Liturgy for Sunday, October 5, 2025

Texts taken from the missal “On Your Word” September-October 2025

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)  – 3rd week, alternate cycle.

First Reading

From the Book of the Prophet Habakkuk (Hab 1:2-3; 2:2-4)

How long, Lord, shall I cry for help and you will not listen, shall I raise my cry to you, “Violence!” and you will not save? Why do you make me see iniquity and stand by while oppression continues? Before me are robbery and violence; there is strife and quarrels arise. The Lord answered me and said: “Write down the vision and inscribe it clearly on the tablets, so that it may be read quickly. It is a vision that attests to an appointed time, speaks of a deadline and does not lie; if it delays, wait for it, because it will surely come and will not be late. See, the one whose spirit is not upright will succumb, but the righteous will live by his faith.”

The word of God.

Commentary on the First Reading

The moment is confused and anguished, and the prophet Habakkuk cries out to God, giving voice to the people’s disorientation: “How long, Lord, shall I cry for help and you will not listen…? Why do you make me see iniquity and stand by while oppression continues?” Despite the hardship of the moment, which almost makes one feel abandoned by the Lord, through this cry the prophet once again demonstrates his trust in God: he knows he can count on his help; he knows that God is there, present in the life of the people. In this appeal for help, a cry of hope is preserved. And God responds, assuring Habakkuk of an appointed time: “Write down the vision,” God says, “and inscribe it clearly on the tablets… attest to an appointed time, speak of a deadline and do not lie; if it delays, wait for it, because it will surely come and will not be late… the righteous will live by his faith.” We could say that God does not provide answers, but offers the criterion for living through life’s situations: faith. For this reason, with the psalmist, we are invited to sing: “Today, listen to the voice of the Lord,” because he does not abandon his people.

Second Reading

From the Second Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to Timothy (2 Tim 1:6-8, 13-14)

My son, I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love and self-control. So do not be ashamed to testify to our Lord, or of me, who am imprisoned for him; but, with the strength that comes from God, suffer with me for the Gospel. Take as your pattern the sound teaching you have heard from me, with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard the precious treasure entrusted to you through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

The word of God.

Commentary on the Second Reading

As we noted in the first reading, faith is the gift, the criterion by which to read and interpret the events of life. But this is a gift that constantly asks to be nourished: “I remind you,” Paul writes to Timothy, “to rekindle the gift of God that is in you.” Paul is referring to the gift of the priesthood that Timothy received, but in these words we can see the gift of Baptism that we have all received: a gift that asks to be safeguarded and nourished; witnessed without fear or shame, learning to take as our model sound and holy teachings: “Do not be ashamed to testify to our Lord... Take as your model the sound teachings that you have heard.” The gift of faith asks to be nourished by the sound teachings we have received and witnessed in our lives.

Gospel

From the Gospel according to Luke (Lk 17:5-10)

At that time, the apostles said to the Lord: “Increase our faith!” The Lord replied: “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. Which of you, if you have a servant plowing or tending the flock, would say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, fasten your garments around your waist, and serve me until I have eaten and drunk; after that you can eat and drink’? Would he be grateful to that servant because he carried out the orders he received? So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, say, ‘We are unworthy servants. We have done what we were obliged to do.’” 

The Word of the Lord.

Commentary on the Gospel

Last Sunday, the Gospel presented us with the parable of the rich man and poor Lazarus, inviting us to learn to open our eyes to the needs we encounter here and now. Today, the Gospel begins with a question from the Apostles: “Increase our faith!” The text from Habakkuk - the first reading - concluded with the statement that “the righteous shall live by his faith.” But this gift needs to be safeguarded and nourished, Paul reminded Timothy; it asks to grow in us and with us, Jesus suggests to the disciples today. It is a journey of growth and trust that does not follow the logic of the world, but can change the world. What matters is knowing how to remain in our place, leaving God to be God, and for our part considering ourselves “unworthy servants,” as Jesus reminds us. Not in the sense that we are of no use, but in the sense of doing without expecting anything in return: in-useful, without gain, without personal advantage. Faith is something else entirely: it is love. And love is not measured; it is given. How many choices today - in a context where the god of money prevails - are considered useless simply because they bring no profit. Let us not allow ourselves to be led astray; the reward will come: “If it seems slow, wait for it, because it will certainly come and will not delay... the righteous shall live by his faith.”