Year 30 No.
17 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) Green
Missionary Church: Witness of Mercy
Tthe Ninetieth World Mission
oday the Church celebrates
Sunday. In his message, Pope
Francis invites all of us to go out
as missionary disciples. We are
personally invited to offer our
talents, creativity, wisdom, and
experience in order to bring the
message of Gods tenderness and
compassion to the entire human
family.
Truly, the Church is
commissioned to announce the
mercy of God, the beating heart
of the Gospel [and] to proclaim
mercy in every corner of the
world, reaching every person,
young or old. Mission itself may
be defined precisely as a great
work of mercy, both spiritual and
material.
Model of Mercy. Only a
few weeks ago on September
4 the Church celebrated the
canonization of Mother Teresa
of Calcutta. She was known all
over the world for her genuine,
loving, selfless care of the poorest
of the poor, no matter what their
race or religion. She remains a
model of the missionary Church
as a witness of the Fathers mercy.
Saint Teresa of Calcutta manifests
the sincere service to life that the
Church asks of each of us, right in
the ordinariness of our own daily
situation.
Mission means that as
Christians we are to imitate God
the Father. As Pope Francis says,
Gods love extends to all his
children; even in the face of
their weaknesses and infidelity,
his heart is overcome with
compassion. He is merciful
towards all.
A Missionary Pope. In the
very same year that he was
elected (2013), Pope Francis
gave the Church his first apostolic
exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium
(The Joy of the Gospel). In it Pope
Francis proposed a profound
missionary renewal of the entire
Church. He asserted that we
need an evangelizing Church
that comes out of herself, not a
Church that is self-referential
and lives within herself, of
herself, for herself. I dream of
a missionary option, that is, a
missionary impulse capable of
transforming everything. All
renewal in the Church must have
mission as its goal if it is not to
fall prey to a kind of ecclesial
introversion (27). Missionary
outreach is paradigmatic for
all the Churchs activity (15).
Throughout the world, let us
be permanently in a state of
mission (25).
An Encounter with Christ.
P o p e Fra n c i s c o n vi c t i o n s
come from his deep personal
relationship with Christ. He
writes: I invite all Christians,
everywhere, at this very moment,
to a renewed personal encounter
with Jesus Christ. I ask all of
you to do this unfailingly each
day (3). A Christian drinks
of the wellspring of his [Jesus]
brimming heart (5). Indeed,
in this encounteror renewed
encounterwith Gods love,
which blossoms into an enriching
friendship, we are liberated
from our narrowness and self-
absorption. Here we find the
source and inspiration of all our
efforts at evangelization (8).
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Missionary Disciples. A
pivotal insight of Pope Francis
that he frequently repeats is that
we are all missionary disciples
(119); through baptism, all
the members of the People of
God have become missionary
disciples (120). All Christians
are agents of evangelization.
The new evangelization calls
for personal involvement on the
part of each of the baptized.
Every Christian is a missionary
to the extent that he or she has
encountered the love of God
in Christ Jesus: we no longer
say that we are disciples and
missionaries, but rather that we
are always missionary disciples
(120).
Joy: A Convincing Sign. For
Pope Francis, salvation history
is a great stream of joy (5)
which we must also enter. Let
the joy of faith be revived,
because Gods mercies never
end. Unfortunately, there are
Christians whose lives seem like
Lent without Easter (6). An
evangelizer must never look like
someone who has just come back
from a funeral (10). Let us not
allow ourselves to be robbed of
the joy of evangelization (83).
Invitation. In the Gospels,
Jesus constantly reveals Gods
mercy to the poor, the sick, the
outcasts, the marginalized, those
on the fringes and peripheries
of society. Jesus extends his
mission to each of us: Make Gods
merciful love visible through
deeds of service. Become a
missionary of mercy!
Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM

THE INTRODUCTORY RITES
Entrance Antiphon
[Cf. Ps 105(104):3-4]
(Recited when there is no opening song)
Let the hear ts that seek
the Lord rejoice; tur n to
the Lord and his strength;
constantly seek his face.
Greeting
(The sign of the cross is made here)
P The Lord be with you.
All And with your spirit.
Introduction
(The priest may address the assembly
with these or other similar words)
P Mercy is the heart of God.
In the parable, the tax collector
receives the mercy of God
because of his willingness to
accept his own sinfulness and
failures. Jesus also invites us to
examine our hearts rather than
looking at ones fault. We should
always possess a merciful heart
to those who trespass against us
because we, too, are sinners, and
because of the mercy of God we,
too, are justified.
Today, we celebrate World
Mission Sunday with the theme:
Missionary Church, Witness of
Mercy. We pray that all Christian
missionaries here and abroad
may be faithful to their calling
to become instrument of mercy.
Penitential Act
P Brethren (brothers and
sisters), let us acknowledge our
sins, and so prepare ourselves to
celebrate the sacred mysteries.
(Pause)
P Have mercy on us, O Lord.
All For we have sinned
against you.
P Show us, O Lord, your
mercy.
All And grant us your
salvation.
