October 25th 2026. The Thirtieth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 34-40

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

  

Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel

 

GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 34-40

When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees they got together and,

to disconcert him, one of them put a question,

‘Master, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?’ 

Jesus said, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart,

with all your soul, and with all your mind.

This is the greatest and the first commandment.

The second resembles it:

You must love your neighbour as yourself.

On these two commandments hang the whole Law, and the Prophets also.’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

 

Summary . . .  In the Gospel, Jesus proclaims the shema, so central to the orthodox faith of every devout Jew, the commandment to love God with all of our heart, soul and mind. Then he tells us that a second commandment “resembles” the first: you must love your neighbour as yourself. What does Jesus mean by “resembles”? Is he pointing out some kind of structural similarity? No, what Jesus is saying is that this second commandment belongs irreplaceably with the first. To obey one commandment implies obeying the other. If I “love” God and forget my neighbour, then my love is false. If I “love” my neighbour and ignore God, then my love is false. Authentic love requires both the “vertical” and “horizontal” elements. Sometimes in the Church we find people who focus on the relationship with God to the exclusion of the people around them. Often, they are preoccupied with precise liturgical norms and rubrics. But the relationship with God is deficient if it is not translated into the tenderness of fraternal love. On the other hand, if I am devoted to fraternal love and charity without reference to the invisible, then my “love” will also be deficient. To the extent that my “love” is founded purely on human considerations, then that love will be as small as we are ourselves! Love needs to be open to the greatness of that which transcends us. Christ banished the darkness of this world by showing the love of God for us from the cross. I need to be open to the love of God in order to love my brothers and sisters in the right way. I must love my brothers and sisters in order to love God genuinely. These two commandments are inseparably united in the person of Jesus. In him, the relationship with God became a relationship with our brothers and sisters. As Jesus says in the last line, on this love for God and neighbour everything depends. If the things we do are not done out of love, what sense have they? This great Gospel puts all the secondary and trivial things in perspective. Nothing matters but love for God and neighbour.  

 

At the end of our lives, the only question we will ask is: Did I love?

The question from Sunday’s Gospel: “What is the greatest commandment?" What is the most important thing to do? What is it that decides everything? It is not so difficult to answer: when events prompt us to look at our lives - and this can happen for a thousand reasons – the first question we ask ourselves is if we have loved others genuinely, if anyone is happy because of us. Often, when a priest hears the last confession or the last worry of a dying person, there is only one real question: did I love? Have I been a good father, a good mother, did I leave anything good to those around me?

 

The devil tries to distract us from the priority of love. He does not need to make us do evil to achieve his purpose. It is enough to distract us and make us fixated with secondary, empty, things.

Jesus is right: loving God and loving one's neighbour is all that matters. Everything depends on this. This insight can illuminate the futility of a thousand secondary things. We are constantly distracted from this priority by the work of the evil one. He does not need to make us do evil. It is enough for him to distract us from doing good. He keeps us engaged in secondary things, gets us caught up with activities that are not bad in themselves, but which simply are not love. Outside of love there is no happiness, but only substitutes for happiness.

 

Scripture tells me to love my neighbour as myself. Does this mean that my first priority must be to love myself?

Yet, there is more to love than the popular viewpoint realizes. In reality, everyone talks about love, everyone sings about it, everyone writes about it. But we have to examine what they are talking about, because the world is full of chatter about false, transitory and ambiguous love. In fact, it is not true to say that “love” brings “happiness”. What is true is that only real love brings real happiness. In recent decades, much preaching has focused on the phrase of Jesus, taken in turn from the Book of Leviticus: "You must love your neighbour as yourself". Sometimes the conclusions drawn from this phrase have been appropriate, but at other times a simplistic equation has been made of the sort: the Lord tells us to love our neighbour as we love ourselves, and therefore if one does not love himself he ends up not loving others either; conclusion: you must first learn to love yourself! 

 

The problem with focussing on loving yourself is that it is impossible using your own strengths. Only the knowledge that we are loved Christ can free us of self-doubt or self-hatred.

Fifty years ago it was urgent to underline this point, because we had to free ourselves from an image of love dominant at that time which only spoke of impersonal obligation. However, this led to further problems: to love yourself, to accept yourself, is not just difficult, it's impossible! The fact is that I need to be loved if I am not to despise myself. It is only when I am loved that I escape the trap of thinking that there is something wrong with me. Only Christ can lead me to look upon myself without horror, without that sense of insufficiency that I carry inside. 

 

The solution is not to focus on love of self, but to see that our true centre is outside of ourselves, in communion with Christ and others.

