22 September 2026 - homily for Tuesday of the 25th week in ordinary time - Luke: 8:19 – 21

St Thomas of Villanova was a Spanish Augustinian friar who lived in the 16th century.  He was extremely gifted in the academic world. Thomas taught theology at University of Salamanca, where he was also a student. Ordained as a priest for the Augustinians, he was elected as the prior provincial at the community in Salamanca, and then was chosen as Archbishop of the large Spanish city of Valencia. Throughout his ministry, Thomas remained consistent in his life as a simple friar and compelling preacher. He oversaw a program of reform in his diocese. He was always compassionate toward the poor and the most vulnerable. People saw him as the “Father of the Poor” and the “Begger Bishop.” He always sought to integrate mind and heart in the way he lived out his faith. This is a famous prayer from one of his homilies: “I will love you, Lord, in every way and without setting limits to my love. You set no limits to what you have done for me. You have not measured out your gifts. I will not measure out my love. I will love you, Lord, with all my strength, with all my powers, as much as I am able.”

Today's Gospel contains a basic theme that is found throughout the Luke’s Gospel. Luke sees the proclamation of God’s kingdom as centered around a household or family of believers in Christ, rather than those who gather together at the Temple to offer sacrifice or our biological family. This manner of forming family groups of believers plays a key role in the spread of Jesus' teachings in the Early Church. These groups of believers cross different boundaries that separated people in society. In Jesus' day, society and the very survival of an individual were linked to the kinship group that formed around the biological family. Thus, today’s Gospel message would have been shocking to those who heard It in Ancient Israel. Even today, those of us who follow Jesus and who seek the will of God in our lives enter into a new family: the family of believers in our Catholic faith. True kinship in Christ is not about flesh and blood. Our adoption as Christ’s sons and daughters transforms our relationships and requires loyalty to God and his kingdom.