From the Gospel according to John

1:29-34

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said,
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
He is the one of whom I said,
‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.’
I did not know him,
but the reason why I came baptizing with water
was that he might be made known to Israel.”
John testified further, saying,
“I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from the sky
and remain upon him.
I did not know him,
but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me,
‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain,
he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’
Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.”

Recognising Him

Spouses are called to be witnesses of God’s Love through our marriage. On the day of our wedding, God made a covenant of Love with us, and the Holy Spirit made us one! This is truly astonishing. The Holy Spirit is among us; He dwells in my heart and in my spouse’s heart, and we make Him present in every act of self-giving and welcoming between husband and wife. Yet it can happen that the concerns and busyness of daily life, urgent tasks, the noise of the world, prevent us from being aware of this truth, and we fail to recognise Him.

Today we look at the attitude and disposition of John: doing the will of God, baptising with water until the Messiah was revealed, and remaining attentive to the signs. This allowed him to identify the Holy Spirit in the dove that descended upon Jesus, and thus to recognise Him as the Lamb of God. Only then did he come to know the divine identity of his cousin. And once he recognised Him as the Messiah who was to come, he could no longer remain silent — bearing witness became an urgent necessity that sprang from the depths of his being, and which eventually led him to become the first martyr in defence of the truth of marriage.

And what about us? Are we attentive to recognising the signs of the Holy Spirit in our life, in our spouse? For in order to recognise God in His mediations, we must be disposed to do so: to cultivate inner silence, to live a life of prayer, to fulfil the will of God… to be attentive, like John.

Spouses, if we are attentive, we will see the Holy Spirit at work in us every day. And if we live in His grace, we will become a channel through which that Spirit reaches our spouse. Only then will I be able to recognise God in my spouse — in my fitting help, in the one who administers to me the grace of our sacrament. And this is how we will give true witness to the Love of God.

Brought into Married Life:

(James and Lucy had attended a Marital Love Project retreat a few months ago. There they had experienced God’s Love between them and renewed the covenant of their sacrament.)

Lucy: James, every time I remember what we lived at the retreat, I get emotional. The Holy Spirit is among us! And it’s true — I can really feel it…

James: Yes, I do too. Though sometimes I get so caught up in work and problems that I seem to forget.

Lucy: Well, the truth is that it happens to me as well sometimes… but the important thing is that now we know the Holy Spirit is among us. What we need to do is remember it every day. Shall we do that? It will help us keep the Holy Spirit more present.

James: All right — we can remind each other in the morning, before starting the day…

Lucy: Yes, brilliant! Every morning, when I wake up, after thanking God for a new day with Him and by your side, I’ll give you a kiss and, looking into your eyes, I’ll ask the Holy Spirit to help me stay attentive throughout the day, to recognise Him in you and in the events of the day, through His signs…

James: And I also want to be attentive and ready to recognise Him in you, my wife. Come, let us pray together: Holy Spirit — (now both together) — come each day into our hearts; teach us and urge us to live our marital love according to the will of the Father…

Lucy: I love it… this really is starting the day with the Holy Spirit! How happy I am to have you by my side!

Mother,

Teach us and help us always to be attentive, to recognise God as you did, and to say Yes to God’s plan as you did, even when we do not understand it. Blessed and glorious are you, Mother! May the Lord be praised for ever!

From the Gospel according to John 1:19-28

This is the testimony of John.
When the Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to him
to ask him, “Who are you?”
he admitted and did not deny it, but admitted,
“I am not the Christ.”
So they asked him,
“What are you then? Are you Elijah?”
And he said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
So they said to him,
“Who are you, so we can give an answer to those who sent us?
What do you have to say for yourself?”
He said:
“I am the voice of one crying out in the desert,
‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’
as Isaiah the prophet said.”
Some Pharisees were also sent.
They asked him,
“Why then do you baptize
if you are not the Christ or Elijah or the Prophet?”
John answered them,
“I baptize with water;
but there is one among you whom you do not recognize,
the one who is coming after me,
whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.”
This happened in Bethany across the Jordan,
where John was baptizing.

Don’t deceive yourself: Jesus Is God

Without a doubt, what most moves hearts to draw near and come to know the Lord is a strong and steadfast witness of faith. We can speak at length and very well, know Sacred Scripture and the Tradition of our Church, and be excellent communicators. But when all this becomes visible in our daily life — in the family, at work, in traffic jams, in the supermarket queue — that is when we are truly bearing witness that Jesus is our God and that we follow His Way. And this attracts people like honey attracts bees.

Brought into Married Life:

Francis: The children are finally asleep — they fell fast asleep by the second page of the story. Poor things, they were exhausted. What a wonderful day out in the countryside we’ve had.

