Daily Gospel Reflections for Sep 10, 2026

SPEAKER_1 (0:10)

September 10th, 2026

First day of the 23rd week in Ordinary Time. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke.

SPEAKER_2 (0:21)

But I tell you who hear, Love your enemies, Do good to those who hate you, Bless those who curse you, And pray for those who mistreat you. To him who strikes you on the cheek, Offer also the other.

And from him who takes away your cloak, Don't withhold your coat also.

Give to everyone who asks you, And don't ask him who takes away your goods, To give them back again. As you would like people to do to you, Do exactly so to them. If you love those who love you, What credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, What credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, What credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, To receive back as much. But love your enemies, And do good, And lend expecting nothing back. And your reward will be great, And you will be children of the Most High, For He is kind toward the unthankful and evil. Therefore, be merciful, Even as your Father is also merciful. Don't judge, And you won't be judged. Don't condemn, And you won't be condemned. Set free, And you will be set free.

Give, And it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, And running over will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure, it will be measured back to you.

SPEAKER_1 (2:17)

The Gospel of the Lord Jesus said to his disciples, To you who hear I say, Love your enemies, Do good to those who hate you, Bless those who curse you, Pray for those who mistreat you, To the person who strikes you on one cheek, Offer the other one as well. And from the person who takes your cloak, Do not withhold even your tunic, Give to everyone who asks of you, And from the one who takes what is yours, Do not demand it back.

Jesus gives us one of his most difficult teachings, Love our enemies. It is easy to love people who are good to us. It is much harder when someone has hurt us, spoken badly about us, treated us unfairly, or taken advantage of us. Our first reaction may be anger. We may want them to experience the same hurt they caused us. Yet Jesus asks something different from his disciples. He tells us to do good, to bless and to pray. This does not mean pretending that what someone did was acceptable. Loving an enemy does not require us to remain in a harmful situation or allow someone to keep mistreating us. Jesus is teaching us about what we allow to grow within our hearts. When someone hurts us, resentment can stay with us long after the incident itself. We replay conversations. We imagine what we should have said. We hold on to the hope that one day, the other person will realize what they did. Jesus offers another way. Pray for them. That prayer may be difficult at first. We may not even feel sincere when we begin. But choosing to pray changes what we carry within us. Instead of feeding anger, we place the person and the hurt before God. Loving our enemies is not a feeling we wait for. It is a choice we make because we belong to Christ. Sometimes, that choice simply begins by refusing to return hurt with more hurt.

Is there someone whose actions still make us angry or resentful?

Can we bring that person before Jesus today and pray for them, even if we do not feel ready to forgive everything yet?

Lord Jesus, you know the people who have hurt us and the wounds we still carry.

Help us not to answer hatred with hatred or hurt with more hurt. Give us the strength to pray for those who have mistreated us and to choose the way you have taught us. Free our hearts from resentment and teach us to love as you love. Amen.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.