coming, and that the destruction, greed, division and tragedy of this world will not have the final say. (Member of Creighton University Community, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Jesus, though rich, became poor for us,” by Ambrose of Milan, 339-397 A.D.

"'Blessed,' it says, 'are the poor.' Not all the poor are blessed, for poverty is neutral. The poor can be either good or evil, unless, perhaps, the blessed pauper is to be understood as he whom the prophet described, saying, 'A righteous poor man is better than a rich liar' (Proverbs 19:22). Blessed is the poor man who cried and whom the Lord heard (Psalm 34:6). Blessed is the man poor in offense. Blessed is the man poor in vices. Blessed is the poor man in whom the prince of this world (John 14:30) finds nothing. Blessed is the poor man who is like that poor Man who, although he was rich, became poor for our sake (2 Corinthians 8:9). Matthew fully revealed this when he said, 'Blessed are the poor in spirit' (Matthew 5:3). One poor in spirit is not puffed up, is not exalted in the mind of his own flesh. This beatitude is first, when I have laid aside every sin, and I have taken off all malice, and I am content with simplicity, destitute of evils. All that remains is that I regulate my conduct. For what good does it do me to lack worldly goods, unless I am meek and gentle?" (excerpt from EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 5.53-54) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Colossians 3:1-11 comments that this example illustrates what Paul is speaking of in today’s first reading when he talks about the “old self” and the “new self” (Colossians 3:9, 10). The “old self”—including that part of us that enjoys being selfish and uncaring—reveals our fallen nature, with all its sins and harmful inclinations. The “new self” is the renewed way of thinking and acting that is made possible for us in our Baptism.

So make a plan. What will you do the next time you are confronted with a temptation that has been troubling you? How will you put off the old self and ask God for the grace to put on the new self? Or to put it another way, how will you embrace the privilege of letting the Spirit transform you?

“Thank you, Jesus, for making me a new creation in you!” (Meditation on Colossians 3:1-11, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments that in the Colossians reading we hear we have died and have risen with Christ meaning we should live away from earthly things and adopt a new way. Divisions are no longer important Paul, in other letters, describes the Body of Christ in which we exist. In Luke, the  beatitudes are given on the Plain. Matthew’s Beatitudes are more spiritualized and are on the mountain. Luke’s version is likely closer to Jesus teaching because blessings and woe were a traditional teaching method. The “Blessed” are those who cannot make it on their own. The rich are self sufficient. The anawim are the poor, the special group to whom Jesus reaches out like the Bethlehem shepherds and the “Good Thief” on the cross. Friar Jude reminds us that he needed salvation and he received it.

Brian McLaren reflects on the different understandings of power held by the early Jesus movement and the Roman Empire. He highlights the radical contrasts between the two empires.

• Rome’s empire was violent. God’s empire was nonviolent. 

• Rome’s empire was characterized by domination. God’s empire was characterized by service and liberation. 

• Rome’s empire was preoccupied with money. God’s empire was preoccupied with generosity and was deeply suspicious of money. 

• Rome’s empire was fueled by the love of power. God’s empire was fueled by the power of love. 

• Rome’s empire created a domination pyramid that put a powerful and violent man on the top, with chains of command and submission that put everyone else in their place beneath the supreme leader. God’s empire created a network of solidarity and mutuality that turned conventional pyramids upside down and gave “the last, the least, and the lost” the honored place at the table. (McLaren, n.d.)

We ponder the dualism of the blessings and woes cited in the Sermon on the Plain and invoke the Wisdom of the Spirit to guide our morals that shape the decisions we make. 

References

Colossians, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/colossians/3?1 

Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/6?20 

McLaren, B. (n.d.). The Empire's Power. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-empires-power/ 

Meditation on Colossians 3:1-11. (n.d.). Word Among Us Homepage. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/09/10/1377804/ 

Member of Creighton University Community. (n.d.). Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-september-11-2019 

Psalms, PSALM 145 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/145?2 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Blessed Are You Poor - Yours Is the Kingdom of God. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved September 10, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=sep10