The Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

Many families are divided. The world encourages us to pick it over faith and many people make that choice. They decide to pursue their own earthly interests and set aside everything else including their parents, siblings, and friends. In this way, our faith can cost us many relationships. It can put strains on our family bonds, but God reminds us in this moment that He did not come to bring unity to the world, but rather division. It is a division that will make clear to Him where we stand… with Him or against Him. There is no middle ground in this. We are either all the way His or all the way the worlds. We are either willing to leave everything behind and follow Him or we put our families, friends, passions, or desires first.

Who or what comes first in our lives? Are we willing to be divided from those we love, but disagree with on faith? How can we more faithfully choose to live united with God above all else?

O Lord, may we always be united with you.

Amen.