Monthly Archives: October 2026

The sign has been given! Reflection for married couples. Luke 11:29-32

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From the Gospel according to Luke 11:29-32

At that time: When the crowds were increasing, Jesus began to say, ‘This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up at the judgement with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.’
The sign has been given!

For the Jews of that time, the expression “evil generation” was not an empty reproach. It immediately brought to mind the ancient people of Israel, those who had been freed from Egypt, had seen the sea part, had been fed with manna and had received the Law on Mount Sinai; a people surrounded by signs who, nevertheless, continued to doubt and ask for further proof. Jesus recognises that same attitude in those speaking to Him: they ask for a sign, but not out of a desire for truth; rather, out of a sense of entitlement, distrust and suspicion. That is why He grants them no further sign. It is not a question of signs, because when the heart is closed, no sign is ever enough.

Instead, He reminds them of two examples very familiar to them: the Queen of the South, who travelled great distances, driven by the desire to find the wisdom of God; and the people of Nineveh, who repented because they knew how to listen to Jonah’s preaching and put their trust in it. Because of their hardened hearts, those Jews failed to recognise God even though He was right there before them.

Today, we can run the same risk. Husbands and wives! The sign has been given: through our Sacrament, Jesus is present in our marriage; He is present in my spouse. Do I recognise Him?

When the heart trusts and is willing to welcome, it learns to discover God’s provident hand in the little things of everyday life: in a correction from my spouse, in a smile, in the children who draw us out of our comfort zone, in a friend’s words… Then we begin to see God in everything and in everyone.

Brought into married life.
Chiara: How fortunate we are to witness so many conversions around us! Although I think we need to be attentive to what is happening in our hearts, so that we don’t end up seeking our own satisfaction.
Peter: What do you mean?
Chiara: Sometimes I feel that I’m searching for extraordinary experiences, constantly looking for spectacular things and reducing our faith to emotional experiences… I think this can be a distraction and can lead us astray…
Peter: That’s true. Do you think there is anything more extraordinary than the fact that God Himself has chosen to remain hidden, out of love, in a little piece of bread?
Chiara: Quite right! What are we waiting for before we gather closely around Jesus?

Mother,

From within your heart, we share your very own desire. How we would love to see the tabernacles packed with people, all worshipping the Lord! My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love You. I ask Your forgiveness for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You.

Blessed and praised be You for ever!

An Illusion. Reflections for Married Couples. Matthew 22: 1-14

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Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to Matthew 22: 1-14
At that time: Jesus again spoke to the chief priests and the elders of the people, in parables, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, “Tell those who are invited, ‘See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.’ ” But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, “The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.” And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
‘But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?” And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, “Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen.’
The Gospel of the Lord 
An Illusion 
My soul hungers to love and to be loved. It hungers for God, for communion. But the world offers me an illusion: “When I have more, when I achieve this… when my spouse changes… then I’ll be happy.” And so, “one went off to his farm, another to his business”.
The deception lies in trying to satisfy our hunger through having, doing, knowing, achieving, enjoying, controlling, being recognised… We trade the banquet for good things that are too small to satisfy us; eternity for the immediate; communion for possession.
What “farms and businesses” are drawing me away from my husband or wife today?
Brought Down to Married Life
John is hurt by his wife, Melissa. She has spoken harshly to him, and they have ended up arguing. This time, he is sure of one thing.
“Until she admits what she’s done, I’m not going anywhere near her.”
And he has a point: Melissa has been in the wrong. But without realising it, John is turning his need for justice into his own “farm and business”: he would rather collect the debt than restore communion with Melissa.
On his way home from work, as he drives to his daily appointment with Jesus in the Eucharist, he hears Cada uno su razón (each one their reason), a song by Nacha Pop. One line pierces his heart: “Perhaps it’s better for the two of us not to understand each other, so that each can hold on to their own point of view.”
Is he really willing to preserve his own point of view at the cost of losing communion?
Suddenly, he sees it clearly: yes, Melissa has been in the wrong, but he has clung so tightly to being right that he has turned his position into a wall. God reveals his pride to him.
After receiving the Eucharist, he feels the need to remain in adoration. At first, he wants to be comforted by God’s mercy. But little by little, something new begins to grow within him: an invitation to console the Heart of Christ, wounded too by his own lack of love. He no longer wants to be right; he wants to love.
When he arrives home, Melissa is sitting quietly. John walks past her, stops and, without saying a word, sits down beside her and takes her hand.
Melissa looks at him.
And the Banquet begins: the peace that comes from letting go of the need to collect the debt, the grace of seeing Melissa once again as a gift, and the joy of being reconciled.
By insisting on being right, John had almost missed the Banquet.
 
