Jesus addresses the lack of faith on the part of the religious leaders who did not put faith in John the Baptist as he preached a baptism of repentance. They have branded the Baptizer as a lunatic simply because of his countercultural lifestyle. He depended entirely on God by clothing himself and feeding himself from the fruits of nature. Camel’s hair was his clothing, and wild locusts and grasshoppers were his staple diet. His core message was repentance of sins, and he presented his stirring message by his austere lifestyle.

Neither do the religious leaders put faith in Jesus who likewise preaches repentance of sins with emphasis on the mercy of God. He points out the reality of God’s Kingdom that has already been inaugurated and has already swept the countryside. Sick people are healed, dead men are raised to life, evil spirits are driven away. Sinners receive forgiveness, and those condemned by society as hopeless cases receive a new chance in life. Jesus does not hesitate to mingle with those branded as public sinners, and he even enlists a number of them to be his disciples. Yet his invitation to “dance” is being refused by his detractors even as they refused John’s call to “weep” in repentance of sins. His detractors are like spoiled children who refuse to join their playmates, people who turn a deaf ear to God’s message of salvation.

First Reading • 1 Tm 3:14-16

Beloved: I am writing you, although I hope to visit you soon. But if I should be delayed, you should know how to behave in the household of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth. Undeniably great is the mystery of devotion, Who was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed to the Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory.

Responsorial Psalm • Ps 111

“How great are the works of the Lord!”

Gospel • Luke 7:31-35

Jesus said to the crowds: “To what shall I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance. We sang a dirge, but you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist came neither eating food nor drinking wine, and you said, ‘He is possessed by a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said, ‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”