I think that if the Church could in any way be compared to a restaurant where people come to be fed, it would be more like this pizza place I visited: Carry-Out only. The Gospel that is proclaimed every Sunday at Mass should not only be heard and commented on (“Nice homily Father” or “I enjoyed the choir”) but also heeded and carried out!

Moses said to the people in the first reading: “If only you would heed the voice of the Lord, Your God and keep his commandments” (Deuteronomy 30:10). In the Old Testament God told the people to eat the Passover meal with their loins girt and their belts fastened. That is, to eat like a people in flight with an urgent task to fulfill.

Our “Daily Bread,” then, is not only for our daily sustenance but for our daily feeding of others! God intends that the Good News be “taken out” beyond our comfort zones; beyond the walls of our churches into the lives of our neighbors. Today’s parable of the Good Samaritan who comes to the aid of a man in need is not just a nice story to inspire us; it is a mandate to be CARRIED OUT!