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Daily Gospel - Sunday, July 13, 2025 - Luke 10:25-37 - Catholic Bible
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Jul 13, 2025
Welcome to our daily encounter with the Word of God! Today we reflect on the readings from Deuteronomy 30:10-14; Colossians 1:15-20; and the Gospel of Luke 10:25-37. These passages invite us to recognize that God's Word is near, that Christ is the center of all creation, and that true love for our neighbor is expressed through concrete actions. First Reading (Deuteronomy 30:10-14): Moses reminds the people that God’s Word is not far or beyond reach. It is very near, in our mouths and in our hearts, ready to be lived. God invites us to follow His commands with love and gives us the grace to do so. This reading calls us to listen deeply and respond generously. God’s will is close and accessible, and wisdom lies in putting it into practice. Second Reading (Colossians 1:15-20): St. Paul proclaims the supremacy of Christ: the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. All things were created through Him and for Him, and He holds all things together. Through His blood on the cross, He reconciles heaven and earth. This powerful hymn reminds us of Jesus’ divine majesty, who brings us into fullness of life and peace with the Father. Gospel (Luke 10:25-37): In the Gospel, Jesus answers the question, “Who is my neighbor?” with the touching parable of the Good Samaritan. While others pass by the wounded man, it is the foreigner—a Samaritan—who stops, shows compassion, and cares for him with love. This story shows that true love goes beyond boundaries of religion, race, or status. Our neighbor is anyone in need. Jesus invites us to “go and do likewise.” Reflection and Call to Conversion Today’s readings call us to action. God’s Word is near, Christ reconciles all things, and true faith is shown through mercy. May we open our hearts, recognize Jesus in our lives, and act with compassion toward those in need.
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Reading from the book of Deuteronomy.
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Moses spoke to the people, saying,
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"Listen to the voice of the Lord your
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God and observe all his commandments and
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his statutes which are written in this
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law. Return to the Lord your God with
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all your heart and with all your soul.
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Indeed, this commandment that I am
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giving you today is not too difficult.
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Nor is it beyond your reach. It is not
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in heaven so that you can say, "Who will
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go up to heaven for us to get it?" "Who
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will teach us so that we can do it?" Nor
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is it on the other side of the sea so
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that you can say, "Who will cross the
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sea for us to get it? Who will teach us
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so that we can do it?" Rather, this word
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is within your reach. It is in your
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mouth and in your heart so that you can
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do it. The word of the Lord. Thanks be
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to God.
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Reading from the letter of St. Paul to
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the Colossians. Christ is the image of
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the invisible God, the firstborn of all
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creation. For through him all things
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were created in heaven and on earth,
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visible and invisible. whether thrones
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or dominions or powers or rulers or
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authorities. All things were created
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through him and for him. He exists
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before all things and in him all things
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hold together. He is the head of the
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body that is of the church. He is the
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beginning, the firstborn from the dead.
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Therefore, in everything he is
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preeminent, because God chose to dwell
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in him in all his fullness, and through
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him to reconcile to himself all things,
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whether on earth or in heaven, by making
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peace through the blood of his cross.
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Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
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Christ according to St. Luke. Glory to
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you, Lord. At that time, a scribe stood
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up and wanting to test Jesus, asked,
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"Teacher, what must I do to inherit
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eternal life?" Jesus said to him, "What
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is written in the law? How do you read
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it?" He then answered, "You shall love
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the Lord your God with all your heart,
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and with all your soul, and with all
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your strength, and with all your mind,
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and your neighbor as yourself."
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Jesus said to him, "You have answered
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correctly. Do this and you will live.
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But he wanting to justify himself said
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to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
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Jesus answered, "A certain man was going
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down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he
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fell among robbers. They stripped him of
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everything, beat him, and went away,
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leaving him half dead. By chance, a
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priest was going down that road. when he
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saw him, he passed by on the other side.
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And so it was with a Levite. When he
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came to the place, saw him and passed by
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on the other side. But a Samaritan, as
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he was traveling, came where he was. And
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when he saw him, he had compassion. He
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went to him and bandaged his wounds,
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pouring oil and wine on them. Then he
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put the man on his own animal and
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brought him to an inn where he took care
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of him. The next day, he took two silver
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coins and gave them to the inkeeper,
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saying, "Take care of him. When I
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return, I will pay you back whatever
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extra you spent." And Jesus asked,
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"Which of these three do you think was a
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neighbor to the man who fell among the
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robbers?" He answered, "The one who
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showed him mercy." Then Jesus said to
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him, "Go and do likewise." Word of
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salvation. Glory to you, Lord.