 
Prayer
 
Mother,
Take us by the hand and lead us to the wedding banquet of your Son.
May He be blessed and praised for ever, for by His Blood He has redeemed us.

Listen & Put the Word into Practice. Reflections for Married Couples. Luke 11: 27-28

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Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel According to Luke 11: 27–28

At that time: As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, ‘Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!’ But he said, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
The Gospel of the Lord
 
Listen & Put the Word into Practice 

In today’s Gospel, people shower Jesus with compliments, and He uses this moment to teach us something important. It is neither praise nor insults that should determine how we act, but our desire to do God’s will for us.

If we are sensitive to praise, we are likely to be just as sensitive to insults and to what others think of us. Yet it is our actions, not what people say about us, that truly reveal who we are. That is why Jesus calls blessed those who hear the Word of God and put it into practice.

This was one of the qualities of our Mother, Mary, which Jesus places above even the privilege of having conceived Him and nourished Him as a child. Mary is the perfect model of this path. She is blessed not simply because she carried Jesus in her womb, but because of her complete openness and obedience to God’s divine plan.

This is so important that Jesus reiterates it in other passages of the Gospel. In John 15:14, He says, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” He also tells us that His mother and brothers are those who hear the Word of God and put it into practice (Matthew 12:46–50 and Luke 8:19–21).

How important it is to listen to the Word of God, for this is the only way to know His will for us! But we must not stop at simply listening. We must put His Word into practice and do what God wants us to do.

The same can happen in marriage. We can say beautiful things to one another without actually doing anything for each other — and what good is that? And if my spouse pulls a face and gets out of bed on the wrong side, saying all sorts of hurtful things, should I then stop doing what is good? We cannot allow ourselves to be swayed by praise or insults. We must always seek God’s will.

So how can we listen to the Word of God in our married lives so that we can put it into practice? Through conjugal prayer: that sacred space where husband and wife sit together to listen to the Lord. It is not about interpreting reality according to our own opinions or selfish desires, but about learning to see our spouse through God’s eyes.

Brought Down to Married Life

Peter: You know, Phoebe, as I’ve been reflecting on today’s Gospel, I’ve realised how often we expect our marriage to work through our own human strength or natural affection alone. But Jesus is telling us that true blessedness comes from listening to God’s Word and putting it into practice together. Don’t you think we’ve been listening too much to ourselves and finding it difficult to listen to Him?

Phoebe: Honestly, yes, Peter. I was thinking the same thing. I feel that the busyness of everyday life and our tiredness make us selfish, and that’s why we struggle to make space for that silence together, that time of prayer we so desperately need to seek what God wants for our family.

Peter: Just think about it, love. Something tells me that today, “listening to His Word” means stopping for a while, putting our screens aside and praying together. It means persevering in our daily time of conjugal prayer, without rushing, with our hearts open to Him.

Phoebe: And “putting it into practice” means seeing you through Christ’s eyes and loving you in practical ways, through the little things we do every day. It means setting aside my complaints and serving you without expecting anything in return, without demanding that you be the way I want you to be.

Peter: Then let’s sit down and pray together, even if it’s only for ten minutes, so that we can discover and welcome what God is asking of us. That way, we can also allow the Lord to heal any little tensions or hurts between us.

Phoebe: Let’s go, then! As for putting the Word into practice in everyday life, I want to ask the Virgin Mary to teach me her openness and obedience to God. I love you.

Prayer

Mother,

Teach us to be attentive so that we may discover God’s will, and to be docile and open to what He asks of us, so that we may bear abundant fruits of Love.