There is a mystery here! I must love my neighbour as myself, but if the first obligation becomes to love oneself, then I can become so focussed on myself that I forget the neighbour entirely! The task of that sentence is to get us out of the vortex of self-destructive narcissism. Narcissus, in Greek mythology, was the one who dies in the well of his own image because he does not listen to the nymph Echo who calls him to look at her and love her, and this is today's problem: obsession with ourselves. Christ leads us to our true centre, which is love, but this centre is outside of us, it is in relationship, in communion, in unity. Because it is precisely when I am with God and with others that I discover myself. Nowadays there is a big emphasis on teaching children to look for self-fulfilment, but what we really need to teach them is to look beyond themselves and be with others.

“In the Stars the Glory of His Eyes – Tales from an Irish Tour Guide in Rome”

FROM IGNATIUS PRESS

Tales of unexpected blessings, hilarious true stories, unique perspectives on the lives of the saints. An original, entertaining and orthodox presentation of the Catholic faith. You won’t be able to put it down!

"Captivating."

— Elizabeth Lev, Professor of Art History, Rome.

“Entertaining.”

— Cardinal Seán Brady, Ireland.

"I laughed out loud many times, and told the stories to others who laughed just as hard."

— Sally Read, Author.

"Enchanting."

— Bishop Brendan Leahy, Diocese of Limerick.

"Unique and insightful."

— Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, Cashel and Emly.

October 18th 2026. The Twenty-ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 15-21
Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio
 
Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel
 
GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 15-21
The Pharisees went away to work out between them how to trap Jesus in what he said. And they sent their disciples to him, together with the Herodians, to say,
‘Master, we know that you are an honest man and teach the way of God in an honest way,
and that you are not afraid of anyone, because a man’s rank means nothing to you.
Tell us your opinion, then. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not?
But Jesus was aware of their malice and replied,
‘You hypocrites! Why do you set this trap for me? Let me see the money you pay the tax with.’
They handed him a denarius and he said, ‘Whose head is this? Whose name?’ 
‘Caesar’s’ they replied.
He then said to them, ‘Very well, give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar – and to God what belongs to God.’
The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ
 
Summary . . .  This Gospel passage is sometimes interpreted to refer to the necessity of a balanced division of loyalties: a certain debt is owed to God and a certain debt is owed to the state . . . But this would be a fairly superficial reading. Let us consider the passage more closely. The Pharisees and Herodians are the most unlikely of allies! One is on the side of Rome and the other is against, yet they join forces to try to trap Jesus, asking him if people should pay tax to the Romans or not. As he always does, Jesus lifts the discourse on to a higher level, refusing to be bogged down in questions that ultimately derive from the enemy of humanity, Satan. The Lord takes a coin which bears the image of the Roman emperor, with an inscription that proclaimed him to be divine. And then Jesus says: “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God”. The real question the Lord wants us to consider is this: what really belongs to this world and what really is owed to God? The world tries to dominate our lives, our relationships, our affections, our loyalties. It seeks to manipulate and exploit the deepest things within us for motives of worldly gain. In fact, the currencies that we use bear the images of worldly powers, but each one of us is made in the image and likeness of God! Woe to us if we give to the world those things that belong properly to God! Woe to us if we turn the faith into an instrument for advancing our own material wellbeing or power! Let us recall the martyrs of the first centuries who were killed because they refused to acknowledge the emperor to be divine. Let us follow that army of people who exercised their baptismal discernment correctly and gave back to the world, the flesh and the devil what belongs to it. St Francis gave back to his father all of his worldly possessions, even his clothes. Once we belong to God, then we will, quite naturally, give to Caesar what belongs to him. We will be good, law-abiding citizens, but as a consequence of the fact that we are living for heaven. This is a life ordered to what is good and true, the concrete realisation of the fact that we were made in His image and likeness and belong only to him. 

​

In Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus demonstrates to us a good technique of discourse. Often we are bogged down in questions that do not lead anywhere. Jesus answers the question with another which lifts the conversation onto a higher level.
In Sunday’s Gospel, two unlikely factions become allies in an attempt to ensnare Jesus. Herod was on the side of the Romans, since they maintained the king in power. The Pharisees were against Roman rule, but they still united with the Herodians to lay this trap for Jesus: "Is it lawful, or not, to pay the tax to Caesar?" If Jesus had answered yes, he would have put himself on the side of the Roman invader and oppressor; if he had said not to pay, he could be denounced to the authorities as an instigator of rebellion. In response, Jesus does what he always does: he brings the discourse on to a higher and more noble level. It is a good opportunity for us to learn from this technique of his: he regularly answers questions with other questions. Often, we are besotted with the wrong questions. Instead of torturing ourselves in searching for answers, we need to jettison the questions that are misleading us. 

