Fri, 5 September ‘25
Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time, Friday
Saint Teresa of Calcutta, Memorial
Colossians 1:15-20. Luke 5:33-39
Christ at the Centre, Love as the Wine of the Kingdom
1. Christ: The Image of the Invisible God
Scripture: Paul proclaims Christ as “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation” (Col 1:15). All things were created through Him and for Him, and in Him all things hold together (vv. 16–17).
Church’s Teaching: Vatican II (Gaudium et Spes 22) teaches that Christ reveals not only God but also the full truth of humanity.
Pastoral Application: If Christ is the centre of creation and the Church, He must also be the centre of our lives. When we place Him first, everything else—work, family, ministry—finds its order and meaning.
2. New Wine, New Life
Scripture: Jesus responds to questions about fasting with an image: “No one puts new wine into old wineskins” (Lk 5:37). The presence of Christ is the new wine—bringing joy, renewal, and transformation.
Church’s Teaching: The Catechism (CCC 2011) reminds us that grace is God’s free initiative, making us “new creations” in Christ.
Pastoral Application: Faith is not clinging to old ways but allowing Christ to renew us with His Spirit. Am I holding onto old “wineskins” of fear, selfishness, or bitterness? Or do I allow the Lord to stretch me, making me a vessel for His joy and love?
3. Mother Teresa: Christ in the Distressing Disguise of the Poor
Witness: Saint Teresa of Calcutta saw Christ at the centre of all, especially in “the poorest of the poor.” She said, “Each one of them is Jesus in disguise.” Her life was a living witness of Colossians 1:20—Christ reconciling all things by His blood.
Integration with Gospel: Mother Teresa poured out the “new wine” of Christ’s love in slums, hospices, and streets, creating new hope where others saw only despair.
Pastoral Application: To honour her memory is to imitate her simplicity: loving without measure, serving without expecting return, and recognizing Christ in those who seem least valuable in the world’s eyes.
Conclusion
Paul presents Christ as the centre of all creation; Jesus speaks of new wine that transforms life; Mother Teresa shows us what it means to let Christ’s love overflow into the poorest. Today’s Word calls us to root our lives in Christ, let Him renew us, and pour ourselves out in humble service—so that the world may taste the wine of God’s Kingdom.
Fr. Yesu Karunanidhi
Archdiocese of Madurai
Missionary of Mercy
Yesu Karunanidhi 
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