A reading from the holy Gospel according to 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 Gospel of the Lord

REFLECTION: " the Kingdom of God is among you."

The Jewish people, especially the Pharisees, were expecting physical signs of the Kingdom of God. The occupied nation of Israel was no different before Jesus' arrival and now. The Romans were still up to their mistreatment of the people, their cruelty, and their over taxation. And unfortunately, the Pharisees were doing their very best to contribute to the misery of their people.

So, they were indeed surprised to hear Jesus say that the Kingdom of God was among them. Were they too blind and too self absorbed to see that God was in their midst? Are we aware that the Kingdom of God is present around us?

In spite of following Jesus most everywhere he went, the hard hearted Pharisees wasted all their time trying to find fault with Jesus and never listened to his teachings. Had they, they would have known that the Kingdom of God was not a place but a new way and it was present among them in his very person--the Son of God. Jesus welcomed the people with love, mercy, forgiveness, healing, saving and ministering. And Jesus taught and showed them how to love.

Every time we forgive, we hug, we love, are patient and work without complaining, we bring and share the Kingdom of God to people. Let everyone see the Face of Christ in us. Let us never reject the Kingdom of God but choose to be actively involved.

PRAYER: Our Father, who art in heaven Hallowed be thy name, Thy Kingdom Come, thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Amen.

PAPA -- Priest Always Prayer Apostolate papamio.org