Homily for the Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 20, 2023
St. Patrick Cathedral
Fort Worth, Texas
Isaiah 56:1,6-7
Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Romans 11:13-15, 29-32
Matthew 15:21-28
In our second reading from Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans, he tells the Gentiles, to whom he has been sent for their salvation, that he boasts about them to inspire his fellow Jews to listen to the Gospel with the same ears of faith that it might take root in their lives with the fulfillment of their identity as God’s chosen people as the Gospel has begun to blossom in the lives of the Gentiles. He mentions that the Gentiles were once strangers to God, but now God has bestowed His grace on the Gentiles just as Isaiah had prophesied. In so doing, Saint Paul reminds the Gentiles of his time and us today, that God’s gifts are irrevocable so we should not settle for anything less than what God offers us completely in Christ through our Baptism, Confirmation and ongoing sacramental life centered on the Eucharist that is not simply formulaic ritual. Not only are these gifts irrevocable, but they are also intended for everybody and not simply for an elite group of the perfect.
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