​

What is the higher level to which Jesus raises the discourse? He challenges us to consider what really belongs to Caesar and what belongs to God.
Then Jesus asks to examine the coin used to pay the tax. Normally, the Roman Senate did not permit the image of the emperor to appear on the currency, but, during the very years of Jesus’ public ministry, the emperor’s image was permitted, along with an inscription that affirmed him as "divine". The first martyrs of the Church knew all about this self-deification of the Empire. Many Christians were led to the gallows because they refused to perform sacrifices to the emperor. All regimes, before and after Rome, have some version of the public cult of the absolute leader, up to the most tragic modern examples. When Jesus sees the coin, he replies: "Render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God". This raises the question: “What, exactly, belongs to whom?” This is the level to which Jesus moves the discourse.

​

What is of Caesar? What is of God? Our very selves, our life, our heart, our relationships. Money bears the image and inscription of this world, but humanity bears the image and likeness of God.
An immense group of people in the history of the Church have exercised this baptismal discernment, giving back to the world what belongs to it, while handing over to God what really belongs to him. Francis of Assisi returned even his clothes to his father to take on the clothes of new life, a life that was poor in the things of this world, but immensely wealthy in truth. Money, in fact, bears the image and inscription of this world and its rulers, but man carries within himself the image and likeness of God. From Christ onwards, an army of men and women will restore to the world, the flesh and the devil what belongs to them, while handing themselves over to God to live according to the truth of heaven. What belongs to God? The life and heart of man, his love, his relationships and many other things. The world demands these things only to abuse and exploit them. Woe to us if we give the world what belongs properly to God, if we instrumentalise the faith in the interests of wellbeing or power. In every Christian act, we free ourselves from the world to give back to the Father what is his: ourselves.

“In the Stars the Glory of His Eyes – Tales from an Irish Tour Guide in Rome”

FROM IGNATIUS PRESS

Tales of unexpected blessings, hilarious true stories, unique perspectives on the lives of the saints. An original, entertaining and orthodox presentation of the Catholic faith. You won’t be able to put it down!

"Captivating."

— Elizabeth Lev, Professor of Art History, Rome.

“Entertaining.”

— Cardinal Seán Brady, Ireland.

"I laughed out loud many times, and told the stories to others who laughed just as hard."

— Sally Read, Author.

"Enchanting."

— Bishop Brendan Leahy, Diocese of Limerick.

"Unique and insightful."

— Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, Cashel and Emly.

 October 11th 2026. The Twenty-eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 1-14

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

  

Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel

 

GOSPEL: Matthew 22, 1-14

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a feast for his son’s wedding. He sent his servants to call those who had been invited, but they would not come. Next he sent some more servants. “Tell those who have been invited” he said “that I have my banquet all prepared, my oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, everything is ready. Come to the wedding.” But they were not interested: one went off to his farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his servants, maltreated them and killed them. The king was furious. He despatched his troops, destroyed those murderers and burnt their town. Then he said to his servants, “The wedding is ready; but as those who were invited proved to be unworthy, go to the crossroads in the town and invite everyone you can find to the wedding”.

So these servants went out on to the roads and collected together everyone they could find, bad and good alike; and the wedding hall was filled with guests. When the king came in to look at the guests he noticed one man who was not wearing a wedding garment, and said to him, “How did you get in here, my friend, without a wedding garment?” And the man was silent. Then the king said to the attendants, “Bind him hand and foot and throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth”. For many are called, but few are chosen.

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

 

1. There are many surprising elements in this parable: the fact that people refuse to come to the banquet and kill those who invite them; the harsh response of the king; the public humiliation of the one who does not have the correct garment. What is it all about?

The first reading for this Sunday is from the 25th chapter of Isaiah, which speaks of an invitation to a banquet, a feast of rich foods. This banquet is contrasted with a veil that covers the faces of all people, and it talks about wiping away tears and removing the disgrace from the people. This contrast may seem a bit unusual, but gives us the key to understanding the Gospel. In the Gospel, we have an invitation to a feast that is poorly received: the king throws a wedding feast for his son, but the invited guests do not want to attend. This is surprising because why would someone refuse a wedding invitation? They are refusing an invitation to a great banquet. In the text, it is recounted that these invited guests have their own interests, their businesses, and they insult and even kill those who invite them. Then the master sends out his servants to gather anyone they find, both good and bad, which is a way of saying that there is no selection of guests, all are welcome. And then, someone enters without the wedding garment and is cast out and publicly humiliated because they did not wear the wedding garment. Well, on a basic level, it seems very strange that someone would refuse a wedding invitation, let alone kill the messenger who invites them. What is happening here?