P May almighty God have
mercy on us, forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
All Amen.
Gloria
All Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of
good will. We praise you, we
bless you, we adore you, we
glorify you, we give you thanks
for your great glory, Lord God,
heavenly King, O God, almighty
Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only
Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb
of God, Son of the Father, you
take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us; you take away
the sins of the world, receive our
prayer; you are seated at the
right hand of the Father, have
mercy on us. For you alone are
the Holy One, you alone are the
Lord, you alone are the Most
High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy
Spirit, in the glor y of God the
Father. Amen.
Collect
P Let us pray. (Pause)
Almighty ever-living God,
increase our faith, hope and
charity, and make us love what
you command, so that we may
merit what you promise.
Through our Lord Jesus
Christ, your Son, who lives and
reigns with you in the unity of
the Holy Spirit, one God, for
ever and ever.
All Amen.
THE LITURGY
OF THE WORD
First Reading [Sir 35:12-14,
16-18] (Sit)
People may turn a deaf ear to the
cries of the poor and the weak,
but not God. Sirach tells us that
the prayer of the lowly pierces the
clouds and goes straight to God.
A reading from the Book of
Sirach
THE Lord is a God of justice,
who knows no favorites.
Though not unduly par tial
toward the weak, yet he hears
the cry of the oppressed. The
Lord is not deaf to the wail of the
orphan, nor to the widow when
she pours out her complaint.
The one who ser ves God
willingly is heard; his petition
reaches the heavens. The
prayer of the lowly pierces
the clouds; it does not rest till
it reaches its goal, nor will it
withdraw till the Most High
responds, judges justly, and
affirms the right, and the Lord
will not delay.
The word of the Lord.
All Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm (Ps 34)
R The Lord hears the cr y
of the poor.
1. I will bless the Lord at all
times;/ his praise shall be ever
in my mouth./ Let my soul
glor y in the Lord;/ the lowly
will hear me and be glad. (R)
2. The L ord confronts the
evildoers,/ to destroy
remembrance of them from
the earth./ When the just cry
out, the L ord hears them,/
and from all their distress he
rescues them. (R)
3. The L ord is close to the
brokenhear ted;/ and those
who are crushed in spirit he
saves./ The Lord redeems the
lives of his servants;/ no one
incurs guilt who takes refuge
in him. (R)
Second Reading
(2 Tm 4:6-8,16-18)
Paul is in prison and anticipates
his death, but he faces his
martyrdom as the crowning of
his struggles for the Lord and for
the Gospel.
A reading from the second
Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy
BELOVED:
I am already being poured
out like a libation, and the time
of my departure is at hand. I
have competed well; I have
finished the race; I have kept
the faith. From now on the
crown of righteousness awaits
me, which the Lord, the just
judge, will award to me on that
day, and not only to me, but
to all who have longed for his
appearance.
At my first defense no one
appeared on my behalf, but
everyone deserted me. May it
not be held against them! But
the Lord stood by me and gave
me strength, so that through
me the proclamation might be
completed and all the Gentiles
might hear it. And I was rescued
from the lions mouth. The Lord
will rescue me from every evil
threat and will bring me safe
to his heavenly kingdom. To
him be glory forever and ever.
Amen.
The word of the Lord.
All Thanks be to God.
Alleluia [2 Cor 5:19] (Stand)
All Alleluia, alleluia. God
was reconciling the world
to himself in Christ, and
entrusting to us the message
of salvation. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel (Lk 18:9-14)
P A reading from the holy
Gospel according to Luke
All Glor y to you, O Lord.
JESUS addressed this parable
to those who were convinced
of their own righteousness
and despised ever yone else.
Two people went up to the
temple area to pray; one was
a Pharisee and the other was
a tax collector. The Pharisee
took up his position and spoke
this prayer to himself, O God,
I thank you that I am not like
the rest of humanitygreedy,
dishonest, adulterousor even
like this tax collector. I fast
twice a week, and I pay tithes
on my whole income. But
the tax collector stood off at a
distance and would not even
raise his eyes to heaven but
beat his breast and prayed,
O God, be merciful to me a
sinner. I tell you, the latter
went home justified, not the
former; for whoever exalts
himself will be humbled, and
the one who humbles himself
will be exalted.
The Gospel of the Lord.
All Praise to you, Lord
Jesus Christ.
Homily (Sit)
Profession of Faith (Stand)
All I believe in one God,
the Father almighty, maker of
heaven and earth, of all things
visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus
Christ, the Only Begotten Son
of God, born of the Father
before all ages. God from God,
Light from Light, true God from
true God, begotten, not made,
consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were
made. For us men and for our
salvation he came down from
heaven,
(At the words that follow, up to and
including and became man, all bow)
and by the Holy Spirit was
incarnate of the Virgin Mar y
and became man.
For our sake he was
crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suf fered death and was
buried, and rose again on the
third day in accordance with
the Scriptures. He ascended
into heaven and is seated at
the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glor y to
judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no
end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life, who
proceeds from the Father and
the Son, who with the Father
and the Son is adored and
glorified, who has spoken
through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy,
catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the
forgiveness of sins and I look
for ward to the resurrection
of the dead and the life of the
world to come. Amen.
