32nd Week in Ordinary Time
Frances Xavier Cabrini

1st Reading: Wis 13:1–9
Gospel: Lk 17:26–37
Jesus said to his disciples, “As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be on the day the Son of Man comes. Then people ate and drank; they took husbands and wives. But on the day Noah entered the ark, the flood came and destroyed them all. Just as it was in the days of Lot: people ate and drank, they bought and sold, planted and built. But on the day Lot left Sodom, God made fire and sulfur rain down from heaven which destroyed them all. So will it be on the day the Son of Man is revealed. “On that day, if you are on the rooftop, don’t go down into the house to get your belongings, and if you happen to be in the fields, do not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever tries to save his life will lose himself, but whoever gives his life will be born again.
“I tell you, though two men are sharing the same bed, it may be that one will be taken and the other left. Though two women are grinding corn together, one may be taken and the other left.” Then they asked Jesus, “Where will this take place, Lord?” And he answered, “Where the body is, there too will the vultures gather.”

Commentary
We should not fret if we are having a difficult time understanding why God the Father would send His Son to die on a cross. Jesus died on the cross for our sins and we know that the cross is probably one of the most agonizing ways to suffer and die. But knowing that God makes the rules, why did He choose this method to reconcile people to Himself?
Giving a child is the greatest sacrifice and the greatest demonstration that God could give to show His love for us. God gave us the ultimate gift and the ultimate demonstration of His love in sending Christ to suffer and die for our reconciliation with God. God wanted to give people a dramatic demonstration of His love for them. He also wanted to give His children an example of the kind of love that He wants us to have for Him and for one another. The kind of love that is willing to give the most precious gift that we have. Walking with in obedience to Jesus commands will take us on the path of the cross, dying to our self so that His life will be manifest in us all.

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