Family Bible Study - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Gospel Passage Mark 9:30 They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” 32 But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him. 33 Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” 34 But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. 35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” Questions “They did not understand what Jesus was saying and were afraid to ask Him.” What should you do if you don’t understand what Jesus is asking of you? Who should you go to? To be great in God’s eyes – which we should ALL WANT! – we have to be like Jesus and serve others. What can you do this week to help others and become greater in God’s eyes? Jesus loved children and wanted us to welcome them in His name. Children, especially babies, cannot give us back anything in return, so welcoming them is a pure act of love. Has anyone every welcomed you in this way? Have you ever welcomed anyone in this way? used with permission - Fr. Roger Landry

Sunday Gospel Message - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Jesus praised the ingenuity of the steward for making preparations for the future. The steward was probably giving his commission to the debtors so they would be kind to him later on; he was sacrificing for the future. Jesus is reminding us to make preparations for the future life so that we might have the reward in the next life. Work for what will be our reward after our work here on earth is completed.
used with permission - Msgr. Bob Lawrence

Family Bible Study - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Passage
Luke 16:1 Then Jesus said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and
charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. 2 So he summoned
him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your
management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’ 3 Then the manager said to
himself, ‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not
strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have decided what to do so that, when I am
dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.’ 5 So, summoning his
master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He
answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and
make it fifty.’ 7 Then he asked another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘A hundred
containers of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’ 8 And his master
commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age
are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. 9 And I
tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they
may welcome you into the eternal homes. 10 “Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also
in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 11 If then you have
not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? 12 And if
you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own?
13 No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be
devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

Questions for discussion

1. The rich man praises his servant not because of his dishonesty but because of his
resourcefulness, that he knew how to achieve a goal. Jesus wants us to achieve the goal
of holiness in this life, to bring others to him, and to get to heaven. How resourceful are
you toward achieving this goal?
2. Jesus says, “whoever is faithful in little things is faithful in big things.” What are some ways you can be more faithful? to coming to Mass? To praying
on your own each day?
3. Jesus says we cannot serve both God and money. What can you do to make sure you
serve God and not money?
used with permission - Fr. Roger Landry

Family Bible Study - Sunday, September 20th, 2009 - Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Gospel Passage
Mark 9:30 They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want
anyone to know it; 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of
Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after
being killed, he will rise again.” 32 But they did not understand what he was saying
and were afraid to ask him. 33 Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in
the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” 34 But they
were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest.
35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must
be last of all and servant of all.” 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one
who sent me.”

Questions for Discussion:

1) “They did not understand what Jesus was saying and were afraid to ask Him.”
What should we do if we don’t understand what Jesus is asking of us? To whom should we go to?

2) To be great in God’s eyes, we have to be the servant of all, just like Jesus showed He was our servant of love by washing the feet of the apostles and telling us to do the same. What service can you do this week to become greater in God’s eyes?

3) Jesus loves children and wants us to welcome children in His name. Welcoming children is a pure act of love since you do not expect anything from them in return for welcoming them. Has anyone ever welcomed you in this way that Jesus asks His disciples to do so? Have you ever welcomed someone else in this way?

used with permission - Fr. Roger Landry

Sunday Gospel Message - September 20th, 2009 - Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

TWENTY-FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
The Book of Wisdom speaks about the wicked
trying to destroy the righteous one. The evil ones even
recognized the fact that God would take care of the good
person. The Church has looked at this as what evil has done
to Jesus and His Church. The Lord tells us that the gates of
hell would not prevail against the Church. Jesus reminds us
today that He will suffer for us and the way to be great in the
Kingdom of God is to be the servant of all.
used with permission - Msgr. Bob Lawrence