[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”7px|||||” border_width_top=”1px” border_color_top=”#ededed” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” width=”79.9%” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.24.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Title” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”15px” header_font=”|700||on|||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#ffc700″ custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
Twentieth Sunday In Ordinary Time<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”tagline” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”|||on|||||” text_font_size=”15px” text_letter_spacing=”1px” header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
\u00a0SET THE EARTH ON FIRE<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”1.PRAYER” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 1.PRAYER<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Jesus, you came to set the world on fire\u2014not with destruction, but with love that disrupts and truth that challenges. As we gather, stir that fire in us. Burn away fear and comfort. Light in us the courage to speak up, show up, and stand firm in your name. Amen.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”2. SHARING YOUR STORY” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 2. <\/b>SHARING YOUR STORY<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Can you share a time when speaking up for what you believed\u2014especially around justice or compassion\u2014caused tension or pushback in your relationships or community? What gave you the courage to keep going?<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”3. STORIES AROUND THE GLOBE” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 3. STORIES AROUND THE GLOBE<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Screenshot-2025-07-28-at-8.38.48-AM.png” title_text=”Screenshot 2025-07-28 at 8.38.48\u202fAM” force_fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”caption” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||20px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Father Marina (in white) with family members (Courtesy of Alejandro Marina\/Argentina)<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.2″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Father Alejandro Marina, raised in a devout Catholic family in Buenos Aires, was inspired by his sister\u2019s missionary work and the martyrdom of four churchwomen in El Salvador\u2014two of them Maryknoll sisters. Their witness awakened his call to serve. At 19, he chose the priesthood, knowing it meant leaving his family and the world he knew. Driven by a desire to transform lives and confront injustice, he served in Cuba, where religion had been silenced. There, he built small Christian communities and offered catechesis to adults encountering faith for the first time. Later, he was invited to Cochabamba, Bolivia, and encountered Maryknoll. Drawn by a strong desire to deepen his mission\u2014even if it meant once again leaving the familiar\u2014he joined Maryknoll and committed to training new missioners. Through education, leadership formation, and ecological outreach, he now helps lead a center rooted in justice and compassion, embodying a Gospel vision of peace through transformation.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”4. GOSPEL STORY” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 4. <\/strong>GOSPEL STORY<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Jesus said to his disciples: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 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.” Luke 12:49-53<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”5. REFLECTION ON THE READINGS” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 5. <\/b>REFLECTION ON THE READINGS<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Jesus\u2019 words in this Gospel aren\u2019t meant to comfort\u2014they\u2019re meant to ignite. The fire he brings isn\u2019t about destruction but about transformation. It\u2019s the fire of justice, truth, and prophetic love\u2014powerful enough to disrupt even our closest relationships when we start to live it out. For missionary disciples, this is a wake-up call: following Jesus means stepping into the kind of love that doesn\u2019t play it safe. When you speak up for the marginalized, challenge the status quo, or work for a world that looks more like God\u2019s dream, not everyone will applaud. Division will come\u2014not because you seek it, but because truth shakes foundations. Jesus isn’t asking us to seek conflict but to not back down from it when the Gospel demands courage. The fire he lights is meant to blaze through our comfort zones and set the world ablaze with compassion, justice, and bold hope.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”6. FAITH SHARING” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 6. <\/b>FAITH SHARING<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n How is the Spirit inviting you and your community, to step out of your comfort zone, to be bold, and to stand up for someone in need, on the margins, or who is facing injustice?<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”7. GO FORTH” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 7. <\/b>GO FORTH<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.26.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n This week, choose one place where you feel called to take a bold stand\u2014whether it’s for a person, a cause, or a truth that matters. Then take one concrete step: have a hard conversation, attend a community meeting, volunteer, or write to a local leader. Even a small act of courage can spark the kind of fire Jesus calls us to light in the world.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”8. PRAYER” _builder_version=”4.25.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_font_size=”26px” background_color=”#FFFFFF” custom_padding=”22px|22px|22px|22px|false|false” border_radii=”on|6px|6px|6px|6px” border_width_all=”2px” border_color_all=”#FFC700″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n 8. <\/b>PRAYER<\/b><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.26.0″ _module_preset=”default” custom_padding=”||1px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n God of bold love, thank you for unsettling our hearts and waking us up. As we go, keep the fire alive in us\u2014make us brave in the face of division, faithful in the work of justice, and grounded in your relentless compassion. Amen.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Aug 17, 2025<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"featured_image_src":"","blog_images":{"medium":"","large":""},"acf":[],"ams_acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1119"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1124,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1119\/revisions\/1124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maryknollsociety.org\/guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}