Friends, welcome to Word on Fire Catholic Ministries. Word on Fire is an

apostolate dedicated to the mission of evangelization using media both old and

new to share the faith on every continent and to facilitate an encounter with

Christ and His Church. The efforts of Word on Fire engage the culture and bring

the transformative power of God's Word where it is most needed. Today we invite

you to join Bishop Robert Barron as he preaches the gospel and shares the

warmth and light of Christ with each one of us.

Peace be with you. Friends, I want to continue my focus on the old testament

reading because we have a marvelous one today from the 58th chapter of the

prophet Isaiah. It's our first reading for this weekend. This final part of Isaiah,

the scholars tell us was written after the return of the captives from Babylon.

When Israel was once again trying to find its way and so we find in these

last chapters some very practical spiritual advice. The prophet commences with

the consistent and bracing moral teaching of Israel. Listen, thus says the Lord,

share your bread with the hungry, shelter the oppressed and the homeless,

clothe the naked when you see them. You know, I love about this. No room here for

gassy abstractions about the poor or social justice. I'm not making fun of

that in itself but I think we can so easily kind of hide under the shelter of

those abstractions. What we find here instead are very concrete,

disturbingly concrete demands. Things that must be done, not just attitude that

should be assumed. You know, it's it's that hungry person right now whom you see.

What are you doing for him or her? That homeless person right now. What are you doing?

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