Reflection for the Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Sept. 12, 2021

By Sr Margaret Hickey ND

James 2:14-18:  “What good is it my sisters and brothers, if people say they have faith but do not have works?  Faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”

In this time which we are experiencing right now, this is a wonderful passage on which to reflect.  We are praying for so many intentions, so many parts of our world that are hurting, so many down with COVID and its mutations, transitions of so many kind….  Praying we must do, placing in God’s generous heart all that concerns us.  Our faith tells us that God listens and responds to our pleadings and is fully aware of those concerns.  That true faith, however, must be combined with action ranging from the most magnanimous (such as working at a shelter or donating to a cause), to the simplest act of smiling at others to lift their day.  God expects our actions.  So do those for whom we pray.