The 25th Sunday in

Ordinary Time

20 September 2009

Saint Andrew & Saint William

Catholic Church in Verona, Wisconsin

Today the Church puts forth a passage from the Gospel of Saint Mark in
which Jesus—yet again—draws a connection between the Kingdom of God and
children: "Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and
whoever receives me, receives not me but the one who sent me" (Mark 9:37). In
the Gospel of Saint Luke, we hear Jesus say, “Let the children come to Me and do
not prevent them; for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen I say
to you, whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it”
(Luke 18:16b-17). The Lord had said this rebuking certain disciples that were
trying to keep others from bringing their infant children to Him. In the Gospel
passage we hear today, Jesus was rebuking some of the Twelve Apostles who were
arguing about which one of them was the greatest.
Perhaps we might reflect on the disposition of a child in comparison to the
disposition of an adult—this may help us to understand Jesus’ teaching. First,
when we think of infants, we are reminded of a refreshing innocence and that
young children are very open and receptive, which might be the key to Jesus’
teaching. When Jesus said, “whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a
child…”, perhaps He was referring to a child’s ability to receive gifts, rather than
referring to being childish—as in naïve, oblivious, or blindly obedient. If the
Lord calls us to receive the Kingdom, then it must be a gift. This might be the
point at which the adult Apostles and disciples had misunderstood Jesus: If the
greatest people entered the Kingdom first, then the Kingdom must be merit-
based, and one should be able to achieve the Kingdom of God. This is exactly the
opposite of what Jesus was instructing! Since the Kingdom of God is a gift, we
must be open to receiving it—letting the children around us be reminders that we
are all children of God.
Another important disposition of children that is important for a healthy
faith is that of curiosity. When young children are fascinated by something
around them, even before they speak, one can observe genuine curiosity, an
inquisitive spirit. Even when they begin to ask the question “Why?”, it is most
purely based on a genuine curiosity that seeks truth—when it is pure curiosity,
there is a spirit of faith, and there is no skepticism.
This may be the point at which many adults miss the point of Jesus’ (and the
Church’s) teachings. Whenever there are things around us that may be
troubling or difficult to grasp at first, our first reaction is often to ask “Why?” in
a spirit of doubt and skepticism, rather than a spirit of faith. May we answer the
Lord’s call to be children of God—receptive to the gift of the Kingdom of God,
always persuing the Truth with a spirit of faith, hope, and love.

Introductory Rites
Hymn at the Procession (Printed on next column.)
Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation Tune: WESTMINSTER ABBEY
Hymn at the Procession
Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation Tune: WESTMINSTER ABBEY
Kyrie eleison Chant Mode III
Sung by all in Greek.

Gloria in excelsis Mass on G

Calvin M. Bower

Choir/Cantor alone:
Lord Jesus Christ,
only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the
sins of the world:

Choir/Cantor alone:
You are seated at the
right hand of the Father:

Opening Collect
The Priest prays the collect. All respond, Amen.
 Liturgy of the Word
Reading I Wisdom 2:12, 17-20

Let us condemn Him to a shameful death.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 54:3-8

Michel Guimont

Reading II James 3:16—4:3

The seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown

in peace by those who make peace.

Gospel Acclamation A. Gregory Murray, O.S.B.

God has called us through the Gospel

to possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Gospel Reading Mark 9:30-37

“The Son of Man is to be delivered up into the hands of men.”

Homily Rev. William F. Vernon

Pastor
 Liturgy of the Eucharist
Hymn at the Offertory – 601
O God, You Search Me Tune: Bernadette Farrell

Sanctus et Benedictus Mass for the City

Richard Proulx

Memorial Acclamation Mass for the City

Richard Proulx

Great Amen Mass for the City

Richard Proulx
 Communion Rite
The Our Father Traditional Chant
Sung by all in English.

Lamb of God Richard Proulx

Antiphon at the Communion

Mandatum Novum Christopher Willcock, S. J.

Hymn of Thanksgiving – 642

What Wondrous Love Tune: WONDROUS LOVE

Prayer after Communion

Concluding Rites
Final Blessing and Dismissal

Organ Postlude

Musical Remarks
This week and next, we will be introducing a new hymn, Christ is made the sure
Foundation. The hymn tune Westminster Abbey was written by Henry Purcell,
who was an English composer of the early Baroque period in the late 17th century.
Purcell was appointed the organist at the world-famous Westminster Abbey in
London, England at the age of twenty-two. The text of the hymn is an ancient
Latin hymn of praise from the 7th century, translated into English. -B. G.

Permissions: Glory to God music by Calvin M. Bower. All rights reserved, reprinted with permission of the composer. Psalm 54: The Lord upholds my
life music by Michel Guimont © GIA Publications, Inc. All rights reserved, reprinted with permission, Onelicense.net #A-715895. Gospel Acclamation
music by A. Gregory Murray, O.S.B. © GIA Publications, Inc. All rights reserved, reprinted with permission, Onelicense.net #A-715895. Sanctus et
benedictus, Memorial Acclamation, and Great Amen from Mass for the City. Music by Richard Proulx © GIA Publications, Inc. All rights reserved,
reprinted with permission, Onelicense.net #A-715895. Lamb of God music by Richard Proulx © GIA Publications, Inc. All rights reserved, reprinted
with permission, Onelicense.net #A-715895. Mandatum Novum music by Christopher Willcock © OCP. All rights reserved, reprinted with
permission. All other selections in the public domain.