Prayer of the Faithful
P Let us raise our hearts
to the Father and pray for the
good things he has in store for
us. Full of confidence, we pray:
R Lord, hear our prayer.
C That the Church, the
People of God, may put away
all self-righteousness, and be
a sacrament of Gods mercy to
the wayward and the lost, we
pray: (R)
C That our government,
and social workers may attend
to the needs of the poor by
providing oppor tunities for
employment or livelihood and
by helping them to be self-
reliant, we pray: (R)
C That those unjustly
condemned because of illegal
drugs, human trafficking, and
corruption may receive justice
and consolation, we pray: (R)
C That those Christians
who are being presecuted
and discriminated around the
world may be strengthen and
comforted with Jesus words of
mercy, we pray: (R)
C That those families who
are in danger of separation
may be r estor ed thr ough
constant dialogue, patience and
understanding, and become
once again a community of life
and love, we pray: (R)
C That the Lord may spare
us from natural and man-made
calamities, kidnapping, and
ter rorism, and remove fear
and anxiety from our hearts,
we pray: (R)
(The urgent concerns of the
community are prayed here.)
P Listen to our petitions,
O Lord. Open our eyes to
the needs of our brothers
and sisters despite of their
weaknesses and imperfections,
and be thankful of their
presence. This we ask through
Christ our Lord.
All Amen.
THE LITURGY OF
THE EUCHARIST
Presentation of the Gifts
(Stand)
P Pray, brethren
All May the Lord accept
the sacrifice at your hands
for the praise and glory of his
name, for our good and the
good of all his holy Church.
Prayer over the Offerings
P Look, we pray, O Lord, on
the offerings we make to your
majesty, that whatever is done
by us in your service may be
directed above all to your glory.
Through Christ our Lord.
All Amen.
Preface II of the Sundays in
Ordinar y Time
P The Lord be with you.
All And with your spirit.
P Lift up your hearts.
All We lift them up to the
Lord.
P Let us give thanks to the
Lord our God.
All It is right and just.
P It is truly right and just,
our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give
you thanks, Lord, holy Father,
almighty and eter nal God,
through Christ our Lord.
For out of compassion for
the waywardness that is ours,
he humbled himself and was
bor n of the V irgin; by the
passion of the Cross, he freed
us from unending death, and by
rising from the dead, he gave us
life eternal.
And so, with Angels and
Archangels, with Thrones and
Dominions, and with all the
hosts and Powers of heaven, we
sing the hymn of your glory, as
without end we acclaim:
All Holy, Holy, Holy... (Kneel)
Acclamation (Stand)
All Save us, Savior of the
world, for by your Cross and
Resurrection you have set
us free.
THE COMMUNION RITE
The Lords Prayer
All Our Father
P Deliver us, Lord
All For the kingdom, the
power, and the glor y are
yours, now and for ever.
Invitation to Peace
Invitation to Communion
(Kneel)
P Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who takes away the
sins of the world. Blessed are
those called to the supper of
the Lamb.
All Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under
my roof, but only say the
word and my soul shall be
healed.
Communion Antiphon
[Cf. Ps 20(19):6]
We will ring out our joy at
your saving help and exult in
the name of our God.
Prayer after Communion
(Stand)
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ONE BREAD, ONE FAMILY
Year of the Eucharist and Family Catechesis
Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM
Imitating Christs Love for the Church
In a survey a few years ago, the Family Services Association
discovered that 87 percent of husbands and wives interviewed
said that a major challenge in their family life was poor
communication; this same percentage would probably apply in
Christian families.
For family life to be strong, various kinds of barriers must be
broken down. One model to follow would be the example of
Christ himself. As Saint Paul notes (Eph 5:25-26), family members
need to practice Jesus self-sacrificing love: just as Christ loved
the Church and sacrificed himself for her to make her holy.
Christ totally gave himselfeven to deathfor the welfare of
his body, the Church. Such generosity and service will certainly
strengthen families.
Notice that Saint Paul says that Jesus self-sacrifice for the
Church was to make her holy. In short, the motive of husbands,
wives, and children for seeking harmony is that all family
members will actually come closer to God. Such is the high ideal
that Christian families strive to attain.
P Let us pray. (Pause) Dismissal
May your Sacraments, O
Lord, we pray, per fect in us P Go and announce the
what lies within them, that what Gospel of the Lord.
we now celebrate in signs we All Thanks be to God.
may one day possess in truth.
Through Christ our Lord.
All Amen.
365
THE CONCLUDING RITES
P The Lord be with you.
All And with your spirit.
Solemn Blessing 2017
P Bow down for the blessing.
(Pause)
May the peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds
in the knowledge and love of 2017
God, and of his Son, our Lord
Jesus Christ.
All Amen.
P And may the blessing of
almighty God, the Father, and
the Son, () and the Holy Spirit,
2017
come down on you and remain Available at all ST PAULS Bookstores
with you for ever.
All Amen.