 

2. The refusal to wear the wedding garment is a metaphor for our rejection of grace.

There is also a reference to the book of Judges, which tells the story of Samson's marriage. We learn that, at that time, the wedding garment wasn't exactly a piece of clothing but an additional covering. In today's terms, it's like receiving a badge to signify participation in the celebration. So, it's not about a poor person being picked up from the roadside and rejected because they're dressed poorly. Rather, they didn't put on the tunic or the cloak that was characteristic of that wedding celebration. We can understand through this detail that there is an offering here, where the king gives and bestows gifts. And this offering is rejected. This might be a state of our relationship with God. One of the essential tragedies of human life is the rejection of grace. In the end, even in theology, we know that the condition of damnation is the conscious rejection of a gift. Grace, always remember this word, is related to the word "gratis." Grace, precisely, means a gift. Grace is never imposed but always offered by God because you can't impose a gift. It wouldn't be a gift at that point; it would be something else. Our relationship with God, this parable suggests, often involves rejecting this gift. Why would we ever do such a thing? We are facing an attitude that seems paradoxical, absurd, and unacceptable to us. How can people reject something so beautiful that is given to them? An invitation to a wedding, a state of celebration. There is a veil to be pulled back, as the first reading says, there is shame to remove, to be loved unconditionally by God. It's something that, due to a deep condition of non-acceptance, doubt, and lack of trust, we don't accept. Being the object of a gift isn't easy. Being the object of a gift requires accepting that we have nothing to give in return, simply being invited to come.

 

3. Pride impels us to reciprocate the gifts of another, so that we are on their level.

We prefer to be on the same level as those who give us things. After all, we don't believe we can be loved unconditionally. Humans carry in their hearts a trauma, an unhappiness, the disappointment of love experienced a thousand times. It's embarrassing to be loved. Peter will say, at the moment when Jesus wants to wash his feet: "You will never wash my feet," because he knows Jesus, they love each other, they have intimacy between them. It’s as simple as the fact that it’s tough to receive. Pride forces us to reciprocate, to be on a level where we are better than our deeds. We have our deeds and receiving a garment, entering the wedding and completely abandoning the dress of our resistance, the dress of our suspicion, is very difficult. In people, the spirit of sadness is so strong, the spirit of suspicion is so strong, the spirit of not opening up to the celebration, it can even become violence. In the end, everyone needs to be loved in an almost scandalous, embarrassing way, to let themselves be loved. It's very difficult to stand before God and feel the object of His tenderness. It's something we don't know how to do. This Sunday is an invitation to enter the celebration and discard the garment of sadness, the veil. We need to give up that world of doubt, suspicion, and antipathy we feel toward everything that is given to us with simplicity. God is love; he doesn’t demand anything. This is something we must open ourselves to deeply, and it's something we struggle to accept. This is why Jesus Christ said that sinners have an easier time entering the kingdom of heaven than the righteous. Because the righteous are too occupied with their own righteousness, while sinners surrender to the love and mercy of God.

“In the Stars the Glory of His Eyes – Tales from an Irish Tour Guide in Rome”

FROM IGNATIUS PRESS

Tales of unexpected blessings, hilarious true stories, unique perspectives on the lives of the saints. An original, entertaining and orthodox presentation of the Catholic faith. You won’t be able to put it down!

"Captivating."

— Elizabeth Lev, Professor of Art History, Rome.

“Entertaining.”

— Cardinal Seán Brady, Ireland.

"I laughed out loud many times, and told the stories to others who laughed just as hard."

— Sally Read, Author.

"Enchanting."

— Bishop Brendan Leahy, Diocese of Limerick.

"Unique and insightful."

— Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, Cashel and Emly.

 October 4th 2026. The Twenty-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Matthew 21, 33-43

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

  

Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel

 

GOSPEL: Matthew 21, 33-43

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people :

‘Listen to another parable. There was a man, a landowner, who planted a vineyard; he fenced it round, dug a winepress in it and built a tower; then he leased it to tenants and went abroad. When vintage time drew near he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his produce. But the tenants seized his servants, thrashed one, killed another and stoned a third. Next he sent some more servants, this time a larger number, and they dealt with them in the same way. Finally he sent his son to them. “They will respect my son” he said. But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, “This is the heir. Come on, let us kill him and take over his inheritance.” So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?’ They answered, ‘He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will deliver the produce to him when the season arrives’.

