Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: Luke 17: 11-19

As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten persons with leprosy met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
“Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed. 
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. 
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
“Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine? 
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” 
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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We’re now full swing into the holiday season. Thanksgiving’s here, Advent begins this weekend, and before you know it, we’ll be celebrating Christmas, even New Year’s Day!

I’m sure if we listened to the conversations taking place at each family dinner table this weekend, we’d hear our share of both blessings and complaints. But there’s often little reason for us to complain; so much of what we say depends upon our perspective.

Behind nearly every complaint, there’s something to be grateful for.

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For example, “The kids are all teenagers now. When they’re not on their phones, they’re giving me attitude. They can be so fresh!”

While teenagers may be crabby, at least your children are safe and sound.

Or, “Half my closet doesn’t fit me anymore. I still have to lose that ‘quarantine-15’ from COVID.”

Perhaps, but a pudgy waist means you’ve had enough to eat. Think about families going without meals in Ukraine.

Or, “Work is crazy. I’m being bombarded with emails.”

I hate emails, too. But those emails mean you’re important to someone, and you have a job that pays the bills.

Or, “I’m so tired today. I didn’t sleep well last night.”

Restless nights happen. But at least you woke up today!

Or consider the leper in today’s Gospel. He might say, “I’ve spent the majority of my life as an outcast.”

But today you were healed by Jesus. Go and celebrate.

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Thanksgiving reminds us to have an attitude of gratitude. It doesn’t mean that our life circumstances have to change; rather, we simply change the way we see them.

So, what am I grateful for? And how can I share that joy with others?

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Image credits: (1) The History of Thanksgiving, The Science Academy STEM Magnet (2) 50 Thanksgiving Would You Rather IceBreakers, Kayla Rutledge, Sign Up Genius (3) Powerofpositivity.com

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Gospel: Luke 21: 5-11

While some people were speaking about
how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings,
Jesus said, “All that you see here–
the days will come when there will not be left
a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”

Then they asked him,
“Teacher, when will this happen?
And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” 
He answered,
“See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ 
Do not follow them! 
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end.” 
Then he said to them,
“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.”  

The Gospel of the Lord.

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It seems everyone wants to know when the world will end, including the disciples in today’s Gospel. Although Jesus offers them a few signs of the “end times,” it all seems very vague to me.

Perhaps we should focus on two things that we know are coming to an end.

The first is quite obvious – we’re approaching the end of the year. The leaves have fallen, the days are getting darker, the time for harvesting is over. Winter is at hand.

As we prepare to mark the end of this calendar year, perhaps we should take a few moments to reflect upon the blessings of 2022.

Where did we see God working in our lives? And how did we help others?

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The second end is less predictable, though no less real. While we know neither the day nor the hour, our time on earth is also coming to an end. (I hope not for a long while!)

But today’s Gospel urges us to ponder, are we comfortable with standing before the Lord? Or are there changes we should make in our spiritual lives?

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As Saint Paul reminds us, “The night is nearly over; the day has drawn near. Let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12).

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Image credits: (1) www.torbenrick.eu (2) dickersonbakker.com (3) The Episcopal Diocese of Newark

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Gospel: Luke 21: 1-4

When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people
putting their offerings into the treasury
and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins.
He said, “I tell you truly,
this poor widow put in more than all the rest;
for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Time flies. 

No matter who we are, where we live, or what age we are…time flies. Strangely, the speed of it seems to accelerate the older we get.

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In that sense, we’re all poor like the widow in today’s Gospel, because there is one thing no one has enough of: time.

Just as this widow has two meager coins to offer God, we only have one short life to live. And the Lord wants to be involved in all of it, every hour of every day.

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Today we celebrate the life of someone who gave all of her time to God, the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Tradition states that as a girl, she was brought to the Temple by her parents, Anne and Joachim, where they promised to offer Mary wholeheartedly to God.

As her story unfolds, we see what happens: Mary becomes the Virgin Mother of God, offering him first her body, then her heart, then her full devotion… In a word, she offers God her “time.”

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What about us? How much time do we give to the Lord?

Think about this in terms of prayer, study, and service.

Can we offer him a little more? 

As we prepare to enter the season of Advent, consider ways we can offer God more of what he wants from us: our time.

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Image credits: (1) Cornerstone Counseling (2) Greg Candy Fuzion Blog (3) Catholic Strength, WordPress