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THE GREAT SINNER

Altar Server Prayer: 

Father in heaven, Your Son Jesus Christ showed his love for you by serving his brothers and sisters in need. I now ask you to give me your help I serve you and your people Open my mouth to praise you in word and song. Open my ears to hear your word. Open my hand to do your work well. Take from me all evil and distracting thoughts.  Help me to know what I should do and do it well. Help me to serve reverently at your Holy Altar and give you praise and glory now and for ever. Amen

Mass Readings:     Brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, the gospel that you received and in which you are firmly established; because the gospel will save you only if you keep believing exactly what I preached to you - believing anything else will not lead to anything.

Well then, in the first place, I taught you what I had been taught myself, namely that Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the scriptures; that he appeared first to Cephas and secondly to the Twelve.  Next he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died; then he appeared to James, and then to all the apostles; and last of all he appeared to me too; it was as though I was born when no one expected it.

I am the least of the apostles; in fact, since I persecuted the Church of God, I hardly deserve the name apostle; but by God's grace that is what I am, and the grace that he gave me has not been fruitless. On the contrary, I, or rather the grace of God that is with me, have worked harder than any of the others; but what matters is that I preach what they preach, and this is what you all believed.

Her Many Sins Have Been Forgiven One of the Pharisees invited Jesus to a meal.  When he arrived at the Pharisee's' house and took his place at the table, a woman came in, who had a bad name in the town.  She heard he was dining with the Pharisee and had brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment. She waited behind him at his feet, weeping, and tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them away with her hair; then she covered his feet with kisses and anointed them with ointment.


When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, 'If this man were a prophet, he would know who this woman is that is touching him and what a bad name she has.' The Jesus took  him up and said, 'Simon, I have something to say to yo.' Speak, Master' was the reply.  'There was once a creditor who had two men in his debt; one owed him five hundred denarii, the other fifty. They were unable to pay, so he pardoned them both.  Which of them will love him more?' 'The one who was pardoned more, I suppose, answered Simon. Jesus said, 'You are right.'

Homily   

Lord you know I love you. Let me love you even more like Paul and the woman in today's readings. Give me the courage and strength to do your will, in the smallest things as well as the greater things. I owed you a lot by my sins, I can never pay back my indebtedness. May my desire to do your will please you more, and bring succor to my soul. 

 Here I am Lord

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