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Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

January 25, 2026

Fr. John Colacino C.PP.S.

Introit

Collect

Almighty ever-living God,
direct our actions according to your good pleasure,
that in the name of your beloved Son
we may abound in good works.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (RM)

First Reading Isaiah 8:23--9:3

There will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time the Lord brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness — on them light has shone. You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder.

For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.

Responsorial Psalm 27:1,4,13-14

R/. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Second Reading 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17

I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose.

For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”

Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the Gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom so that the Cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.

For the message about the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Gospel Acclamation

Gospel Matthew 4:12-17

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what had been spoken through the Prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”

From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

Catena Nova

Let none of us who see other people giving up great possessions say to ourselves, ‘I should like to imitate people like these who have such contempt for the world, but I have nothing to give up.’ You give up much if you give up the desire to possess. The Lord looks at your heart, not your fortune; he considers the love that prompts your offering, not its amount. If we’re going to weigh material goods, our holy traders gave their nets and boats to purchase the eternal life of the angels. The real value of that is beyond price, but for you its price is just what you possess…. For Peter and Andrew it was worth the value of their nets and boat…. As I said, the kingdom of God costs whatever you have. (Pope St. Gregory the Great)

Let anyone truly possessed by the love of Christ keep his commandments. Who can express the binding power of divine love? Who can find words for the splendour of its beauty? Beyond all description are the heights to which it lifts us. Love unites us to God; it cancels innumerable sins, has no limits to its endurance, bears everything patiently. Love is neither servile nor arrogant. It does not provoke schisms or form cliques, but always acts in harmony with others. By it all God’s chosen ones have been sanctified; without it, it is impossible to please him. Out of love the Lord took us to himself; because he loved us and it was God’s will, our Lord Jesus Christ gave his life’s blood for us – he gave his body for our body, his soul for our soul. (St. Clement of Rome)

All through our life Christ is calling us. He called us first in Baptism; but afterwards also; whether we obey his voice or not, he graciously calls us still. If we fall from our Baptism, he calls us to repent; if we are striving to fulfill our calling, he calls us on from grace to grace, and from holiness to holiness, while life is given us. Abraham was called from his home, Peter from his nets, Matthew from his office, Elisha from his farm, Nathanael from his retreat; we are all in course of calling, on and on, from one thing to another, having no resting-place, but mounting towards our eternal rest, and obeying one command only to have another put upon us. He calls us again and again, in order to justify us again and again,—and again and again, and more and more, to sanctify and glorify us. (St. John Henry Newman)

Worship at its best is a social experience with people of all levels of life coming together to realize their oneness and unity under God. Whenever the church, consciously or unconsciously caters to one class it loses the spiritual force of the “whosoever will, let him come, doctrine and is in danger of becoming a little more than a social club with a thin veneer of religiosity. (Martin Luther King Jr.)

Each one of us has some kind of vocation. We are all called by God to share in His life and in His Kingdom. Each one of us is called to a special place in the Kingdom. If we find that place we will be happy. If we do not find it, we can never be completely happy. For each one of us, there is only one thing necessary: to fulfill our own destiny, according to God’s will, to be what God wants us to be. (Thomas Merton)

We should ever be grateful for and love the vocation to which God has called us. This applies to every vocation because, after all, what a privilege it is to serve God, even in the least capacity! (Bl. Solanus Casey)

The restoration of unity among Christians does not make us poorer; on the contrary, it enriches us. As at Nicaea, this goal will only be possible through a patient, long and sometimes difficult journey of mutual listening and acceptance. It is a theological challenge and, even more so, a spiritual challenge, which requires repentance and conversion on the part of all. For this reason, we need the spiritual ecumenism of prayer, praise and adoration, as expressed by the Creed of Nicaea and Constantinople. (Pope Leo XIV)

Homily

They call us 315ers. That’s an area code that covers much of Central New York State, including Wayne County. The term is, let’s face it, derisive. It suggests coming from a rather unsophisticated background; the word “rube” comes to mind. And yes, I’m one of them. From a little place called Newark. If people ask me though, I usually say “I’m from a little town between Rochester and Syracuse.” That makes it easier on people who’ve only heard of Newark, New Jersey. It’s all relative, of course. If you go to New York City and say you’re from Rochester, you might have to explain where that is too. It’s simpler just to say “Upstate” for those who can’t locate anyplace beyond Westchester County.

I suppose it’s like being from the Land of Zebulun, and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan (G). That’s where Jesus was from. Zebulun and Naphtali were two of Jacob’s twelve sons. And when they divided up the Promised Land among their descendants, their tribes were given a chunk of Upstate Palestine. Which wasn’t so great. ‘Cause for one thing, they were close to Israel’s great enemy, Syria, which invaded the region in the time of Isaiah -- when it became, in the prophet’s words, the land of gloom (I).

