In view of the World Missionary Day on 22 October, the Prefect of Propaganda Fide recalls that the proclamation of the Gospel follows the logic of Christ, “of dying in order to live”, otherwise “it falls into the temptation of pursuing successes and triumphs”.

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Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael warns: the Nineveh Plain is now a “disputed territory”.

Sunday, Oct. 15, is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A). Mass Readings: Isaiah 25:6-10; Psalm 23:1-6; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Matthew 22:1-14 or 22:1-10.

Today’s Gospel says God is inviting us to a wedding feast. Will we go?

“The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son,” says Jesus. But a strange thing happens when he invites people to the feast. The first invited guests simply refuse.

Fr. Charles Irvin
Senior Priest
Diocese of Lansing

(Click here for today’s readings)

For a moment I would like you to imagine yourself at a party, maybe a party that you have been to, or one that you have given for friends and acquaintances. Let’s say it’s a costume party and people are there with altered ways of seeing each other. Everyone has a fresh start and a new beginning at being different persons. Past histories are forgotten. The guests present themselves, and are seen by others, as new persons.

The Conference of the International Secretariat of Christian Youth has convened for the first time in our dear Kingdom, in coordination with the local General Secretariat of Youth (founded in 1980) and the Middle East Coordination Committee headed by Tareq Hijazeen, the first Jordanian to be elected to this post.

What draws attention about the five-day conference in our dear country are the following points:

The “Miracle of the Sun,” witnessed by thousands of Portuguese pilgrims Oct. 13, 1917, at Fatima, capped an amazing six months in which the Blessed Mother appeared to three simple shepherd children and imparted her wisdom that would draw the world closer to her Son and her Immaculate Heart.

As the Church concludes this 100th anniversary celebration, her directives and requests remain enduring, and crucial. This centennial highlights the call to renew, begin or continue Our Lady of Fatima’s directives.

In Francis’ words at the conference for the 25th anniversary of the promulgation of Catechism, the key to read the current debate on Amoris laetitia.

Although the Fatima apparitions occurred 100 years ago, the Vatican’s resident Fatima expert has said they contain a message that is both relevant and needed in the world today.

“The apparitions of Fatima are a historical event with an extraordinary significance, and they have a meaning that’s not only religious, but also socio-political,” Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins told CNA in an interview.

Interview with the Bishop of Haimen, recognized by the government and ordained in full communion with the Holy See, “We are like branches attached to the vine. We need the pastoral guidance of the Pontiff. The Gospel does not ask us to become antagonists of the established authorities. And Jesus says that we must be as cunning as serpents and as simple as doves”.

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(Isaiah 5:1-7; Philippians 4:7-9; Matthew 21:33-43)

Since ancient times, the lands of the Middle East and the Mediterranean have cultivated vineyards. So it is not surprising that the image of the vineyard recurs in their literature. A famous instance is in one of Aesop’s Fables, which gives us the expression “sour grapes,” describing the tendency to disparage what we want but cannot have.