Jesus said to them,

‘Have you never read in the scriptures:

It was the stone rejected by the builders

that became the keystone.

This was the Lord’s doing

and it is wonderful to see?

I tell you, then, that the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

 

1. The tone of this parable seems harsh. The Lord seems to be demanding fruits from us or  very negative  consequences will follow.

On the Twenty-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time, the Gospel presents us with the parable of the murderous vine-dressers. This narrative is both tragic and unsettling, as it tells a story of murder and mistreatment towards the servants of the master. While this parable may not be the first choice for joyous occasions like weddings, it still holds valuable lessons that deserve our careful consideration. In essence, this parable revolves around a master who generously equips a vineyard for cultivation. This echoes a passage from Isaiah, which we also find in the reading. In Isaiah's case, the vineyard produced bitter fruits due to its soil quality. However, Jesus shifts our attention to the farmers entrusted with the vineyard, who handle its fruits dishonestly and violently. While the tone in the New Testament often shifts away from such harshness, it remains present here, directed not towards a symbolic vineyard but at the criminal farmers themselves. So, what is the purpose of listening to such a story? We must ask ourselves if the Heavenly Father, who is the master in this parable, has the right to expect fruits from us. Does God have the right to inquire about how we are utilizing the life He has given us? Indeed, the Lord has every right to expect fruits from His entire Church, which represents His vineyard.

 

2. Does God request fruits from us? Yes! And the people around us have a right to fruits from us as well.

Before we answer, let's consider another question: does God genuinely come to request these fruits? The answer is yes. Numerous times in our lives, God knocks on our doors through those around us, asking us to bear fruit in various roles - as a man, a brother, a father, a Christian, or whatever our vocation may be. God is often concealed in the child seeking a loving relationship, or in an elderly sick relative who asks, "Is there room for love in your heart?" God has sowed so much in our lives - love, forgiveness, and acceptance. Love is sought by spouses, friends, and rightly so. People should find in a priest a man of God rather than a self-centred individual, and in a mother, an adult woman capable of tenderness. Those who seek these qualities in their priests or mothers have a valid reason to complain.

 

3. But bearing fruit is also important for us, because it is our greatest source of joy! In fact, living a selfish life, that takes rather than gives, leads to misery. God created us to love, to bear fruit. This alone brings fulfilment.

There are fruits that humanity rightfully expects from us. However, there are also the gifts from the master's vineyard, the holy people He has entrusted to us, and the mission given to us as Christians. The world looks to the Church to see if the love it professes is genuine or mere words. Therefore, it is crucial for us to contemplate the gravity of this text because bearing fruit is our greatest source of joy. In contrast, adopting a rapacious and self-centred attitude like the farmers in the parable leads to chaos. We are born to love, to bear fruit, and only the genuine love that comes from Christ can provide us with true joy. It is beautiful to bear fruit in life, especially when we reflect upon our existence at its conclusion. We will measure our lives by the love we have shown, the fruits we have borne, and how we have responded to the goodness we have received. Life, which is abundantly generous, seeks generosity in our hearts. We must recognize that we are meant to bear fruit, and within us lies much goodness and importance that should not go to waste. This message is especially relevant for today's young people who possess tremendous potential and goodness within them, even in aspects of their lives they may not fully understand. It's a tragedy when someone lives solely for self-satisfaction, as this leads to emptiness. True fulfilment comes from knowing how to give and respond to the good in our lives. While it is beautiful to be loved, it is far more beautiful to love. The prevailing depression and widespread sense of emptiness in today's society often stem from this self-centred orientation. True satisfaction comes from giving and responding to goodness. If being loved is beautiful, loving others is even more beautiful.

“In the Stars the Glory of His Eyes – Tales from an Irish Tour Guide in Rome”

FROM IGNATIUS PRESS

Tales of unexpected blessings, hilarious true stories, unique perspectives on the lives of the saints. An original, entertaining and orthodox presentation of the Catholic faith. You won’t be able to put it down!

"Captivating."

— Elizabeth Lev, Professor of Art History, Rome.

“Entertaining.”

— Cardinal Seán Brady, Ireland.

"I laughed out loud many times, and told the stories to others who laughed just as hard."

— Sally Read, Author.

"Enchanting."

— Bishop Brendan Leahy, Diocese of Limerick.

"Unique and insightful."

— Archbishop Kieran O'Reilly, Cashel and Emly.