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Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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imagine yourself lost in an unfamiliar
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city with no map, no GPS, and a dead
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cell phone battery. You stop to ask for
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directions, and someone responds, "Oh,
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it's very simple. You take the third
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street on the right, then the second on
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the left. Go up the hill until you find
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the blue fountain. Go down the marble
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staircase.
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The more details someone gives, the more
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confused you become. Sometimes the most
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important things in life seem like this.
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Complicated, distant, impossible to
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reach. But today, through God's word, we
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are invited to a surprising discovery.
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The life God desires for us is not
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hidden in some distant inaccessible
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place. It is closer than we imagine.
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Moses in this solemn moment of farewell
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to the people of Israel before entering
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the promised land makes a revolutionary
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declaration. This word is not too hard
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for you nor is it far from you. It is
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not in heaven nor is it beyond the sea.
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The word is very near you in your mouth
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and in your heart so that you may do it.
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What a relief it must have been for the
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people to hear these words. After
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decades of wandering in the desert,
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after witnessing extraordinary miracles
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after receiving the law on Mount Si amid
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thunder and lightning, they might have
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thought that following God was something
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complex and distant. But Moses assures
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them. It is not so. The life God desires
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for us is not hidden in some
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inaccessible place. We do not need to
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climb impossible mountains or cross
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oceans to find it. It is here now in our
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hearts and in our mouths. It is in our
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capacity to love, to serve, to make
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choices that reflect God's character.
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But perhaps we still wonder, who is this
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God who desires to be so close to us?
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What kind of life does he want us to
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live? The second reading gives us a
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magnificent answer. Paul writing to the
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Colossians paints a stunning portrait of
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Jesus Christ that takes our breath away.
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He is the image of the invisible God,
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the firstborn over all creation.
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Imagine that Jesus is the perfect
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photograph of God, the exact reflection
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of his character. When we want to know
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what God is like, we look to Jesus. When
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we want to know what God thinks of us,
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we look at how Jesus treated people.
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When we want to understand the heart of
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God, we contemplate the heart of Christ.
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Paul continues, "In him all things were
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created. All things were created.
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Through him and for him." What an
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extraordinary perspective. Jesus is not
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just a great teacher or an inspiring
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religious leader. He is the agent of
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creation. The one through whom and for
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whom all things exist. Every flower that
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blooms, every star that shines, every
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heart that beats exists because of him
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and for him. He is before all things and
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in him all things hold together.
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Jesus is the center that holds the
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universe together. Without him
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everything would fall apart. He is the
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cosmic glue that gives coherence and
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meaning to all existence. And this same
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Jesus who sustains galaxies and governs
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the cosmos and desires to dwell in our
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hearts. But Paul doesn't stop there. He
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tells us that Jesus is also the head of
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the body, the church. What a powerful
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image. We the church are the body of
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Christ in the world. Our hands are his
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hands to bless. Our feet are his feet to
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carry the gospel. Our voices are his
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voice to proclaim love and hope. And
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then like the grand finale of a
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magnificent symphony, Paul declares, "It
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pleased God to make all his fullness
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dwell in him and through him to
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reconcile all things to himself." Jesus
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is the meeting point between heaven and
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earth, the mediator who makes our
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reconciliation with God possible. But
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how does this manifest itself in
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practice? How do we live this
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magnificent reality in our daily lives?
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The Gospel gives us the answer through
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one of Jesus' most well-known and
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powerful parables, that of the good
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Samaritan. A lawyer trying to justify
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himself asks Jesus, "Who is my
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neighbor?" It's a seemingly simple
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question, but it reveals a mindset that
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seeks limits, that seeks to define the
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extent of our responsibility to love.
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Jesus answers, not with a theological
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definition, but with a story that
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revolutionizes our understanding of
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love. A man goes down from Jerusalem to
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Jericho, a notoriously dangerous road
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known as the road of blood because of
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its frequent robberies. Predictably, he
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falls into the hands of bandits who beat
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him and leave him half dead. Then Jesus
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introduces three characters passing by.
