Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church
204 S. Calle El Segundo
Palm Springs, CA 92262
760-325-5809
Our Parish Mission Statement
We, the people of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, are a diverse community devoted to Jesus the Christ. Our mission together is to give thanks and praise to God, spread the Gospel and teach the Bible message of God’s love for all creation.
2024 Diocesan Development Fund
Goal $18,000
Pledged $23,154
Received $23,154
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October 27, 2024
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
27 de Octubre de 2024
Trigésimo Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario
Jesus said, "What do you want me to do for you ?"
The blind man replied, "Master, I want to see."
Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you."
Immediately he received his sight
and followed him on the way.
Jesús: “¿Qué quieres que haga por ti?”
El ciego le contestó: “Maestro, que pueda ver”.
Jesús le dijo: “Vete; tu fe te ha salvado”.
Al momento recobró la vista
y comenzó a seguirlo por el camino.
Reflection on Sunday’s Readings by Fr. Luis and Fr. Rajesh
Reflexión sobre las lecturas dominicales de P. Luis y P. Rajesh
TRIGÉSIMO DOMINGO DEL TIEMPO ORDINARIO
Queridos hermanos y hermanas, permítanme comenzar esta reflexión compartiendo estas preguntas con ustedes:
¿Eres feliz hoy?
¿Cuál es la fuente de tu felicidad?
¿Hay algún motivo en tu vida para estar triste?
¿Has estado ciego alguna vez?
¿Cuál ceguera crees que es peor la corporal o la spiritual
Después de responder las preguntas te invito a pensar en lo siguiente:
¿podrías cerrar tus ojos un momento?
¿Cómo te sientes cuando no puedes ver?
¿Te sientes bien?
¿Te sientes perdido?
¿Te sientes seguro? Ahora hagamos otro ejercicio. Imagina que Jesús está delante de ti y que tienes la oportunidad de pedirle lo que quieras?
¿Qué le pedirías?
En el evangelio de hoy vemos a un ciego, Bartimeo, que tuvo la oportunidad de estar delante de Jesús. Y Jesús le pregunta, que quieres que haga por ti y su respuesta fue «Maestro quiero ver? Jesús le dijo: «Vete, tu fe te ha salvado». Noten que lo más importante aquí es que inmediatamente recibió la vista se convirtió en seguidor de Jesús. Podríamos decir que este milagro no se trató solamente de la recuperación de la visión corporal sino de la reconstrucción total de una persona que al sentirse sanada no continuó con su vida anterior sino que se convirtió en seguidor de Jesús. Al recuperar la vista este ciego recibió reconoció a Jesús y decidió seguirlo.
Anterior al milagro, el ciego al escuchar que Jesús pasaba por el camino le gritó con insistencia que tuviera compasión de él y Jesús lo escuchó y pidió que lo llamaran y los que iban con Jesús lo llamaron para que se acercara a él.
Es importante mis queridos hermanos pedir la compasión de Dios y a veces hay que pedirla con insistencia hasta lograrla, pero es importante también reconocer que a veces Dios se vale de algunas personas para traernos a su presencia o para hacer visible el llamado que él nos hace, de ahí que sea importante preguntarnos hoy si somos capaces de reconocer el llamado que Dios nos hace a través de otras personas.
Queridos hermanos y hermanas, pensemos por un momento en cuántas personas hay en nuestras sociedades que, como Bartimeo, están sentadas al borde del camino mendigando para poder sobrevivir, esperando que alguien los escuche y deje sentir sobre ellos su misericordia. Pidamos la gracia de Dios para que como Jesús escuchemos el clamor de estos hermanos y nos acerquemos con amor y bondad a sanar sus corazones.
En la primera lectura, tomada del profeta Jeremías, escuchamos un maravilloso mensaje para el pueblo de Israel, una invitación a gritar de alegría y júbilo porque Dios sacó a su pueblo de la opresión en la que se encontraba en el exilio. De esta manera el profeta nos hace una invitación a alegrarnos sabiendo que Dios cuida de su pueblo, y está haciendo lo posible para liberarnos de cualquier situación que oprima nuestras vidas. Es por último una invitación a confiar en Dios porque Él es la fuente de nuestra felicidad, nuestro salvador. Las lecturas nos invitan a ver y a oír, a ver lo que sucede a nuestro alrededor y a escuchar los sufrimientos de la gente que está al
borde del camino pidiéndonos misericordia.
Que seamos como Jesús que pasó por el camino de Jericó llevando la vista al ciego que tanto la necesitaba.
