31st Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C) Oct. 30 (Wisdom 11:23-12:2; Psalm 145; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-2:2; Luke 19:1-10)

It is easy to feel insignificant while gazing up at a starry night or looking at photos of countless galaxies taken from the Hubble telescope. We could come away with the feeling that we don’t count for much.

Sometimes everything can seem right on the surface while, deep down, nothing is right at all. We see this, for example, in the famous parable in the Gospels about the Prodigal Son and his older brother. By every outward appearance the older brother is doing everything right: He’s perfectly obedient to his father, is at home and is doing everything his father asks of him. And, unlike his younger brother, he’s not wasting his father’s property on prostitutes and partying. He seems a model of generosity and morality.