GOSPEL

If you do not convert, you will all perish in the same way.
Reading from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 13:1-9

Some people told Jesus about the Galileans
whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices.
He said to them in reply,
“Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way
they were greater sinners than all other Galileans?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
Or those eighteen people who were killed
when the tower at Siloam fell on them–
do you think they were more guilty
than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!”

And he told them this parable:
“There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard,
and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none,
he said to the gardener,
‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree
but have found none.
So cut it down.
Why should it exhaust the soil?’
He said to him in reply,
‘Sir, leave it for this year also,
and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it;
it may bear fruit in the future.
If not you can cut it down.’

Word of the Lord.

Postage paid.

The Lord expects to gather fruits of love in our marriage, fruits produced by the Holy Spirit. But instead, He finds “works of the flesh” in their place: “enmities, discord, jealousy, anger, ambitions, divisions, dissensions, rivalries.”

So we might try to point to our spouse as the responsible one for all that, which is quite difficult, because two do not get angry if one does not want to.

But let us suppose that my husband is largely to blame. Am I going to point him out so that he can be cut off and torn away from my side? Or am I going to offer to dig around him and give him the love he needs, asking for another chance for him or her?

Grounded in Married Life:

Lola: Who are you and what are you doing in our house with that sickle?
Death: I am Death, and I come to reap the life of your husband and take him away… Let me see the destination on the receipt? To hell. I’m taking him to hell.
Lola: No, please, don’t take him away!
Death: But yesterday you were calling me asking me to take him away once and for all.
Lola: Yeah, but I didn’t mean it seriously.
Death: Oh, well, I’m sorry. I’m already here, and I have to take someone. Keep in mind that I’ve already been paid the shipping costs.
Lola: Then take me instead of him!
Death: Now that’s a good one. The first time that’s happened to me. But do you love him that much? If you put yourself like this, I’m going to have to leave him a few more years. Don’t come back to me with complaints later.
Lola: Yes, please. I promise to give him all my affection and tenderness so as not to exasperate him and to make his path to love easier.
Death: With that, you would pay me more than the value of the bundle.
Lola: He’s not a bundle; he’s my husband. And don’t you ever speak of him like that again or I will kill you.
Death: Wow, that’s funny. Are you going to kill Death?
Lola: Jesus did it, so in His name I tell you: Go and don’t come back as long as I don’t stop loving my husband.
(And Death left in search of another less-loved husband)

Mother,

I love my husband with all my strength. Do not let them take him away until he is sanctified by the action of the Holy Spirit through me. Blessed be the Lord who allows me to be his Simon of Cyrene.

GOSPEL

You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 12: 54-59

Jesus said to the crowds,
“When you see a cloud rising in the west
you say immediately that it is going to rain–and so it does;
and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south
you say that it is going to be hot–and so it is.
You hypocrites!
You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky;
why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

“Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?
If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate,
make an effort to settle the matter on the way;
otherwise your opponent will turn you over to the judge,
and the judge hand you over to the constable,
and the constable throw you into prison.
I say to you, you will not be released
until you have paid the last penny.”

The word of the Lord.

Your heart, my weakness.

In our marital relationship, we usually know what is going to upset our spouse. Other times, as the conversation evolves, we know that “it is going to create discomfort.” The problem lies in continuing on that path knowing that it is hurting my spouse and that the situation is heating up.

The Lord wants us to predict where that action will lead and to try to redirect it before we enter into conflict and break the precious communion that kept us united.

It is the time to submit, to renounce… and to love, to love above all.

Grounded in Married Life:

Myriam: What are you doing reading those private revelations? Didn’t you say that those are not dogmas of faith and that we don’t have to believe in them?

Pedro: I know I’ve been quite insistent about that, and we’ve even argued about my inflexibility, but the Lord has shown me that I love you too much to have this point of discord between us. So instead of having this friction between us, I’ve decided to delve deeper into these writings to help me love the Lord as you do.

Myriam: How sweet you are! I just have to love you… Thank you for not closing yourself off to what makes my heart vibrate.

Pedro: Even if I wanted to, I can’t close myself off to such a beautiful heart. After the Sacred Heart of Jesus, it is my second weakness, although you are becoming more and more one.

Mother,

May Love reign far above reasons. It is a pity to see marriages that love each other but destroy each other. Blessed be the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

GOSPEL

I have not come to bring peace, but division.  
Reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 12:49-53

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I have come to set the earth on fire,
and how I wish it were already blazing!
There is a baptism with which I must be baptized,
and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished!
Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.
From now on a household of five will be divided,
three against two and two against three;
a father will be divided against his son
and a son against his father,
a mother against her daughter
and a daughter against her mother,
a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

The Word of the Lord.

“Burning” Spouses

Encountering Christ has profound effects on me. He sets my life on fire, burning away all that is old to sow something completely new. It is an inner revolution, in which everything that once interested me ceases to interest me because I have discovered something, or rather, Someone, who infinitely surpasses it: Christ.  
He and His plan for me fill me with joy and hope. Yes, my life makes sense, my suffering too, my relationship with my husband becomes something sacred, everything around me is a gift, and difficulties turn into opportunities to reach Him.  
How poorly we do it when we evangelize with a sour face or when we live marriage as a burden, for we do not convey the truth. The Gospel is not repression; it is liberation. And everything else, I consider garbage.