Rev. Luis Segura M.S.C.—Pastor
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THIRTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Dear brothers and sisters, let me begin this reflection by sharing these questions with you:
Are you happy today?
What is the source of your happiness?
Is there any reason in your life to be sad? Have you ever been blind?
Which blindness do you think is worse, physical or spiritual?
After answering the questions, I invite you to think about the following:
Could you close your eyes for a moment?
How do you feel when you cannot see?
Do you feel well? Do you feel lost?
Do you feel safe?
Now let's do another exercise. Imagine that Jesus is in front of you and you have the opportunity to ask Him for whatever you want. What would you ask Him for?
In today's gospel we see a blind man, Bartimaeus, who had the opportunity to be in front of Jesus. And Jesus asks him, what do you want Him to do for you and his answer was "Master, I want to see?" Jesus said to him, “Go, your faith has saved you.”
Note that the most important thing here is that he immediately received his sight and became a follower of Jesus. We could say that this miracle was not only about the recovery of physical vision but about the total reconstruction of a person who, upon feeling healed, did not continue with his previous life but became a follower of Jesus. When this blind man regained his sight, he recognized Jesus and decided to follow him. Before the miracle, the blind man, upon hearing Jesus passing by, shouted insistently to have compassion on him and Jesus heard him and asked to be called and those who were with Jesus called him to come to him. It is important, my dear brothers, to ask for God's compassion, and sometimes we have to ask for it insistently until we achieve it, but it is also important to recognize that sometimes God uses some people to bring us into his presence or to make visible the call that he makes to us, so it is important to ask ourselves today if we are capable of recognizing the call that God makes to us through other people.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us think for a moment about how many people there are in our societies who, like Bartimaeus, are sitting on the side of the road begging in order to survive, waiting for someone to listen to them and let his mercy be felt upon them. Let us ask for God's grace so that, like Jesus, we may hear the cry of these brothers and sisters and approach with love and kindness to heal their hearts.
In the first reading, taken from the prophet Jeremiah, we hear a wonderful message for the people of Israel, an invitation to shout with joy and jubilation because God brought his people out of the oppression in which they found themselves in exile. In this way the prophet invites us to rejoice knowing that God cares for his people, and is doing everything possible to free us from any situation that oppresses our lives. It is ultimately an invitation to trust in God because He is the source of our happiness, our savior. The readings invite us to see and to hear, to see what is happening around us and to listen to the sufferings of the people who are on the side of the road asking us for mercy. May we be like Jesus who passed along the road to Jericho bringing sight to the blind man who so much needed it.
Rev. Luis Segura M.S.C.—Pastor
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Trusting in the Lord…
The Gospel of today’s Liturgy tells of Jesus who, when leaving Jericho, restores the sight of Bartimaeus, a blind man begging by the roadside (cf. Mk 10:46-52). It is an important encounter, the last one before the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem for the Passover. Bartimaeus had lost his sight, but not his voice! Indeed, when he heard that Jesus was about to pass by, he begins to cry out: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And he shouts and shouts. Annoyed by his shouting, the disciples and the crowd rebuke him to make him be quiet. But he shouts even louder: “Son of David, have mercy on me!”. Jesus hears, and immediately stops. God always listens to the cry of the poor and is not at all disturbed by Bartimaeus’ voice; rather, he realizes it is full of faith, a faith that is not afraid to insist, to knock on the door of God’s heart, despite not being understood and being reproached. And here lies the root of the miracle. Indeed, Jesus says to him: “Your faith has made you well” (v. 52).
Bartimaeus’ faith is evident from his prayer. It is not a timid and standard prayer. First and foremost, he calls the Lord “Son of David”: that is, he acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah, the King who would come into the world. Then he calls Him by name, confidently; “Jesus”. He is not afraid of Him, he does not stay at a distance. And thus, from the heart, he shouts out his entire drama to God, his friend: “Have mercy on me”! Just that prayer: “Have mercy on me”! He does not ask for some loose change as he does with passers-by. No. He asks for everything from the One who can do everything. He asks people for loose change; he asks everything from Jesus who can do everything. “Have mercy on me, have mercy on all that I am”. He does not ask for a grace, but presents himself: he asks for mercy on his person, on his life. It is not a small request, but it is very beautiful because it is a cry for mercy, that is, compassion, God’s mercy, his tenderness.
Bartimaeus does not use many words. His blindness was the tip of the iceberg; but there must have been wounds, humiliations, broken dreams, mistakes, remorse in his heart. He prayed with his heart. And what about us? When we ask for God’s grace, do we also include in our prayer our own history, our wounds, our humiliations, our broken dreams, our mistakes and our regrets?
