Greeting (See Second Reading)
We must run with perseverance the race we have entered, with
our eyes fixed on Jesus. May the Lord Jesus give you the strength you need and
be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction by the Celebrant
I Have Come to Bring Fire
Today, the Lord confronts us with the question: How fiery is
your love? How fervent is your faith? Can our faith withstand contradiction and
ridicule without silencing us? Perhaps we are resigned to the evil in us and in
the world and do not stand up for what is right and good. If we love the
Lord and people enough, we do not tolerate an easy peace that puts
our conscience to sleep. In this Eucharist we pray to the Lord for the fire of
his Spirit.
No Easy Peace
Is there anyone of sound mind who doesn’t want peace? Jesus
promised: “I leave you peace; my peace I give you,” and he meant it. Yet today
we hear him say: “I am here to bring you not peace but rather division.” Is
there not a contradiction here? No, for he simply wants to say: My peace and
your peace must not be a guilty peace of compromises with evil. It is a peace
that allows itself to be disturbed by injustice and wrongdoing that contradicts
our faith. We are here together with the Lord who gave up his own peace to
accept even death so that we might be free and happy.
Penitential Act
I Have Come to Bring Fire
Where is the fire of our love and our faith? Let us examine
ourselves before the Lord. (pause)
Lord Jesus, you came to bring us your fire: Kindle in us the
fire of a courageous faith. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you came to bring us your fire: Kindle in us
the power of a love that commits itself to you and to people. Christ, have
mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you came to bring us your fire: let it wake us
up from our indifference and fears. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Forgive us, Lord, for we have been lukewarm. Give us the
quiet courage to live our faith deeply and to love without hesitation. Lead us
to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
No Easy Peace
The responsibilities of faith and love at times disturb our
easy peace. We ask forgiveness from the Lord that we have not allowed ourselves
to be disturbed when needed. (pause)
“Do not disturb,” we say, and we silence our conscience. Lord,
have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
“Do not disturb,” we say,
and we close our eyes to the needs of our neighbor. Christ,
have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
“Do not disturb,” we say, and we tolerate injustice and
discrimination.
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us our cowardice. Light
in us the fire of your Spirit and lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray that we may follow Jesus without fear or guilty
compromise (pause)
God our Father, by his life and death your Son showed us the
stony road that leads us to life and love. Let the fire of his Spirit burn in
us, that we may reject easy compromises with evil, with guilty, uncommitted
peace, and silent complicity in iniquity. Make us honest and straightforward
like Jesus, so that with him we may put your will and love above everything
else. We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading (Jer 38:4-6,8-10): A Prophet Not to Be
Silenced
1 Reading: Jer 38:4-6, 8-10
Second Reading (Heb 12:1-4): Jesus Brings Our Faith to
Perfection
Our faith should be strong enough to guide us in
following Jesus, even when life's road is difficult and our
faith is tested.
2 Reading: Heb 12:1-4
Gospel (Lk 12:49-53): I Have Come to Bring Fire
Faith brings to the disciple of Jesus not an easy peace, but
struggle, tension and contradiction, for the disciple has to follow the master
on the way of the cross.
Gospel: Lk 12:49-53
Intercessions
Let us ask the Lord Jesus that he may fill his Church and
the world with the fire of his love and life. Let us say: R/ Lord, put our
hearts afire.
–
Jesus, set your Church afire with the flame of a deep concern to bring your
Good News to all. May the Good News dialogue with the world, and with its
aspirations and needs. We pray you: R/ Lord, put our hearts afire.
–
Jesus, inflame all Christian Churches with a passion to work untiringly toward
unity in you. We pray you: R/ Lord, put our hearts afire.
–
Jesus, inflame the leaders of nations with the fire of seeking justice and
peace for our world, and respect for the human dignity of all. We pray you: R/
Lord, put our hearts afire.
–
Jesus, give the fire of your strength to all who have to pass through the fire
of suffering, failure and discrimination, and keep them from discouragement. We
pray you: R/ Lord, put our hearts afire.
–
Jesus, light your fire again in those whose faith has become lukewarm or who
have lost the way to you. We pray you: R/ Lord, put our hearts afire.
–
Lord, inflame our hearts with the fire of your love. Make us recognize and
serve you in our neighbor, especially in the poorest. We pray you: R/ Lord, put
our hearts afire.
Lord Jesus, make our hearts burn with your love as we hear
your word and eat from your table, now and for ever. R/ Amen
Prayer over the Gifts
Our God and Father, we bring before you bread and wine, gifts
of peace and joy. In our struggles and tensions, may we never buy an easy peace
by sacrificing for the sake of our own comfort, the truth and justice demanded
by the gospel. May we not fail in the service we owe our neighbor. Nourish our
hesitant faith with the body and blood of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. R/
Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
By his death Jesus paid the price for his fidelity to people
and to goodness and truth. Let us offer ourselves with him and ask for his
strength, that we may give all praise to the Father.