Grounded in Married Life:

Cristina: You talk about the necessity of encountering Christ to heal and build our marriage, but I don’t understand why.  
Marriage Tutor: To love, I must fill my heart with love. God is love, and He is the only one who can give it to me. My heart is filled with good thoughts and good wishes towards my husband. It is important to maintain a heartfelt relationship with Him because from the heart flows life or death. The heart is capable of eternal growth in hate or in love. Do you have experience of your heart growing in hate or in love?  
Cristina: Yes, that is true.  
Marriage Tutor: And what are your thoughts and desires towards your husband?  
Cristina: I don’t wish him any harm, but my thoughts towards him are not good, to be honest.  
Marriage Tutor: Well, every temptation you experience is a question for your soul: Who are you? A child of God or an earthly being? Do you follow your passions or love God? God allows temptation as a means by which we manifest ourselves against or in favor of Him. Every temptation is an opportunity for the heart to grow in love and union with Him, and therefore, to grow in love for your husband and your family. These are the true “burning” spouses, those whose hearts burn with pure love.

Mother,

The Lord has captivated my heart, and that causes me to stop sinning in thought, for my thoughts are on Him and His work. If I only think of Him and the mission He has entrusted to me, then I will give glory to God with my life. Blessed and praised be the name of the Lord.

GOSPEL

To whom much is given, much will be required.  
Reading from the holy Gospel according to St. Luke 12:39-48  

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be sure of this:
if the master of the house had known the hour
when the thief was coming,
he would not have let his house be broken into.
You also must be prepared,
for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”

Then Peter said,
“Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?”
And the Lord replied,
“Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward
whom the master will put in charge of his servants
to distribute the food allowance at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so.
Truly, I say to you, he will put him
in charge of all his property.
But if that servant says to himself,
‘My master is delayed in coming,’
and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants,
to eat and drink and get drunk,
then that servant’s master will come
on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour
and will punish the servant severely
and assign him a place with the unfaithful.
That servant who knew his master’s will
but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will
shall be beaten severely;
and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will
but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating
shall be beaten only lightly.
Much will be required of the person entrusted with much,
and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”

Word of the Lord.

What He wants to give you.

Who is the faithful and wise servant? It is the one to whom much has been given, and the Lord expects him to manage it properly, that is, to live in a way that manages it.

Today I was before the cross and I was saying to myself: If I love my spouse and love the Lord, I should give my spouse what the Lord wants to give him. Then, in the Eucharist, seeing the offering of His Body and Blood, I questioned myself again: That offering is what the Lord wants me to manage. I have received it from the Lord, and He wants to give Himself to my spouse, but He wants me to be the one who administers that offering with my own offering.

In such a way that, if my spouse is a sinner, I have reason to dedicate myself for him or her. And if they are more sinful, I have even more reasons to dedicate myself for him or her for their sanctification. That is to be a faithful and prudent spouse.

Grounded in Married Life:

Ramón: Today I looked at the Crucified One, and it seemed to me that He was calling me and saying: “And you, what?” “Don’t you see how I give myself for your wife? And you… what?” I felt shaken by grace and eager to give myself to you. That Crucified One reproached me. Then I said to the Lord, “Lord, I would like to give myself like You, but I feel held back because sometimes she doesn’t deserve it.” When she despises me, when she doesn’t value my offering, when she is not faithful to her marriage promise… I feel that she doesn’t deserve it. Then the Eucharist began, and I contemplated the Blood of Our Lord. And of course, I recognized it immediately: That is the Blood unjustly shed for our salvation. That Blood is the proof that we did not deserve His suffering. Shortly after, in the action of thanksgiving, the Lord, who had just entered into me, said to me: “She deserves whatever I choose to give her, which is My Body and My Blood, and she deserves you to deliver it to her along with Me.” Then, overwhelmed and remorseful, I asked the Lord for forgiveness for not having given myself for you as many times as you deserved and I had considered otherwise. My heart was twisting inside, becoming aware of the fact that the less you deserve it according to my judgment, the more you deserve it according to the merciful love of God. And the pain turned into repentance and into a desire to truly love you, in the way of God.

Mother,

To whom much is given, much will be required. I look at the Crucified One, and this phrase pierces my soul deeply. Mother, grant us the grace to respond to so much love. Blessed be the Lord.

Gospel

Blessed are the servants whom the master finds alert when he comes.

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Saint Luke 12:35-38

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Gird your loins and light your lamps
and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding,
ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks.
Blessed are those servants
whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.
Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself,
have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.
And should he come in the second or third watch
and find them prepared in this way,
blessed are those servants.”

Word of the Lord.

Regarding what He does in you.

There are many possible interpretations of being “alert.” But today we wanted to focus particularly on one: being in love with the Lord and with each other, because, moreover, one thing leads to another.

When I love the Lord, the gift of Piety leads me to love my spouse as well. Because He loves my spouse, I necessarily have to love them: that we love each other as He has loved us. But if I love my spouse, I will want the best for them above all. And the greatest thing I can wish for is that Christ makes them one with Him. Therefore, by loving my spouse, I will also love the Lord.

Grounded in Married Life:

Ramón: In Mass, during communion, I like that we receive communion together. Do you know why?

Rosa: No. Why?

Ramón: Because I see the Lord entering into you. In that moment, I experience immense gratitude to the Lord for what He is doing in you. He is incorporating you into His Heart. Until now, I was enamored by Him wanting to incorporate me into His Heart. But lately, I like to focus more on what He is doing in you, how much He loves you, and how above all He wants to unite you to Him. Well, that makes me love Him much more and with more gratitude than when I think about it for myself.

Rosa: So, does being aware of what He does in me and the love He has for me unite you more to the Lord than what He does in you? I believe that the love you have for me is becoming greater than yourself. I believe that this love must come from God. I love it. It seems to me that the Lord is doing great things in you.

Mother,

May we keep the lamp of love constantly lit, day and night. May the Love of God penetrate more and more into us until we become one, a community of communion. Blessed be the Communion of God, One and Triune.