Many of us, when we pray, do not believe that the Lord can work miracles. I am reminded of the story — which I have seen — of the father who was told by the doctors that his nine-year-old daughter would not survive the night; she was in hospital. And he took a bus and travelled to the Shrine of Our Lady. It was closed and, clinging to the gate, he spent the whole night praying: “Lord, save her! Lord, give her life”! He prayed to Our Lady all night long, crying out to God, crying out from his heart. Then in the morning, when he returned to the hospital, he found his wife weeping. And he thought: “She is dead”. And his wife said: “No one understands, no one understands, the doctors say it’s a strange thing, she seems to have healed”. The cry of that man who asked for everything was heard by the Lord who had given him everything. This is not a story: I saw this myself in the other diocese. Do we have this courage in prayer? Let us ask everything to the One who can give us everything, like Bartimaeus, who was a great teacher, a great teacher of prayer. May Bartimaeus, with his genuine, insistent and courageous faith, be an example for us.
And may Our Lady, the prayerful Virgin, teach us to turn to God with all our heart, confident that he listens attentively to every prayer. [Synthesized from Pope Francis, Angelus, 24 X 2021]
Fr. Rajesh M.S.C.
Deacon John's Homily - 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time
30th Sunday - B
“Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way…”
My friends, in today’s gospel, Jesus was on his journey to Jerusalem. Several times – he told his disciples that he was going there – where he would suffer and be put to death.
The Evangelist, Mark, tells us that Jesus was on the road from Jericho to Jerusalem. For Jesus – the end of the road was not far away. Jericho was only about 15 miles from Jerusalem and the feast of Passover was coming. The road from Jericho to Jerusalem was exceptionally crowded and very loud because thousands of Jews were talking while they walked on their way to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover.
When a Rabbi or teacher was on such a journey it was the custom that he was surrounded by a crowd of people, disciples and learners, who listened to him as he spoke while they walked. This particular journey was exceptionally crowded because many people were eager and curious to catch a glimpse of this bold young Galilean who dared to challenge the Orthodox religious leaders.
We know Jesus had many followers. We also know that the religious leaders were jealous and spiteful because Jesus’ teaching was contrary to their teaching. Jesus taught only love. The religious leaders taught the parts of the Law which benefited them – all the while lording their power over the people.
Even though Jesus often argued and challenged the religious leaders – he was a faithful Jew – traveling to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover – knowing things will not go well for him.
So, here we are – on the crowded, noisy road from Jericho to Jerusalem and the blind beggar, Bartimaeus, hears that Jesus in nearby. We don’t know how he learned about Jesus and his healings but he had faith to cry out to Jesus – in hopes that he too could be healed.
Bartimaeus’ crying out must have been so loud given the extremely crowded road with thousands of people talking. He cried out so loud that people tried to get him to stop. But he wouldn’t. He cried out even louder.
I can only imagine what was going on in Jesus’ mind at the time. He knew that he was on his way to be confronted by the religious leaders and he would suffer and be put to death. With all this going on – he stopped and wanted Bartimaeus to come to him so that he could ask him what he wanted. Talk about being present in the moment for someone else.
Bartimaeus’ faith was so strong that he immediately threw aside his cloak – probably his only possession – to go to Jesus. There begins a personal conversation:
“What do you want me to do for you ?”
“I want to see.”
"Go your way; your faith has saved you."
My Friends – this story is a wonderful summary of the stages of discipleship. Bartimaeus may have been a beggar by the roadside but he was a man of gratitude. Having received his sight, he followed Jesus. He did not selfishly go on his way when his need was met. He began with need, went on to gratitude, and finished with loyalty.
Based on this Gospel Reading – how can I apply it to my life today ? How can I use Bartimaeus as an example or mentor or model in my life ?
These questions come to mind:
· What are my needs ?
· What do I want to see – or understand ?
· Do I have faith enough to trust that Jesus to help me see or understand – or do I try to go it alone, using my own knowledge or intuition ?
· When my need is met – do I acknowledge that it was Jesus that helped me to see ?
· Do I thank him – and remember that blessing and allow it to change me forever ?
· Or – once my need is met – do I go on with my life as it was before ?
There are some verses which are striking:
Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called the blind man, saying to him,
"Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you." (Do I have courage when Jesus calls me ? “)
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus.
May we all have the courage of Bartimaeus and spring up and go to Jesus…
Our parish is staffed by the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (M.S.C.)