Thursday of week 24 in Ordinary Time
First Reading
1 Corinthians 15:1–11
Now I make known unto you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you have received, and wherein you stand;
By which also you are saved, if you hold fast after what manner I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain.
For I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received: how that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures:
And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according to the scriptures:
And that he was seen by Cephas; and after that by the eleven.
Then he was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once: of whom many remain until this present, and some are fallen asleep.
After that, he was seen by James, then by all the apostles.
And last of all, he was seen also by me, as by one born out of due time.
For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
But by the grace of God, I am what I am; and his grace in me hath not been void, but I have laboured more abundantly than all they: yet not I, but the grace of God with me.
For whether I, or they, so we preach, and so you have believed.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 117(118):1–2,15–17,28
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
or
Alleluia.
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good:
for his mercy endureth for ever.
Let Israel now say that he is good:
that his mercy endureth for ever.
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
or
Alleluia.
The voice of rejoicing and of salvation
is in the tabernacles of the just.
The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength:
the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me:
the right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength.
I shall not die, but live:
and shall declare the works of the Lord.
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
or
Alleluia.
Thou art my God, and I will praise thee:
thou art my God, and I will exalt thee.
I will praise thee, because thou hast heard me,
and art become my salvation.
Give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
or
Alleluia.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
Come to me, all you that labour, and are burdened,
and I will refresh you, saith the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 7:36–50
And one of the Pharisees desired him to eat with him. And he went into the house of the Pharisee, and sat down to meat.
And behold a woman that was in the city, a sinner, when she knew that he sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment;
And standing behind at his feet, she began to wash his feet, with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
And the Pharisee, who had invited him, seeing it, spoke within himself, saying: This man, if he were a prophet, would know surely who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him, that she is a sinner.
And Jesus answering, said to him: Simon, I have somewhat to say to thee. But he said: Master, say it.
A certain creditor had two debtors, the one who owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
And whereas they had not wherewith to pay, he forgave them both. Which therefore of the two loveth him most?
Simon answering, said: I suppose that he to whom he forgave most. And he said to him: Thou hast judged rightly.
And turning to the woman, he said unto Simon: Dost thou see this woman? I entered into thy house, thou gavest me no water for my feet; but she with tears hath washed my feet, and with her hairs hath wiped them.
Thou gavest me no kiss; but she, since she came in, hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
My head with oil thou didst not anoint; but she with ointment hath anointed my feet.
Wherefore I say to thee: Many sins are forgiven her, because she hath loved much. But to whom less is forgiven, he loveth less.
And he said to her: Thy sins are forgiven thee.
And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves: Who is this that forgiveth sins also?
And he said to the woman: Thy faith hath made thee safe, go in peace.
Reflection
Paul does not present the Resurrection as an inspiring idea or a private spiritual experience. He hands on what he himself received: Christ died for our sins, was buried, rose on the third day and appeared to witnesses. Christian faith rests upon this saving event. If Christ has truly risen, sin and death no longer possess the final word. The Resurrection is the crowning truth of our faith and the confirmation of everything Christ taught and accomplished (CCC 638–658).
Paul’s own life demonstrates what the risen Christ can do with a wounded past. He remembers that he persecuted the Church and does not excuse it, yet neither does he allow his former sin to define the limit of his future. “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” Grace does not deny the truth about who Paul was; it transforms what he can now become. God’s grace is his free gift, drawing us into the life of the Trinity and enabling us to act beyond our unaided strength (CCC 1996–2001).
The psalm gives voice to someone who has experienced this saving power: “I shall not die, but live: and shall declare the works of the Lord.” Its thanksgiving points towards the Resurrection proclaimed by Paul. The believer does not praise God because life has been painless, but because divine mercy has proved stronger than everything that threatened to destroy hope.
The woman in the Gospel approaches Jesus carrying the weight of a public reputation. Simon sees only “a sinner”; Jesus sees a person capable of repentance, faith and great love. Her tears and costly ointment are not payment for mercy. They reveal a heart already opening itself to forgiveness. Christ alone possesses the divine authority to forgive sins, and his mercy restores communion with God rather than merely cancelling a record of wrongdoing (CCC 1441; CCC 1846–1848).
Simon’s failure is subtler. He welcomes Jesus to his table but withholds the ordinary signs of hospitality. He believes he can judge both the woman and Christ while remaining blind to his own need for mercy. The woman knows she has nothing with which to settle her debt; Simon has not yet recognised that he stands before the same creditor.
Paul and the woman therefore meet at the same truth. Neither is imprisoned by the worst thing in the past. Grace has found them, forgiveness has changed them, and love becomes their response. The risen Christ does not ask us to pretend that sin is harmless. He asks us to believe that his mercy can reach deeper, and then to let that mercy bear fruit in humility, gratitude and love.
One line to carry today:
Grace does not erase the truth of our past; it prevents our past from having the final word.
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