How Long? Mass Reading and Reflection for Sunday, October 5, 2025

First Reading: Habakkuk 1:2–3; 2:2–4

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 95:1–2, 6–9
Response: If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts.

Second Reading: 2 Timothy 1:6–8, 13–14
Alleluia: 1 Peter 1:25 — The word of the Lord remains forever. This is the word that has been proclaimed to you.
Gospel: Luke 17:5–10

Reflection

In an age when news of tragedy and violence reaches us instantly, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and lose hope. Habakkuk’s cry, “How long, O Lord?” (Habakkuk 1:2), echoes the questions of many hearts today. Yet God responds with a message of patience and faith: “The just one, because of his faith, shall live” (Habakkuk 2:4).

Who among us hasn’t prayed those words in our own way? We look at the suffering of the world, or at the pain in our own lives, and we ask, “Where are You, God? Why don’t You act?”

This cry comes from our limited human perspective, from the small window of understanding we possess. We see so little of the vast story God is writing. It’s as if we’ve found one torn-out page of a thousand-page novel and, after reading it, declared that the book makes no sense.

Faith is trusting that the Author knows the full story, even when our page is filled with confusion, pain, or silence.

Saint Paul, in his letter to Timothy, reminds us that “God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7). Faith, then, is not a passive feeling but a living force, one that strengthens us to serve, love, and persevere, even when the world feels heavy.

Jesus teaches that even faith the size of a mustard seed (Luke 17:6) has the power to transform. It may seem small, but true faith works quietly, humbly, and powerfully. Like the saints, Vincent de Paul, Teresa of Kolkata, and Dorothy Day, we are called to unite prayer and service. Their faith inspired not only their words but their deeds.

Let us, too, pray with confidence and act with compassion. Let our small acts of faith become seeds that grow into love, hope, and renewal in our world.

These readings remind us of who we are: servants of God.

As servants, our purpose is to be faithful and dutiful, to serve without expectation of reward.

In our world today, service has often become transactional. People ask, “What will you give me?” before offering help. Even in our homes and churches, the spirit of service is sometimes overshadowed by the desire for payment or recognition.

But true service, the kind God calls us to, is done with humility and joy, even when no one sees or thanks us. Our service to God should not depend on what we get in return. Whether we are praised or not, blessed or not, rewarded or not, we must serve faithfully, for that is our duty as children of God.

St. Peter tells us to serve “not for sordid gain, but eagerly.”
Our motivation must be love, love for God and love for one another. A true servant’s heart finds peace in doing what is right, even when unseen.

And alongside our duty to serve, we are called to live by faith.
The apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith, thinking they needed more of it. But Jesus teaches that the smallest faith, faith as tiny as a mustard seed, is enough to move mountains. Faith is not about quantity but quality; not about how much we have, but how deep and genuine it is.

There is a story of a mother whose child was born with a severe heart defect.
With no money and no medical knowledge, she clung to her rosary and her faith. Doctors predicted her child would not live past his second birthday. Yet she said, “I do not know what tomorrow holds, but I know who holds tomorrow.”

Her faith carried her through years of fear, and her son lived far beyond the doctors’ expectations.

Faith gives us strength when logic fails, courage when fear overwhelms us, and hope when all seems lost.
Like the prophet Habakkuk, we too may cry, “How long, O Lord?” when we see injustice, pain, or unanswered prayers. Yet God calls us to live by faith, trusting that His time and His ways are perfect.

So today, we reflect on our lives:

• What mountain stands before us?

• What burden seems too heavy to carry?

• What situation feels impossible to move?

Bring it to God in faith.
You do not need to know how or when He will act, only that He will.
Surrender it to Him, trust Him, and rekindle that gift of faith within you.

For it is not about the size of your faith, but the power of the One in whom you place it.
Serve Him faithfully, live by faith, and let your mustard seed move mountains.

Amen.

Have a wonderful day.

-Pal Ronnie-