St. Charles Borromeo, bishop 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

Philippians 2:12-18

Therefore, my dearest friends,

As you al­ways obeyed me while I was with you, even more now that I am far from you, continue working out your salvation “with fear and trembling.”   It is God who makes you not only wish but also carry out what pleases him.   

Do everything without grumbling,   so that without fault or blame, you will be children of God without reproach among a crooked and perverse generation. You are a light among them, like stars in the universe,  holding to the Word of life.

I shall feel proud of you on the day of Christ on seeing that my effort and labor have not been in vain.  And if I am being poured out as a libation over the sacrifice and the offering of your faith, I rejoice and continue to share your joy;  and you likewise should rejoice and share my joy.

 

Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14

The Lord is my light and my salvation.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

Luke 14:25-33

One day, when large crowds were walking along with Jesus, he turned and said to them, “If you come to me, without being ready to give up your love for your father and mother, your spouse and children, your brothers and sisters, and indeed yourself, you cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not follow me carrying his own cross cannot be my disciple.

Do you build a house without first sitting down to count the cost to see whether you have enough to complete it? Otherwise, if you have laid the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone will make fun of you: ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’

 And when a king wages war against another king, does he go to fight without first sitting down to consider whether his ten thousand can stand against the twenty thousand of his opponent? And if not, while the other is still a long way off he sends messengers for peace talks. In the same way, none of you may become my disciple if he doesn’t give up everything he has.

 

Gospel Reflection：

The chosen people were not willing to give the master the priority that he deserved. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem and a cross, but the crowd thinks that he is on his way to Jerusalem and a crown. They consider Jesus a “winner,” and follow him so that they too might win.

Jesus teaches them that discipleship carries a high price tag. Those who aspire to follow him need to count the cost before signing on the dotted line.

Jesus does not make discipleship easy. He does not offer an easy payment plan. He never tries to disguise the cost of discipleship. Instead, he writes the price tag large for all to see. But Jesus doesn’t require anyting of his disciples that he himself is not willing to give.