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Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 10, 2025

When we hear the phrase, “the Kingdom of God,” we often call to mind the “afterlife”….eternal life with
God in heaven. That is very appropriate because wherever God is present, there is the Kingdom of God. The Gospel presents Jesus often teaching us that God is very present in this earthly lifetime as well as in the life to come. The signs or marks of the Kingdom present even now in our midst are things we take for granted: acts of kindness and charity, generosity, respect, peace, etc., etc. All those “fruits” of the Holy Spirit and ‘’gifts” of the Holy Spirit, are signs that God’s Kingdom is “now!” It is not something we have to wait to experience after we have finished our earthly existence. Not perfect …..but a work in progress.
The teachings of Jesus we receive from Luke this weekend remind us that, just as Jesus showed us the
Kingdom of God is “at hand,” so also we are charged with the same task or mission.

We are disciples of Jesus Christ through the Sacrament of Baptism, and we are charged with building
up the Kingdom of God in imitation of Jesus here and now. He is showing us how to be good stewards of
His mission, responsible servants in His charge, by presenting two contrasting behaviors of the servants
in today’s parables. The one group is vigilant in their duty as good and faithful stewards of the Master’s
property (the earthly Kingdom of God); in contrast to the second group, who are irresponsible and self
serving in their behavior as stewards of the Master’s property (again, the earthly Kingdom of God) and/or
toward other laborers. The conclusion of the parables: clearly one group gets into heaven, the other group does not.

We are disciples of Jesus Christ… “Disciple” is a term synonymous with “steward.” A good disciple of
Jesus Christ is a good steward of the Kingdom of God now being constructed in our present time, in anticipation of its eventual perfection in heaven. Let’s look at the two contrasting groups of stewards in today’s parable and honestly assess where we fit in. Maybe at times we could be in either one. We might need to be more committed to being in the first group. -Msgr. Greg