GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 8:51-59

Jesus said to the Jews:

“Amen, amen, I say to you,

whoever keeps my word will never see death.”

So the Jews said to him,

“Now we are sure that you are possessed.

Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say,

‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’

Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died?

Or the prophets, who died?

Who do you make yourself out to be?”

Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is worth nothing;

but it is my Father who glorifies me,

of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’

You do not know him, but I know him.

And if I should say that I do not know him,

I would be like you a liar.

But I do know him and I keep his word.

Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day;

he saw it and was glad.”

So the Jews said to him,

“You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?”

Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you,

before Abraham came to be, I AM.”

So they picked up stones to throw at him;

but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.

The word of the Lord

To Remain in the Truth

We have a beautiful Eucharistic hymn (Adorote Devote) that says:

“…When judging of You, sight, touch, and taste are all deceived; but only by hearing can one believe with certainty. I believe all that the Son of God has spoken: nothing is more true than this Word of truth…”

Because of the hardness of our hearts when we hear the word of God, we insist on seeing, feeling, and tasting in order to believe what He tells us. Yet it should be enough simply to hear, believing firmly with the heart that sees, feels, and tastes inwardly. The Gospel may seem always the same to us, but when we pause even briefly each time we read the same passage, the Lord speaks to us and reveals something new on every occasion.

Through His word, God first spoke to us about the union between man and woman, and later Christ directs us back to the beginning, emphasising the importance of the Word, His unity with the Father, and confirming marriage as an indissoluble sacrament. We may find many answers, but none of them is valid if it leads us away from the will of God.

Applied to married life 

Mary: I’ve just heard that Marta and Roberto want to separate. It seems things haven’t been going well for them for quite some time.

Albert: Maybe it’s better for both of them. Better to separate and be happy than to stay together just for the sake of it.

Mary: Do you really think that? I married you convinced it was for life, no matter what happened.

Albert: Yes, me too — but we’re not Marta and Roberto.

Mary: It would be good to try talking to them. We can’t just look the other way as if nothing were happening, don’t you think?

Albert: You’re right. I’m sorry — I don’t know what I was thinking, speaking like that. The Lord has given married couples the grace to overcome any situation, however uncomfortable it may seem.

Mary: Now that’s the husband I married. I’m going to call Marta so we can meet today without fail.

Albert: But tell her the four of us should meet. We need to be a light for them and encourage them to come out of the situation they’re in, however difficult it may seem to them.

Mary: If you agree, let’s pray for a while before we see them, so that in the light of the Gospel the Lord may give us the words to help them and shed light on their marriage.

Albert: You’re absolutely right. What better truth than the one we receive through the Word of God. I’ll get the Gospel and we’ll start straight away.

Mother,

Help us to find and to share the message of love of your Son through the word of God. Praised be God.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God

to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,

to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,

of the house of David,

and the virgin’s name was Mary.

And coming to her, he said,

“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”

But she was greatly troubled at what was said

and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel said to her,

“Do not be afraid, Mary,

for you have found favour with God.

Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,

and you shall name him Jesus.

He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,

and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,

and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,

and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel,

“How can this be,

since I have no relations with a man?”

And the angel said to her in reply,

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,

and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.

Therefore the child to be born

will be called holy, the Son of God.

And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,

has also conceived a son in her old age,

and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;

for nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.

May it be done to me according to your word.”

Then the angel departed from her.

The word of the Lord

Always Yes

We have reached the end of Lent, and as the mystery of the Cross draws near, this Gospel appears like an oasis in the desert. We contemplate the Annunciation as a great light that teaches us how to live the Cross. Our Lady’s Yes was neither naïve nor easy. Mary knew the Scriptures, and she knew that the path of the Messiah would pass through suffering. Even so, when the angel visited her, and without understanding everything, she responded with openness and trust: “Let it be done to me according to your word.” Mary knew that this Yes would involve pain, that a sword would pierce her mother’s heart, and yet she surrendered herself and accepted that God’s will be fulfilled in her.

The Lord also visits us in our daily lives—often in joy, but at other times through the Cross, in circumstances we do not understand, in difficulties, trials, moments of darkness… God speaks to us through the events of life and awaits our response, our trust in Him and in His plan for our marriage. How delicate God is: He does not impose Himself; He wishes to be welcomed and waits for our availability. Mary’s Yes allowed God to become incarnate in the world, and our small daily yes allows Jesus to become “incarnate” in some way in our ordinary life. Lord, who am I that you should want to count on me? Who am I that you should wish to share even a little of your Cross with me? From this sense of wonder, and united with Mary, we want to say to you: “Let your plan be fulfilled in our lives.”

Applied to married life:

Alicia: (in tears) Sam, the doctor was very clear… we can’t have children.

Sam: I still had hope, but after doing everything within our reach according to God’s law, when he said it, it felt like a stab inside.

Alicia: But how can this be? We always imagined a house full of children… we have so much love to give them…

Sam: It seems our life won’t be as we had imagined. It’s going to be very hard to accept that God has other plans… Perhaps He’s asking of us a different kind of fruitfulness, that we become spiritual parents to many souls, helping so many marriages to be born and to grow, marriages that need to discover God’s love…

Alicia: Now is when we must remember that nothing escapes God, that He allows everything for our sanctification, for our union with Him… that He is our Father, that everything about us matters to Him, and that even the hairs on our head are counted…

Sam: The Lord is visiting us through this cross. Lord, what are you coming to do in our hearts?

Alicia: Let’s unite ourselves to Mary; let’s offer her this immense pain so that she may present it to the Lord. And if you agree, let’s pray with trust, as Jesus and Mary did.

Sam: Lord, we unite our pain to yours. If you will, take this cup away from us, but not our will—yours be done.

Alicia: Let it be done in us according to Your Word. Amen.

