Gospel of the Day

A Gospel according to Luke 17:26-37

Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of Noah,
so it will be in the days of the Son of Man;
they were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage up to the day
that Noah entered the ark,
and the flood came and destroyed them all.
Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking, buying,
selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left Sodom,
fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.
So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.
On that day, someone who is on the housetop
and whose belongings are in the house
must not go down to get them,
and likewise one in the field
must not return to what was left behind.
Remember the wife of Lot.
Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it,
but whoever loses it will save it.
I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed;
one will be taken, the other left.
And there will be two women grinding meal together;
one will be taken, the other left.”
They said to him in reply, “Where, Lord?”
He said to them, “Where the body is,
there also the vultures will gather.”

The Gospel of the Lord

A Wasted Life?

Today the Lord tells us that our personal and marital conversion is urgent.
He invites us to “lose our life.”

To lose one’s life means to give it — to offer up the gifts He has given me, freely and without measure, to those around me, and especially within my marriage, for this is my vocation.

Losing my life means saying “yes” to every circumstance He places before me in marriage: when I make my spouse a cup of coffee even though I’m tired, when I pick up what my husband or wife has left lying around, when I let go of my own opinions to live in deeper communion.

Does it cost me something? Then I’m on the right path — for the sacrifices that cost us are the ones that bear the greatest fruit of communion.
Our human vision is limited, but when we lift our eyes, we begin to see with His limitless vision — because Love has no limits, and Love without limits bears the fruit of eternal life. It gains eternal life.

This is how the Lord invites us to love today: give yourself to the very end.
And do not look back.

Brought Down to Married Life

Robert: Hello, Theresa! You know what? I’ve just received the invitation to the “Start of the Year” day for Marital Love Project in our diocese.
Theresa: Oh, Robert… but isn’t it enough that we already go to the catecheses and adorations during the year?
Robert: Well, I think it’s important that we start the year together — to know the direction we’re taking as a couple and within the community, and to keep deepening our vocation more and more.
Theresa: Hmm… I think that might be too much. We’re already so busy with everything else…
Robert: Alright, love — as you wish…
(After a while, with a much brighter tone)
Theresa: Robert, after praying about it, the Lord has shown me that there’s nothing more important than deepening our vocation — the very purpose for which He created us — even if it means letting go of other activities. So yes, let’s go to the “Start of the Year” day. Thank you, Robert, for helping me pause and see what truly matters most. Thank You, Lord, for such a wonderful husband.
Robert: And thank you, love, for being open to what I shared.

Mother,

Help us to renounce our own selves and to give our lives by saying “yes” in every circumstance we live.
Blessed and praised be the Lord!

Gospel of the Day

Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to Luke 17:11-19

As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying,
“Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
“Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine?
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?”
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.”

The Gospel of the Lord

Let Us Trust in Christ

“Rise up; your faith has saved you.”

What did that Samaritan do for Jesus to say this to him? The obvious thing is that he returned, praising God and giving thanks.
But what about the less obvious part — what’s left unspoken? When the lepers called out to Jesus to have mercy on them, and He told them to go and show themselves to the priests, what might most of them have thought?
“Really? That’s not what we need — we want to be healed! And how can we go to the priests while we’re still lepers?”

Perhaps that Samaritan, however, trusted Jesus from the very first moment. It wasn’t his plan, nor what he expected Jesus to do — but since it was what Jesus had asked, he obeyed. He trusted completely, even without understanding. And that faith saved him.

Lord, I want to be happy in my marriage. I used to think that for that to happen, my spouse had to change. But I know You’re telling me: give yourself unconditionally, welcome your spouse as they are. Love them where it’s hardest. Learn to love.
Lord, I trust in You — I’m going for it!

Brought Down to Married Life

Andrew: Martha, you can’t keep having those outbursts with me.
Martha: Then pull yourself together! Look at everything I do, and the one thing I ask from you — you forget it. (She storms off, slamming the door.)

(After praying about what happened…)

Andrew: Martha, forgive me. I really am trying, but it’s hard. I know that being so wrapped up in my own things is selfish. The Lord keeps showing me that I need to put my own concerns second and truly focus on you.
Martha: And forgive me too. I fall into the temptation of only seeing what I do, of thinking badly of you. The Lord is teaching me that I must give of myself without measuring, that you have so many gifts, and that focusing on what I think you don’t do is not His will.
Andrew: Thank you so much, Martha. It’s amazing how Jesus keeps changing our hearts and the way we see each other. At first I thought we weren’t improving at all, but now I can see how this path of prayer, sacraments, and sacrifices is transforming us. I’ve still got a lot to work on, but I know that if we persevere, the Lord will do the rest.
Martha: How great is the Lord! How He draws us out of our selfishness — if only we let Him, if we truly trust in Him.

Mother,

Thank You so much for showing us the way. Help us to persevere, and to rise again each time we fall.
Blessed be the Lord!

Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to Luke 17:7-10

Jesus said to the Apostles:
“Who among you would say to your servant
who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field,
‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’?
Would he not rather say to him,
‘Prepare something for me to eat.
Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink.
You may eat and drink when I am finished’?
Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?
So should it be with you.
When you have done all you have been commanded, say,
‘We are unprofitable servants;
we have done what we were obliged to do.'”

The Gospel of the Lord

Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to Luke 17:1-6

Jesus said to his disciples,
“Things that cause sin will inevitably occur,
but woe to the one through whom they occur.
It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck
and he be thrown into the sea
than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.
Be on your guard!
If your brother sins, rebuke him;
and if he repents, forgive him.
And if he wrongs you seven times in one day
and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’
you should forgive him.”

And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,
you would say to this mulberry tree,
‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

The Gospel of the Lord