Every now and then readers of these reflections write letters in which they object to something. Years ago, this Gospel of Luke 18 prompted such an email. A man wrote to me: “I find it deeply offensive that you suggest we are still sinners once we are God’s sons and daughters.” His objection stirred in me a profound awareness of the paradox at the heart of our faith. Are we sinners or beloved children of God?
In this Gospel (Luke 18:9-14), a tax collector appears as one who has missed the mark. His sins have isolated him. His breast-beating is not an act of self-flagellation for pride’s sake but a heartfelt admission of his failure and unworthiness. Remarkably, Jesus honors the candid humility of the parable’s penitent. Why? Because we are always in need of mercy, always. But even more, perhaps because on the cross, Jesus will fully embrace a similar place of humiliation and rejection. He will enter into the most shameful, offensive place of the sinner so that we might “go home justified.”
There is a sacred tension in admitting that we are sinners and yet have profound hope. We are beloved sons and daughters of God, growing precisely through our honest acceptance of failure. When we cry, “Have mercy on us,” during Mass or when we repeat the “Jesus Prayer” in quiet moments, or in the confessional, we embrace our imperfections as fertile ground for divine grace. In doing so, we follow Christ’s example — finding true exaltation in the humble acknowledgment of our human frailty.
— Father John Muir ©LPi
General Mass Notes
Welcome
October 26, 2025 · Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Welcome to our Eucharistic Celebration on this Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The intentions of this Mass are for all those in our special intention basket and...
Please stand for our procession.
Mass Intentions
Universal Prayer (Petitions)
A. For the Church, that we may truly be a church of the poor and for the poor, humbly recognizing our need for God’s mercy while serving the least of our brothers and sisters, let us pray to the Lord.
B. For those in public office, that they may serve their constituents with humility and be attentive to the cries of those most in need, let us pray to the Lord.
C. That we may cherish every human life, from conception to natural death, for we are all made in the image and likeness of God, let us pray to the Lord.
D. For those who have been widowed or orphaned, that through the love of others they may receive affection, companionship, and tender loving care, let us pray to the Lord.
E. For those who have kept the faith and long for God’s appearance and are approaching the end of their lives, that they may at long last receive the crown of righteousness, let us pray to the Lord.
FFor all the prayers that we hold in the silence of our hearts; for all our intentions spoken and unspoken, and for (read all intentions from 1st page), let us pray to the Lord.
Announcements
On Friday, October 31st, we will have our Holy Hour at 6:00 p.m. This month, it will be led by Father Eugenio Cárdenas, a member of the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit and professor of spiritual theology at the Camarillo Seminary.
