GOSPEL

” Your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

From the Gospel according to Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18

Jesus said to his disciples:”Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father. When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win the praise of others. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, so that your almsgiving may be secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites. They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you may not appear to be fasting, except to your Father who is hidden. And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

The Gospel of the Lord,

 

In secret

In secret, in the depths, in the most intimate place. There is God. He sees everything, scrutinizes everything, knows everything in me. Everything. Including my unspoken thoughts and the motives behind every action. Everything! Consequently, any aspect of my life not dedicated to Him, that which is lived merely for public visibility, is putting myself ahead of Him instead of seeking to make Him known: “Let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

So, what am I? A son or a thief of my Father’s things? The Father who remains in me is the one who performs the works, says Jesus. And the one who ceases to be a son to become a thief loses what would have been rightfully his as a son.

I surrender my intimate self as a child, living in accordance with it, and in return, He bestows upon me His own essence. This gift includes regeneration and life, enabling me to exist beyond my own self.

Applied to Married Life:

Eduard: Forgive me, Lord, for overshadowing you. Every time I make excuses, every time I complain, every time I do not submit, every time I demand, every time I boast, every time I apply my own justice… I am like that annoying child who stands in front of the screen and doesn’t let others see. In all of this, I do not let you be seen, Lord, not by my wife, not by my children, not by many others.

Vanessa: Forgive me, Lord, because I forget that I carry you inside, that you are in me, that all my good deeds are yours. And I, in my own way, cast a shadow on you. You so great, and I so small, yet I enlarge my shadow by appropriating Your light.

Eduard: But we love you, Lord. We don’t want to overshadow you; we want everyone to know you. Do in us what you need to do so that only you shine. We know it involves humility. So go ahead, Lord.

Vanessa: Go ahead, Lord. Even if it hurts.

Mother,

Only by seeing how great you are and how little you appear in Sacred Scripture, we get an idea of what our role should be. To appear even less. The important one is the Lord. May everyone see Him, Mother. Praise Him forever.