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First, a priest. He sees the wounded man
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and passes by. Then a Levite. He does
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the same. Both were religious leaders.
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people who knew the law, who served in
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the temple. But when faced with concrete
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human need, they choose the other side
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of the road. Why did they pass by?
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Perhaps they were afraid. Perhaps they
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thought helping would contaminate their
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ritual purity. Perhaps they were in a
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hurry to get to their sacred
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commitments. How often do we do this
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too? We pass by the need of others
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because we are occupied with our own
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agenda. Even if it is a religious
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agenda. But then comes the third
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character, a Samaritan. For the Jews of
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the time, Samaritans were considered
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heretics, despised half-brothers. This
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man who theoretically should have been
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the enemy of the wounded Jew is the only
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one who stops, feels compassion, and
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acts. Moved with compassion, he went to
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him. What powerful words. Compassion
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literally means to suffer with. The
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Samaritan didn't just feel pity. He
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identified with the man's suffering. He
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made himself close to the others pain.
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And then he acts. He tends the wounds,
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puts the man on his own animal, takes
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him to an inn, pays the expenses, and
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promises to return. Each action is an
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act of sacrificial love. He doesn't just
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give of what he has. He gives of
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himself. Jesus ends the parable by
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turning the original question upside
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down. The lawyer had asked, "Who is my
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neighbor?" Jesus asks, "Which of these
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three has made himself near the man who
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has fallen into the hands of bandits?"
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The question is not to identify who
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deserves our help, but how we can become
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close to those in need. My dear brothers
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and sisters, these three readings
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masterfully intertwine to teach us a
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fundamental truth. The Christian life is
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neither complicated nor distant. It is
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very close to us in our hearts and in
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our mouths. It manifests itself when we
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allow Christ, the center of all
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creation, to transform the way we see
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and treat others. Being Christian is not
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about mastering complex theological
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theories or performing elaborate
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rituals. It is about allowing the love
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of Christ to flow through us to a
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hurting world. It is about seeing every
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person we encounter as our neighbor
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regardless of their religion, skin
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color, social status, or any other
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difference. How often, like the priest
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and the Levite, do we pass by in the
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face of need? How often are we so busy
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with our own lives, our own problems,
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our own commitments that we fail to
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notice the suffering around us? Perhaps
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it is the lonely neighbor who needs
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companionship. Maybe it's the coworker
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who's struggling financially. Maybe it's
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the rebellious teenager who behind their
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defiant attitude is crying out for love
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and understanding. Maybe it's the
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elderly person everyone ignores because
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they have nothing more to contribute.
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God's word challenges us today. Don't
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complicate things. The life God desires
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for you is very close. It lies in your
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ability to love, to serve, to draw near.
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It lies in recognizing that Christ, who
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sustains the universe, chose to make his
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dwelling in you so that you can be
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instruments of his love in the world.
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Imagine if each of us left here today
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determined to be a good Samaritan. If we
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looked at our family, our work, our
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community with eyes of compassion. If we
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were willing to stop, to reach out, to
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care, to invest ourselves in the lives
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of others, how the world would be
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transformed, how our communities would
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be renewed, how our own lives would be
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enriched. Because here is the secret the
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Samaritan discovered. When we become
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neighbors to others, when we love
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sacrificially, it is not we who lose. We
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find the abundant life that Jesus came
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to give us. May we leave here today not
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asking who is my neighbor but how can I
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become neighbor? May we live the
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powerful simplicity of the gospel to
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love as we have been loved to serve as
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we have been served to forgive as we
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have been forgiven and may the grace of
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our Lord Jesus Christ who reconciled all
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things to himself empower us to be
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agents of reconciliation and love in our
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world. May his peace which surpasses all
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understanding guard our hearts and minds
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as we walk the road of life. Always
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ready to stop and help when we encounter
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someone who has fallen along the way.
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Young men,
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St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
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battle. Be our protection against the
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wickedness and snares of the devil. May
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God rebuke him. we humbly pray. And do
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thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by
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the power of God, cast into hell Satan
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and all the evil spirits who prowl
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throughout the world seeking the ruin of
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souls. Amen.
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