Gospel

From the Gospel according to Matthew 23:27-32

Jesus said,”Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside,but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth.Even so, on the outside you appear righteous,but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.You build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the memorials of the righteous,and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors,we would not have joined them in shedding the prophets’ blood.’Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets;now fill up what your ancestors measured out!”

The Gospel of the Lord

Hidden Beauty

“Beauty will save the world.” These words of St. John Paul II seem deeply connected to today’s Gospel. Deep within every human heart there is a longing for beauty, because God Himself is Beauty—and that is why we are naturally drawn to it. The problem is that sometimes we pursue this desire in a disordered way. Mixed with self-love, pride, and vanity, it can lead us to care more about appearances than about the heart.

That is why in today’s Gospel, Jesus warns us and calls us once again to look inward—to true conversion of the heart, and to the purification of our intentions.

St. John Paul II also said that the invisible shapes a person more than the visible. What if, instead of seeing someone’s body, we could see their soul? We might be surprised. We live in a culture of appearances—we want to look good, we crave applause, we invest more in our image than ever, we worry about what others think. But… what about our soul? Do we take care of it as much as the body? Do I seek to remain in God’s grace? Do I nurture my soul with prayer and the Eucharist, and cleanse it through confession?

True beauty is not in what we show on the outside, but in who we are within. What makes the body truly beautiful is a soul transformed by the grace of God. That is why caring for our soul is the path to reflecting the Beauty that saves.

Applied to Marriage life:

Julie: I’m convinced that this retreat we just experienced was truly from God… it was filled with a beauty that could only come from Him. I want that kind of love between us!

James: So, where do we start?

Julie: I think it begins with seeking purity of heart. Everything else—how we act, how we speak, how we dress, even how we spend our free time—flows from that. But it all starts in the heart.

James: Exactly. The Lord doesn’t want a love that’s only on the surface. He invites us to look deeper. So, what is our heart really searching for? What does it long for, what does it love? Are we truly seeking the good of our souls, or just a kind of superficial happiness?

Julie: Yes, we need to rethink so many things. We put so much effort into how others see us—being the “perfect” couple on social media, at church… but we’ve been neglecting our souls and the hidden love we’re called to nurture at home, where no one else sees.

James: That’s true. The beauty of marriage isn’t found in trips or picture-perfect moments, but in real self-giving. Let’s ask the Lord for that grace—to change our hearts and make them more like His.

Mother,

Blessed be your purity, forever and always, for God Himself delights in such radiant Beauty.