Gospel
At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the Temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.’ Jesus answered them, ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.’
Father, the time when we lived through the Passion of Your Son is still so recent. As we contemplate the price He paid for our redemption, how could You now allow anyone to snatch us from Your mighty hand?
There is a force that pulls us towards You in an inevitable way, and that force is Your Own Love.
Today we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima. She crushes the serpent’s head and leads us under Her maternal mantle to the open arms of Jesus.
Applied to Married Life:
Richard: Sarah, there are so many temptations bombarding us every day. Sometimes I feel like this path to holiness is completely out of reach for me.
Sarah: And it is out of reach for you, Richard, but if you truly desire it, it becomes inevitable for God.
Richard: Really, who could possibly stand against the Love of God, who gave His Son for us? You’re right, Sarah. I don’t know how I let doubt creep in. No one will ever take me from Your divine arms.
Mother,
Happy feast day to You, which means so much to us. Praise be to God and our Blessed Mother.