Today’s gospel could be titled, “How soon they forget.”

Years ago, a priest told his Sunday assembly: “Two things keep you Catholic: Mary and the pope.” What I suspect he meant was that Catholicism is distinguishable from Protestantism—or any other system for that matter—by its allegiances and authorities.

Recently, I got a call from someone I never expected to hear from again. He and I had a bad falling out many years ago. I wasn’t sorry about what I said and did back then—I felt I had been wronged. He wasn’t sorry either and felt he had been wronged.

A group of foreigners washed up on the shore. Sick, starving immigrants. Religious refugees fleeing persecution. The people who already lived there, who had lived there for a very long time, could have easily sent them back, ignored them, and let them suffer, or even killed them.

Brothers and sisters, let us prepare ourselves to receive the goodness of the Lord, by calling to mind our sins.

If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.