First reading Philemon 7-20
Beloved:
I have experienced much joy and encouragement from your love,
because the hearts of the holy ones
have been refreshed by you, brother.
Therefore, although I have the full right in Christ
to order you to do what is proper,
I rather urge you out of love,
being as I am, Paul, an old man,
and now also a prisoner for Christ Jesus.
I urge you on behalf of my child Onesimus,
whose father I have become in my imprisonment,
who was once useless to you but is now useful to both you and me.
I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you.
I should have liked to retain him for myself,
so that he might serve me on your behalf
in my imprisonment for the Gospel,
but I did not want to do anything without your consent,
so that the good you do might not be forced but voluntary.
Perhaps this is why he was away from you for a while,
that you might have him back forever,
no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a brother,
beloved especially to me, but even more so to you,
as a man and in the Lord.
So if you regard me as a partner, welcome him as you would me.
And if he has done you any injustice
or owes you anything, charge it to me.
I, Paul, write this in my own hand: I will pay.
May I not tell you that you owe me your very self.
Yes, brother, may I profit from you in the Lord.
Refresh my heart in Christ.
Responsorial Psalm 23:1-6
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
The Lord secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets captives free.
The Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord raises up those who were bowed down;
the Lord loves the just.
The Lord protects strangers.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The Lord shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
Gospel Luke 17:20-25
Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come,
Jesus said in reply,
“The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed,
and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’
For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”
Then he said to his disciples,
“The days will come when you will long to see
one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
There will be those who will say to you,
‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’
Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.
For just as lightning flashes
and lights up the sky from one side to the other,
so will the Son of Man be in his day.
But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.”
The Kingdom of God is Among You
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that God’s Kingdom does not come with signs that everyone can see and point to. It is already present among us in Jesus’ words and works, and wherever love, mercy, justice, and faithfulness take root. The Kingdom is not simply something we wait for in the future; it is God’s presence and reign unfolding in our lives, often in small, quiet ways. We often expect God to act in dramatic or distant ways and overlook the ordinary moments in which He is already at work, such as a word of kindness, an act of mercy, the courage to remain faithful in hardship. These small moments reveal God’s love and help His Kingdom grow among us.
Let us become signs of the Kingdom for others by bringing hope where there is disappointment, compassion where there is suffering, and peace where there is division.
Reflective question:
Where have I noticed signs of God’s Kingdom in my life?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year A” by Sr Maria Jose FMVD
