Br. Joe Trout, OP breaks open the readings for the Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time. First, the prophet Isaiah tells a people who were suffering in darkness that God will send a messiah to save them. In the Gospel, Jesus does the things that show that he is the promised messiah, though he does not want everyone to know yet. Then, the second reading is from the Letter of James, a "brother" of Jesus, who does not claim to be the new messiah to carry on Jesus' work. Rather, James claims that Jesus is still alive and is alone the messiah, and is working though him to keep bringing about the kingdom.

Readings: Isaiah 35:4–7a; James 2:1–5; Mark 7:31–37