Margaret: Absolutely — it’s been such a beautiful day. How I love being with the Marital Love Project family! It’s amazing — the conversations, our moments of prayer, sharing Sunday Mass together. I felt like saying: How good it is to be here! Let us put up three tents!

Francis: (laughing) I felt exactly the same! It’s wonderful to see the beautiful family Our Lady has been forming.

Margaret: You’ll see the difference tomorrow when I go back to work — the reproaches, the bad moods… that’s when I really struggle to act with mercy and kindness.

Francis: But that is precisely where the Lord has placed you to bear witness. Think how much those families need to hear the Good News of the Gospel.

Margaret: You’re absolutely right. It’s in that dry and stony ground where witness is most needed. Thank you for shedding light on this moment — it will make it easier for me to get up early tomorrow. Come here, let’s begin our spousal prayer. I love you so much, Francis!

Francis: And I love you, Margaret. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…

Mother,

Help us to carry the Good News of the Gospel and to bear witness to our faith. May we not be afraid, ashamed, or held back by human respect. We want to be courageous, like you! Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust in You. Immaculate Heart of Mary, be the salvation of my soul.

From the Gospel according to Luke 2:16-21

The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.

When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.

In the Heart

Happy New Year! Today a new year begins, and what better way to start it than hand in hand with the Virgin Mary, celebrating her Divine Motherhood.

God has just been born in Bethlehem. Let us hurry there like the shepherds, with poor and humble hearts, to adore Him and glorify Him, with the firm intention of continuing to do so every day of the new year that is beginning.

Let us always turn to our Mother, who kept all things in her Immaculate Heart, and learn from her to look upon our spouse with a welcoming gaze — embracing them in everything, resisting the temptation to reject their differences, and keeping in our heart what we do not understand, so as to ponder the greatness of our sacrament, which always leads us to Jesus.

Brought into Married Life:

Andrew: Mary, you seem a bit serious — has something happened?

Mary: Yes, Andrew. I’m a little upset by the comments your siblings made yesterday.

Andrew: Don’t take it to heart. They said things that weren’t entirely true.

Mary: I know, but they can’t just let themselves go and exaggerate things, taking them out of context.

Andrew: I know — they went too far. But we can’t hold it against them. I’ve already spoken to them; they realised it and apologised. And honestly, it didn’t bother me that much. It only gives me reason to pray a bit more for them, so that it doesn’t happen again.

Mary: Andrew, you’re wonderful. You have such a big heart. Despite what they said about you, you didn’t hold it against them. I feel very grateful to be your wife.

Andrew: Don’t exaggerate. I can’t get angry over things that aren’t true. Besides, if I’d defended myself, I would only have given them more reason to carry on. Sometimes it’s better to keep quiet and let things pass without giving them importance.

Mary: You’re right. Many times it’s better to keep these things in our heart and not dwell on them. Criticising and judging is the easy option.

Andrew: Then let’s smile and carry on celebrating Christmas — that’s what matters most right now.

Mother,

Help us to place in our heart what we do not understand, to offer it for our spouse and to lay it at the feet of your Son in the manger. Glory and praise be to God who has been born in Bethlehem.

From the Gospel according to John

1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing came to be.
What came to be through him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.

A man named John was sent from God.
He came for testimony, to testify to the light,
so that all might believe through him.
He was not the light,
but came to testify to the light.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world,
and the world came to be through him,
but the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own,
but his own people did not accept him.

But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believe in his name,
who were born not by natural generation
nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision
but of God.

And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only-begotten Son,
full of grace and truth.

John testified to him and cried out, saying,
“This was he of whom I said,
‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.’”
From his fullness we have all received,
grace in place of grace,
because while the law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God.
The only-begotten Son, God, who is at the Father’s side,
has revealed him.

A God Who Allows Himself to Be Held

In recent days we have been reading, in a simple way, how the birth of Jesus came about: a journey to Bethlehem, a manger, the announcement to the shepherds… Today, the Prologue of Saint John may seem to distance us from that event, but in truth this beautiful Gospel widens our horizon in a striking way. It brings us into contact with what is transcendent, with what our eyes cannot see: with the Creator God who becomes a creature, defenceless and dependent on everything.

It is a revelation that surrounds us and places us before the greatest mystery of all: God has wanted to enter my life in order to give me His own. Praying with this Gospel leads me to silence, to wonder, to adoration… my heart is enlarged; each word seems to come from on high and, at the same time, reaches the very depths of my being, awakening the desire to welcome this God who comes as a baby.

Lord, this year that ends today we place in Your merciful hands; the one that begins, in Your providence. We choose to focus on welcoming You and loving You each day with all our heart. Everything is Yours, Lord — we give You everything: our present, our past, and our future. You have come to give us grace upon grace, Your very divine Life, and we wish to receive it.