Blessed and glorious are you, Mother! May the Lord be praised for ever!

For the joy! Reflections for Married Couples. John 15: 9-17

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Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to John 15: 9-17
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, ‘As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
  ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.’
The Gospel of the Lord
For the joy!
Crystal clear, isn’t it, my husband? If we want our joy to be complete, we must love each other, and there is no greater love than that which gives life. Then there will be no greater joy than giving life for you, right? This is what the Lord has chosen us for, and this is what He has destined us for. But this is what the demon insists we don’t see, because if we do, we remain in God’s love! No more, no less. Where else can we even dream of remaining? That’s how great the Lord is. This is what He has reserved for us.
Brought Down to Married Life:
Peter: I often find myself very serious, when I wake up and look at myself in the mirror, when I meet someone on the street and realize I have to change my expression to smile… I lack joy, Mary. I realize the great plan I’m missing out on if I don’t fulfill the Lord’s will. Is it hard? Of course! But isn’t it worth being joyful instead of bitter? But being joyful isn’t solely up to me, it largely depends on aspiring with hope to the greatest thing, which is to partake in God’s Love. So, I intend to love you, my wife, seeking what’s good for you. The Lord commands me to do so because He wants the best for us and our union.
Mary: You’re right, Peter. We both lack joy. I will also focus on seeking what’s good for you so that our joy may be complete. There’s no better plan.

Mother,
We love you. Thank you for leading us to the path of the Gospel in our marriage. You are the bearer of my joy, blessed Mother.

Trust and Perseverance. Reflections for Married Couples. Luke 11: 5-13

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Gospel of the Day

From the Gospel according to Luke 11: 5–13
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, “Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey and I have nothing to set before him”; and he will answer from within, “Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything”? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’
The Gospel of the Lord
Trust and Perseverance 

Today Jesus invites us to trust in God and to persevere in prayer.

Prayer is essential for knowing God and for directing our lives towards Him, even when it seems that we are not being heard. We can be tempted to give up on prayer because we receive no answer, because we feel nothing and it seems as though nothing is happening. But let us not forget that, in prayer, God is always at work.

So persevere: ask, recognising that we need God; seek, directing our lives towards Him; and knock, even when it seems that the answer is taking a long time.

God knows what you need, and He will always give you what is truly good for you. The greatest gift we can receive in prayer is not necessarily the thing we are asking for, but God Himself: the Holy Spirit, His presence and His grace.

Through this Gospel, the Lord invites married couples to share everything through conjugal prayer, where each spouse opens their heart in the presence of the other, and together they ask, seek and knock, so that they may receive the Holy Spirit and allow Him to continue guiding their marriage, enabling them to reveal His Love to a world so deeply in need of it.

Brought Down to Married Life

Arthur: What a wonderful day we’ve had, sharing in the happiness of the newlyweds.

Violet: It’s been such a beautiful wedding. And seeing our daughter so radiant with happiness, so attentive to everything and everyone, has been very special.

Arthur: Yes. We have so much to be grateful for and so many reasons to give thanks to God for all that we have received. I keep thinking about how much we have suffered with our daughter Bonnie, and how worthwhile everything we have done for her has been.

Violet: Especially all the praying we’ve done, and how much this difficult situation has brought us together. In the end, all the prayer and sacrifices we have made together have been worth it. The Lord always knew what we needed.

Arthur: Yes. The day James came into Bonnie’s life, and the way the Lord placed him in her path to help bring her back to Him, James has been such a blessing.

Violet: They are such a beautiful couple. Now we need to keep praying together for them and for ourselves, trusting that when we turn to the Lord, He knows everything we need, even when sometimes we don’t understand. We are witnesses to the fact that He knows us and knows what we need far better than we do ourselves.

Arthur: Well, let’s give it everything we’ve got! We’ve still got two more children at home. Shall we spend some time in prayer now, giving thanks for everything we’ve received?

Violet: It’s the best way to end a day filled with so much happiness.

Prayer

Mother,

Help us always to ask, seek and knock together, knowing that your Son never ceases to care for us.

Blessed be God.