By Jesus’ time, a lot of pagans dwelled in the region. And the presence of so many unbelievers earned it the name Galilee of the Gentiles. So the city folk “downstate” in Jerusalem looked askance at people from the north. Galileans were suspect in their eyes ‘cause they rubbed elbows with too many foreigners. That’s one reason why Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee, was never accepted by the establishment in Jerusalem. He could never be Messiah material, so they thought. One of his first disciples, Nathaniel, scoffed at the very notion anything good could come from Nazareth (Jn. 1:46).

God, of course, cares little about your hometown, your family background, your education, or how much you have in your retirement accounts. What’s more, if you read the Bible, you’ll see how God often favors what the world considers useless and absurd. And that’s hard to accept, isn’t it? Especially in a world like ours that values precisely those things God doesn’t have much use for. And we Christians find God’s ways just as hard to comprehend as anyone else, don’t we?

Just look at the people of Corinth. Even though Paul tells us not many of them were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth (1 Cor. 1:26), they were still on the lookout for someone special to lead them. Celebrity and talent dazzled them. They even formed fan clubs, devoted to those they thought more important in God’s eyes. Some preferred Peter who, after all, was Jesus’ chief apostle. Others took to Apollos, who was learned and eloquent. Still others thought Paul was best, ‘cause he had those amazing visions of heavenly things.

It seems the people of Corinth forgot that Peter was a fisherman from Galilee who denied the Lord three times, and Paul was a tentmaker from Tarsus who persecuted the Church. As for Apollos, well, the wisdom of human eloquence can sometimes empty the cross of Christ…of its meaning (II). And the cross is the surest sign God couldn’t care less for human achievements.

That’s why Paul wrote his letter to the Corinthians: to remind them how God works. How God chooses the foolish of the world to shame the wise, [how] God chooses the weak of the world to shame the strong, and [how] God chooses the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God (cf. 1 Cor. 1:27-29). Like Jesus’ choice of Galilean fishermen to be his first disciples: Hardly the kind of people you’d find walking around the temple precincts in Jerusalem.

So if you think God doesn’t have much in store for you while you’re busy casting your nets -- whether cooking dinner, or driving to the office, or doing your homework -- think again. The Lord’s likely to come ‘a calling, right then and there. And you’ve got to be ready on a moment’s notice. Just like Peter and Andrew who left their nets at once and followed him. Just as James and his brother John did who immediately left their boat and their father and followed him (cf. G).

And who knows what you might have to leave behind to follow the Lord? Maybe some sin long clung to, or a cherished grudge, or a simmering prejudice, or some earthly attachment. Or perhaps some inflated notion of one’s own importance, or the bragging rights over some achievement, or how well you’re doing compared to the Jonses next door: Any of those things we think make us matter -- but are little more than window dressing in God’s sight. In other words, whatever we might have in our nets that we must let go of -- not looking back -- to become the disciples Jesus calls us to be. For the kingdom of heaven is at hand (G). Where the Father lives and reigns with the Son, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen.

Intercessions (Joe Milner; The Sunday Website)

For the Church: that we may have the freedom to leave everything and follow Jesus’ call to serve the reign of God.

For healing in Christian communities: that those who are experiencing struggles and rivalries may allow the Spirit to touch their hearts and transform their minds so that the Body of Christ may be one in serving and praising God.

For a spirit of hope: that all who find themselves struggling with fear or anxiety about the future, may be renewed in mind and spirit with a vision of life and wholeness.

For all who feel caught in the darkness of depression or addiction: that the light of God’s love will guide them to freedom and a new beginning.

For all who are unjustly detained or deprived of freedom: that they may be freed unharmed and return to their communities and loved ones.

For all who are suffering from violence or who have become refugees: that God will protect them from harm, guide them to food and shelter, and open the hearts of many to assist them.

For greater stewardship of natural resources: that God will guide us in balancing and harmonizing our activities with resources that God has entrusted to us.

For the members of the United States Senate: that the Spirit will give them wisdom, help them to recognize the truth, and give them courage.

For all who are ill: that the Spirit will ease their suffering, bring encouragement through the care of the Christian community, and restore them to wholeness.

For peace: that the Spirit will bring forth a new commitment to justice and peace in the hearts of world leaders.

God of salvation, the splendour of your glory dispels the darkness of earth, for in Christ we behold the nearness of your kingdom. Now make us quick to follow where he beckons, eager to embrace the tasks of the gospel. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. (ICEL; 1998)

Offertory Antiphon

Offertory Anthem (John Rutter)

Arise, shine; for thy light is come,
and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.
For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
and gross darkness the people:
but the Lord shall arise upon thee,
and his glory shall be seen upon thee.
And the Gentiles shall come to thy light,
and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
Lift up thine eyes round about, and see:
all they gather themselves together, they come to thee:
thy sons shall come from far,
and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.
The sun shall be no more thy light by day;
neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee:
but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light,
and thy God thy glory.

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