Gospel of the day
Matthew 16:13-19
‘You are Peter, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.’
At that time: When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.’
To Know / Him / Me / You
A hell where God is loved would be a contradiction—it would cease to be hell. And in the same way, an earth where God is not loved becomes a hell. Let us love God more each day so that this world may begin to resemble heaven more and more.
To love, one must first know. The act of knowing is an exclusive gift of persons, which distinguishes us from animals. In the Bible, to know is not merely an act of the intellect. To know God is to live an experience of Him, and I can have that experience through Jesus Christ, who has come to reveal who He is. That is why the Lord encourages us to follow Him, to live that experience with Him.
The first step is to experience His presence, and then to encounter Him and build that communion of love that reveals His heart. In that experience, I also come to know myself—for I exist only in relation to Him. He gives me my identity, He sustains me, and I exist for Him.
It is the Spirit who reveals Christ’s identity to Peter. It is He who leads me to Christ, and it is Christ who leads me to the Father.
Spouses, this is the reward of prayer: to live in God’s presence, to experience the encounter with Him, and to reach communion with Him—where together we find our rest and eternal life.
Applied to Married Life
Jaime: I have discovered the importance of knowing—knowing God, and knowing you. It is an experience of intimacy meeting intimacy. As I enter into your intimacy, part of you comes with me, and part of me remains within you. And vice versa.
María: It is wonderful to experience the intimacy of God. Some people say they don’t pray because they are tired, but that’s because they don’t know what it means to rest in the Heart of Jesus—the Heart that, even while wounded, loves through its wounds. A love that comforts, fills… And He has taught me to know myself, and to know you, my husband—your masculinity. There is a new gaze within me, able to enter into you. I am present in you, and I sense you present in me. I know you, I have known your intimacy, and your intimacy has entered me. And we have become one flesh.
Jaime: What an experience! And one heart, and one soul. To hold you present in my heart, to encounter you in the deepest part of me, and to feel you within me. It is incredible what can be experienced in marriage, in the presence of God.
Mother,
You carried God in your womb; teach me to carry Him within me. You welcomed the Holy Spirit when He overshadowed you; teach me also to welcome my husband/wife in the same way, so as to bear fruits of love. Only then can we show the world who God is—by knowing Him, by being filled with Him.
Praised be He forever.