Daily Gospel Reflection for September 20, 2020 - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Join us as we reflect, ponder, and pray together inspired by today's Gospel.

Today's Gospel: Matthew 20:1-16A - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

It’s easy to imagine being one of the full-day workers in this parable. At first, you are happy to have found work for the day. You feel satisfied with a full day’s pay for a full day’s work, until...you start comparing yourself to those around you. Then, that proverbial thief, comparison, comes and steals your joy, replacing it with envy.

St. Thomas Aquinas described envy as sorrow or sadness over another person's good. Envy turns life into a zero-sum game: if someone else gets something, I lose something. Suddenly getting a fair wage doesn’t seem fair anymore. In the shadow of envy, when someone else receives generosity or mercy, getting what I deserve seems like an insult.

When we live in the light of envy’s opposing virtue, kindness, we can rejoice with someone else when good comes to him. We can see how wonderful it is that a man who couldn’t find work for most of the day will still be able to provide for his family. We can admire the gifts and blessings that others have and still be grateful for what we have. With kindness, we can hold on to the joy that envy and comparison would take away from us.

Ponder:

What is one way we can cultivate the virtues of kindness and admiration in our daily lives?

Pray:

Dear Lord, in Your mercy, increase both our joy in the good of others and our gratitude for the good You have given us.

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With kindness, we can hold on to the joy that envy and comparison would take away from us. #dailygospel

Copyright 2020 Monica Portogallo