Brought into Married Life:

Michael: Paula, help me a bit, because today I found the Gospel hard to understand. It felt rather abstract, although there was one phrase that really touched my heart: that God came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. That’s powerful, isn’t it? What if that happens to us? What does it mean for you to receive God?

Paula: Well, I’m no theologian either, but… welcoming God must translate into something concrete in our life. Otherwise, what would be the point of God becoming man to save us and enlighten us, if we then live as if nothing had happened? It’s like believing in the light but keeping the windows shut…

Michael: But could you make it a bit more precise? How do we open the windows?

Paula: For example, by asking ourselves: how do we respond when people speak badly of us, or ignore us, or when we face slander or lies? In those moments, how do we act? Because if we have truly welcomed God into our hearts, then He dwells within us, and it will be He who speaks through us, who looks through us… He is the one who responds. He wants to use our hands, our eyes, our voice — to embrace, to smile, to forgive…

Michael: Well then, receiving God really does mean a before and an after in life…

Paula: Absolutely! Because “to all who received Him, He gave power to become children of God.” I find that astonishing!

Michael: Wait — I’ll bring a glass of wine and you can carry on telling me…

(Michael and Paula spent that afternoon at home by the Nativity scene, peacefully talking and reflecting on the things of God and what this great event meant for them.)

Mother,

Tomorrow a new year begins. We do not know what it will be like, but we do know that God is with us. We want to live each day within your Immaculate Heart and bring the Child Jesus to so many married couples who do not receive Him because they do not yet know Him. Praise be to this Child who comes to visit us!

From the Gospel according to Luke

2:36-40

There was a prophetess, Anna,
the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher.
She was advanced in years,
having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four.
She never left the temple,
but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that very time,
she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child
to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions
of the law of the Lord,
they returned to Galilee,
to their own town of Nazareth.
The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom;
and the favor of God was upon him.

Prophets of Marital Love

Do you believe you are destined to be prophets? Do not doubt it. We all are, through Baptism. Look at Anna. She had been a wife, like us. Her life was not easy, yet she lived abandoned to God, in a faithful and ardent wait of the Messiah. Surely, the moment she saw Mary and Joseph enter the Temple with the Child in their arms, she knew it was Him.

A heart that is awake — aware of its need for God and seeking Him each day in truth and humility — knows how to recognise God when He passes by; and when it finds Him, it cannot help but proclaim Him to others. Be like this — prophets of Marital Love!

Ask each day for the grace to see the living Christ in your spouse, because He is there. Pause. Stop rushing. Look into their eyes and offer something very simple, yet often so difficult: a smile of love — yes, of love and of recognition of the immense gift of God that your spouse is. Look at them and love them with God’s own love; ask Him for it.

Then it will happen that, in a simple home and in docile hearts, God will make His dwelling and fill every corner of the house with divine love, reaching every hidden fold of your heart. This is where prophecy begins!

Hearts set ablaze by this new love will long to cry it out to all the families of the world, so that they too may rejoice in this immense hope that cannot be kept silent — just as Anna could not keep quiet. You will feel compelled to proclaim it without ceasing.

This is what we live and share in the Marital Love Project with everyone who comes — those who desire a new life, a new love, something more that they sense; because they are invited; because… what does it matter? Ultimately, everyone whom Our Lady brings: to announce that Jesus is alive in every marriage, ready to give us a love the world neither knows nor understands, yet deeply longs for. And although at first it begins small, as the Child Jesus was small, in time it grows, is strengthened, and is filled with God’s wisdom and grace, drawing to itself all who pass by.

Brought into Married Life

Lucy: Andrew, sometimes I stop and think, and I can’t believe what God has done in our life and in our love. If I look back just a few years, I truly don’t recognise us.

Andrew: It’s true, Lucy. Who would have told us? We thought we were fine, but we could never have imagined the immense distance between “being fine” and loving with God’s own love.

Lucy: An abyss. How small simply getting along is compared to feeling that we are living the Kingdom of God. And not only us — little Lucy too… it’s incredible how she’s growing in faith, in love, in maturity…

Andrew: That’s why we can’t keep quiet. We have to proclaim it tirelessly, so that all married couples may discover that we are called to live a marvellous love — that it is possible!

Lucy: (Smiling) By the way, speaking of not stopping — just a reminder that in ten minutes we have the meeting to prepare the retreat. Grab the laptop; I left it next to the television.

Andrew: Next to the television? What is a television? (laughs)

Lucy: Andrew! We’ve gone from watching recorded fiction series to witnessing real miracles live. Would you change that?

Andrew: Not a chance!

Lucy: Glory to God! (smiles)

Mother,

Teach us to help the Kingdom of God grow within us, being witnesses and prophets of conjugal love. Guided by your hand, we shall go wherever you send us. Praise be to God!