Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle C

“God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.” - Psalms 68

“Heaven is for the hungry, the thirsty, and the humble.”

I heard this line at daily Mass this past week and it stayed with me. It reminded me that no matter how much I have in this life, I will always have an ache in my heart that cannot be filled or satisfied by anyone or anything but the Lord.

“The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to himself.” - CCC 27

Being a Christian means, at a fundamental level, that we understand we are spiritually poor and completely destitute without Jesus. We would all be condemned by our sins if it were not for Jesus. 

Think about the worst thing you have ever done or could possibly do. Then think about the consequences of that choice, the pain it caused (or would cause). Now imagine Jesus looking at you and saying, “I will take the blame so you do not have to. I love you and I want you to be free to make better choices and live a better life.”

That is what the cross means for our salvation. The Responsorial Psalm this weekend comes from Psalms 68. a powerful hymn of God’s majesty and care for his people, especially the vulnerable: “God, in your goodness, you have made a home for the poor.”

It reflects the experience of the Jewish people being torn from their homes and brought into exile. They lost everything because they turned away from the Lord, and yes the Lord rescued them and brought them back to the Promised Land. 

Hundreds of years before exile, the Jews were enslaved by the Egyptians, and yet God came and rescued them, setting them free and fulfilling His promises to them to bring them to a new home, a land flowing with milk and honey. 

This home, however, was merely a glimmer of our true home. Our home cannot be found anywhere on Earth, because our home is in Heaven with the Lord for all eternity.

“Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” - Philippians 3:20

Our hearts long for Heaven. We can search everywhere and attempt to fill that longing with many other things—relationships, career, money, power, honor, status, sex, drugs, alcohol, food—but they will always leave us wanting more. 

“God alone satisfies.” - St. Thomas Aquinas

Let us not forget how desperately we need the Lord, and how he has rescued us in order to bring us back home. We cannot mistakenly believe that we can earn our way into God’s favor. He loves us simply because he made us and we are His. He is a loving Father with an infinite heart who simply wants to provide for His children and bring them back home.

We are so poor, we have nothing on our own that translates to any spiritual merit. But with the Lord, we are rich in all things that matter, and we will never go hungry again.

If you are starving, searching, or lost, remember who has the food of everlasting life.

I am praying for you, please pray for me and my family, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, August 31st, 2025, the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle C: Psalms 68:4-5, 6-7, 10-11.