Mother,

help us and teach us to say Yes to God always, as you did — with trust in Nazareth and with faithfulness at the foot of the Cross. Blessed and praised are you for ever!

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 8:21-30

Jesus said to the Pharisees:

“I am going away and you will look for me,

but you will die in your sin.

Where I am going you cannot come.”

So the Jews said,

“He is not going to kill himself, is he,

because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’?”

He said to them, “You belong to what is below,

I belong to what is above.

You belong to this world,

but I do not belong to this world.

That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.

For if you do not believe that I AM,

you will die in your sins.”

So they said to him, “Who are you?”

Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning.

I have much to say about you in condemnation.

But the one who sent me is true,

and what I heard from him I tell the world.”

They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.

So Jesus said to them,

“When you lift up the Son of Man,

then you will realize that I AM,

and that I do nothing on my own,

but I say only what the Father taught me.

The one who sent me is with me.

He has not left me alone,

because I always do what is pleasing to him.”

Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.

The word of the Lord

Do you want your husband/wife to be converted?

“When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that ‘I am’.”

The Lord tells us that it will be when He is lifted up on the cross that His identity will be revealed. On the cross.

Where do we believe that we reveal Jesus Christ?

When we speak about Him to others?

When we tell our husband what he ought to do in order to get things right?

When we help on a retreat or give catechesis?

But He points us to the cross. To love on the cross.

Nothing will reveal Jesus Christ in us more than loving in difficulty. Not even miracles, nor the most impressive preaching.

Do you want your husband or wife to be converted and believe?

Love him on the cross — love him when he doesn’t realise you need him, love him when he forgets to do what you asked, love him when he speaks to you harshly, love him…

Let yourself be lifted up with Christ on the cross, being a light of love in the midst of darkness. Only by continuing to love to the very end, united to Jesus, will His Heart and His divinity shine through you. And then, with God’s help, you will have prepared the way so that, seeing divine love in you, he may believe.

Applied to married life:

Elizabeth: Paul and kids, dinner’s ready!

Paul: I’m coming, Elizabeth…

Elizabeth: Come on, kids, set the table and do your little jobs.

Elizabeth thinks: It’s already nine o’clock and the children and I have been waiting for him for half an hour… Paul, come on, dinner’s ready!

Paul: Again? I said I’m coming… I’ve got loads of work, can’t you see? You’re so impatient!

Elizabeth: This is the moment when I need to keep calm, and understand that he’s stressed and tired from the demands of his job. Holy Spirit, help me, because on my own I can’t…Whenever you’re ready, love.

Paul: I heard you the first time…

Elizabeth: How hard this is for me… but this is the moment to understand him and love him.

Love, I made the meat with the sauce you like so much.

Paul thinks: After waiting for me, and after I snapped at her, she still greets me with a smile… It’s clear something has changed since they showed us the truth about the Cross in our lives. Elizabeth, thank you for your patience and for putting up with my bad mood.

Elizabeth: Paul, I love being faithful to what I told you on our wedding day: I take you and I give myself to you in prosperity and adversity, in health and in sickness…

Paul: How wonderful to live out what they taught us about embracing the Cross, just as you do.

Mother,

Thank you for giving us your Son, who gave Himself to the very end. Blessed be the Lord!

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 8:1-11

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area,

and all the people started coming to him,

and he sat down and taught them.

Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman

who had been caught in adultery

and made her stand in the middle.

They said to him,

“Teacher, this woman was caught

in the very act of committing adultery.

Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.

So what do you say?”

They said this to test him,

so that they could have some charge to bring against him.

Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.

But when they continued asking him,

he straightened up and said to them,

“Let the one among you who is without sin

be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.

And in response, they went away one by one,

beginning with the elders.

So he was left alone with the woman before him.

Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,

“Woman, where are they?

Has no one condemned you?”

She replied, “No one, sir.”

Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.

Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

The Word of the Lord

I do not condemn you.

So often in our marriage we feel entitled to judge and condemn our spouse when they sin, especially when we are the ones who suffer the consequences. Faced with the judgement and condemnation of the Pharisees toward that woman—who had indeed acted wrongly—Jesus reminds them of their own sin, the impurity of their own hearts, which they must consider before condemning others. There is only one judgement permitted to us: the judgement of our own soul when, before God, we compare it with His purity. Only then will we clearly see how much we ourselves must purify in order to embrace Love.

He also reminds us that condemnation prevents a person’s restoration. Jesus abhors sin, but He loves the sinner deeply. This is why He sends the woman away with the words: “Go, and sin no more.” He desires her purity; He desires the salvation of all His people, and He will continue to wait for us to turn away from sin until the very last day of our lives.

Applied to married life:

Laura: Peter, at the beach today you couldn’t stop looking at the girls next to us. What a lack of respect… It really hurt me.

Peter: Me? Not at all! You’re imagining things.

Laura: But even they were laughing at how mesmerised you were. Don’t talk to me, and don’t even think about coming near me.

(Laura and Peter spent several days barely speaking to each other.)

Laura: Peter, I’ve been praying about the anger I felt. Although what you did wasn’t right, I can see that I also have many faults that hurt you. I don’t want us to stay distant.

Peter: Laura, you were right, and I really struggle not to fall into that temptation. I’ve already been to confession, and I’m glad you’re willing to forgive me too. I’m ready to do whatever it takes to overcome this weakness.

Laura: Look, the Gospel says: “If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.”

Peter: Well, I was thinking of starting with something a bit less drastic — I wouldn’t look very good with one eye. How about next time we go to the beach, we sit in the grandparents’ area? That’ll help me while I work on this with my spiritual director.

Mother,

May the only judgement we make be that of our own heart, so that we may see what we must purify. Praised be God, who frees us from our sin.

Gospel