Daily Mass Readings – Sunday, 24 September 2028

4 Hear this, you that crush the poor, and make the needy of the land to fail,

5 Saying: When will the month be over, and we shall sell our wares: and the sabbath, and we shall open the corn: that we may lessen the measure, and increase the sicle, and may convey in deceitful balances,

6 That we may possess the needy for money, and the poor for a pair of shoes, and may sell the refuse of the corn?

7 The Lord hath sworn against the pride of Jacob: surely I will never forget all their works.

R. (1a, 7b) Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.

or

R. Alleluia.

1 Praise the Lord, ye children: praise ye the name of the Lord.

2 Blessed be the name of the Lord, from henceforth now and for ever.

R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.

or

R. Alleluia.

4 The Lord is high above all nations; and his glory above the heavens.

5 Who is as the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high:

6 And looketh down on the low things in heaven and in earth?

R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.

or

R. Alleluia.

7 Raising up the needy from the earth, and lifting up the poor out of the dunghill:

8 That he may place him with princes, with the princes of his people.

R. Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor.

or

R. Alleluia.

1 I desire therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men:

2 For kings, and for all that are in high station: that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety and chastity.

3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour,

4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

5 For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus:

6 Who gave himself a redemption for all, a testimony in due times.

7 Whereunto I am appointed a preacher and an apostle, (I say the truth, I lie not,) a doctor of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

8 I will therefore that men pray in every place, lifting up pure hands, without anger and contention.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

9 Though our Lord Jesus Christ was rich, he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

1 And he said also to his disciples: There was a certain rich man who had a steward: and the same was accused unto him, that he had wasted his goods.

2 And he called him, and said to him: How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship: for now thou canst be steward no longer.

3 And the steward said within himself: What shall I do, because my lord taketh away from me the stewardship? To dig I am not able; to beg I am ashamed.

4 I know what I will do, that when I shall be removed from the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.

5 Therefore calling together every one of his lord’s debtors, he said to the first: How much dost thou owe my lord?

6 But he said: An hundred barrels of oil. And he said to him: Take thy bill and sit down quickly, and write fifty.

7 Then he said to another: And how much dost thou owe? Who said: An hundred quarters of wheat. He said to him: Take thy bill, and write eighty.

8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, forasmuch as he had done wisely: for the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.

9 And I say to you: Make unto you friends of the mammon of iniquity; that when you shall fail, they may receive you into everlasting dwellings.

10 He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in that which is greater: and he that is unjust in that which is little, is unjust also in that which is greater.

11 If then you have not been faithful in the unjust mammon; who will trust you with that which is the true?

12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s; who will give you that which is your own?

13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Scripture places our use of possessions under the judgment of God. The merchants condemned by the prophet treat the poor as obstacles to profit, measuring out less and charging more. Their worship has become empty because their business has no room for justice. Against this, the psalm reveals the Lord who sees the lowly and raises the needy. God does not forget those whom human greed overlooks.

Jesus’ parable is not praise for dishonesty. It exposes the steward’s worldly urgency and asks whether the children of light are equally serious about preparing for what lasts. Money and possessions are “another’s,” entrusted to us for a time. They become faithful when they serve mercy, generosity, and the good of others. Christ, who became poor for our sake, shows the true direction of wealth: self-giving love. We can examine the small choices of our daily stewardship—how we earn, spend, share, and treat those with less. Prayer for those in authority, offered without anger or contention, belongs to this same conversion: that society may protect the vulnerable and that every person may come to truth. Mammon cannot be our master when Christ has given himself for all.

Lord Jesus Christ, you became poor so that we might receive the riches of your life. Free my heart from the grasp of possessions and from every desire that diminishes another person. Teach me to recognize what I have as a trust, and give me wisdom to use it with justice, generosity, and mercy. Remember the poor and needy, and move those who hold power to protect them. Help me pray with pure hands and a peaceful heart, without anger or contention. May my daily choices show that I belong to you, not to mammon. Amen.