Invitation to the Lord’s Prayer
In faith and hope we pray to our Father in heaven in the
words of Jesus our Lord: R/ Our Father...
Deliver Us
Deliver us, Lord, from every evil and grant us peace in our
day. Let it not be the easy peace that comes from self-contentment or the lack
of involvement, but an interior peace which accepts the struggles of faith and
which dares to opt for the challenging way of the loving service of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus our Lord, who accepted the cross and
disregarded its shame to lead us in our faith. He invites us to his table to
inflame us with faith and love. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer after Communion
God our Father, your Son has spoken to us his stirring,
challenging Word and shared his own strength with us. Send us out to live our
faith in all its consequences, and even to be, if necessary, a sign of
contradiction, like your Son. But sustain us in faith and give us endurance, that
with Jesus your Son we may live in your joy and peace for ever and ever. R/
Amen.
Blessing
Jesus brought fire on earth to burn with a bright flame. May
our living faith be such a fire and such a flame, with the blessing of almighty
God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
t us go in peace and live our faith.
R/ Thanks be to God.
***
Commentary
Fiery Peace
Read:
Prophet Jeremiah is persecuted for being faithful to his
mission as a prophet. Witnessing the Gospel is never easy; persecutions follow.
But the model of Jesus must comfort and encourage us. Jesus forewarns the
disciples that his Gospel will not be pacific, but will cause violent divisions
among people.
Reflect:
How can the “Prince of Peace” say that he has come to bring
division? Perhaps the key is in John 14:27, where he says that the peace he
offers is not the kind the world gives. It is not a peace that is all about
having no troubles or suffering or enemies. His peace is a “fiery peace” that
turns our world upside down. When one definitively opts for Christ, it often
goes against the grain of the world, causing rupture of relations. Stories
abound of martyrdom that accompanied those who chose Christ over worldly values
and relationships. Yet, in the midst of all these, there was an undefinable,
indescribable, unearthly peace that reigned their hearts. Christ offers such
peace which can survive violence and death; not the ephemeral, empty worldly
peace.
Pray:
Pray for the fire of Christ to illumine our hearts to find
peace only in him.
Act:
Read a book/watch a movie about a martyr saint.
=============
17 August 2025
Luke 12:49-53
The Gospel That Sets Hearts Ablaze
Jesus speaks to us today with powerful, burning words: “I
have come to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already blazing!” (Lk
12:49). These are not the words of someone who seeks comfort or ease. They are
the words of someone consumed with a deep, divine passion—a longing to set the
world ablaze with the fire of God’s love, justice, and mercy.
Fire is a mysterious thing. It fascinates, it warms, it
illuminates—but it also purifies. Throughout Scripture, fire is used as a sign
of God’s presence. Moses encountered the Lord in the burning bush that was not
consumed. The Israelites were guided by a pillar of fire through the
wilderness. God made a covenant with Abraham, passing through the darkness as a
flame. Fire is holy—it speaks of God's desire to dwell with his people.
But this fire Jesus speaks of is not just in sacred stories.
It is a fire meant to burn in each of our hearts. It is the fire of the Holy
Spirit—the same fire that came upon the apostles at Pentecost, setting them
ablaze with courage, joy, and mission. This is the fire that changes
everything.
And yet, this fire is not welcomed by all. Jesus says his
coming will bring not peace, but division. How can this be? Doesn’t the Gospel
promise peace? Yes—but not a false peace. Not the peace that avoids truth or
hides injustice. The Gospel brings a peace born of conversion, of
transformation. And that always causes tension, even within families,
communities, and nations.
The fire of Christ reveals what is true and exposes what is
false. It burns away selfishness, pride, and hypocrisy. It disturbs our
comfort, challenges our habits, and invites us to a new way of living. Some
will resist it. Others will be afraid. But some—blessed are they—will allow
themselves to be set on fire.
Jesus speaks also of a “baptism” he must undergo. He refers
to his Passion and death—his total immersion into our brokenness and sin. This
is the price of love. To light the fire of the Spirit, he must pass through the
waters of death. But from those waters, he rises, and with him rises a new
humanity.
My dear brothers and sisters, let us not fear the fire. Let
us not fear the division that comes when we truly live the Gospel. The world
may not understand. Even those closest to us may not understand. But the Gospel
is clear: Jesus does not come to destroy sinners but to destroy sin; not to
condemn, but to purify; not to burn people, but to set them free.
Today, let us ask the Lord to kindle in us this holy fire.
May it consume the weeds in our lives—the lies, resentments, fears—and make
space for the wheat of grace to grow. Let us welcome his fire, not as
destruction, but as new life. The world needs this fire. The Church needs this
fire. How Jesus longs for it to blaze in you.
