Gospel

‘He who is mighty has done great things for me; he has exalted those of humble estate.’
Luke 1:39-56

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.’
And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring for ever.’
And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.

The Gospel of the Lord

Mary, School of Love

In this Gospel, we contemplate Our Mother, who teaches us how to love and shows us the steps to follow: First, to receive Jesus, to have God within us. Then, without delay, to set out to bring Jesus to others and to serve, just as Mary promptly sets out to serve Elizabeth. She does not remain enclosed within herself, but goes out to meet Elizabeth. She does not wait for her to ask for help; she takes the initiative. Elizabeth recognises God’s action in Mary, and Mary takes no credit for herself, but responds with the Magnificat, proclaiming that every good thing comes from God, praising Him, exalting Him and giving Him thanks. And we see that when we truly put Christ at the centre of our lives, we are filled with joy, an overflowing joy that comes from knowing that God is among us.
Husbands and wives, true love always moves us to go beyond ourselves in order to seek the good of others, and who is closer to us than our spouse? In married life, charity often consists in recognising the needs of the other before they express them, serving with joy and putting our own gifts at the service of others, without taking credit for the good that exists in our family, but recognising that it is God who transforms our hearts and makes our love fruitful. That is why married love is not lived only for the two spouses, but becomes a source of life for our children, our family and others.
So today I ask myself: Am I willing today to step outside myself, draw closer to my spouse and serve them with joy, recognising that God wants to make our marriage an instrument of His love?

Applied to Married Life:

Nina: It strikes me that Mary, after the Annunciation, quickly sets out to help Elizabeth. She does not remain focused on herself or think of herself first, but on the good of the other person.
Patrick: It strikes me too. It makes me think of us. I often focus on my own worries and wait for you to take the first step and ask me for things, instead of paying attention to what you need.
Nina: I do the same. Sometimes I am so focused on myself and what I need that I forget to ask myself: “What can I do today to make Patrick feel better?” But Mary teaches us that loving means going beyond ourselves and seeking the good of the other person first.
Patrick: I think that’s very important, Nina. Love isn’t simply about having butterflies in your stomach or feeling affection for you; it’s about serving you, listening to you and caring about what you need. When I serve you out of love, I don’t lose anything; on the contrary, I notice that our marriage grows in communion.
Nina: And Mary doesn’t go simply to help; she also carries Jesus with her. That makes me think that we too can bring Christ to one another when we live with patience, humility and self-giving.
Patrick: And the encounter ends in joy and praise. Perhaps we too should learn to recognise the good things God does in our marriage, even in the midst of our difficulties.
Nina: So, what can we do today?
Patrick: Well, like Mary: let us go out to meet one another, serve without expecting anything in return and give thanks to God.
Nina: Yes. And may our marriage also be a Visitation: bringing Christ into the heart of the other.

Mother,
teach us to truly love one another with the love of God, with a gentle and humble heart like yours, ready to serve and to bring Jesus to others, and to recognise that everything good is the work of Our Lord. Blessed and glorious are You, Mother! Praised be the Lord for ever!

Gospel

‘Do not hinder the little children from coming to me, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’
Matthew 19:13-15

At that time: Children were brought to Jesus that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’ And he laid his hands on them and went away.

The Gospel of the Lord

Everything and Nothing.

Gospel

‘Because of hardness of heart Moses allowed wives to be divorced, but from the beginning it was not so.’
Matthew 19:3–12

At that time: Pharisees came up to Jesus and tested him by asking, ‘Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?’ He answered, ‘Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no one separate.’ They said to him, ‘Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.’
  The disciples said to him, ‘If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.’ But he said to them, ‘Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.’

The Gospel of the Lord

At the beginning it was not so.

The Pharisees try to put Jesus in a difficult position by asking Him this question, and He refers them back to the beginning, to Genesis, to the creation of man and woman. Dear couples of the Marital Love Project, how well known and loved this passage is to us! It is on this passage that Saint John Paul II based his catecheses on Marriage and the Family. The Marital Love Project carries on this legacy, which is doing so much good; there are many people evangelising and bringing the Good News to the whole world. And you, dear couples, do you still not know about it? What are you waiting for?

Applied to Married Life:

(Martha and Luke finish their conjugal prayer)
Luke: Thank You, Lord. Blessed and praised are You.
Martha: Thank You, Lord. And thank you too, Luke. I love that you share with me what the Lord says to you; it helps me to see the truth and beauty of your soul.
Luke: How beautiful you are, darling.
Martha: You know? Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Maximilian Kolbe. I read about him this morning—it’s incredible. He gave his life in a concentration camp during the Second World War in exchange for the life of a father of a family.
Luke: Goodness, he understood the value of a father within the family.
Martha: And it has taken me so long to see it. I always put the children first and left you to one side. Forgive me, because I know I hurt you deeply.
Luke: You stopped doing that a long time ago. How much good the Marital Love Project has done for our family. It has also helped me to see how important it is for our children to see us united and praying. Loving one another is the most important thing so that they feel loved and protected.
Martha: Blessed be God! You really are my Suitable Helper!

Mother,
We remember the words of Saint Maximilian Kolbe: “Where the Immaculate One enters, Jesus enters, He who is the King of love, peace and joy”, so, dear Mother, we invite you to enter into the depths of our hearts. Blessed are You!

Gospel

‘I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.’
Matthew 18:21–19:1

At that time: Peter came up and said to Jesus, ‘Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.
  ‘Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.” And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, “Pay what you owe.” So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you.” He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, “You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?” And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.’
  Now when Jesus had finished these sayings, he went away from Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.

The Gospel of the Lord

Forgive from the Heart.

Peter asks Jesus how many times he must forgive, as though love could be measured with a calculator. Sometimes in marriage it is easy to keep a tally of our wounds: “I’m always the one who gives in”, “you never listen to me”, “I still haven’t forgiven you for that”, and without realising it, we turn our relationship into a balance sheet of debts. The king forgives an unpayable debt, but the servant is unable to forgive a small debt. Jesus does not compare the offences between husband and wife with something insignificant; rather, He invites us to contemplate how every wound we receive is illuminated by the immense forgiveness God grants us each day. When God’s mercy is no longer at the centre of our marriage, we begin to demand justice from one another. But whoever lives with gratitude for having been forgiven learns to look upon their spouse’s weaknesses with compassion. In married life, the greatest enemy is the small resentment that gradually builds up. Every unresolved argument, every silence, every stored-up reproach builds a wall, but forgiveness breaks that wall because it chooses not to collect the emotional debt. This does not mean justifying what is wrong or avoiding talking about what happened, but deciding that love will be greater than the offence. To forgive always means choosing one’s spouse again and again over pride; it means allowing God’s mercy to pass through our heart before reaching the other person. Only someone who knows that they are deeply loved and forgiven by the Lord can build a marriage where there is always the possibility of beginning again.

Applied to Married Life:

Margaret: James, I’m tired of you always coming home late from work, always with some excuse. It seems as though work is more important than your family. You’ve left us so neglected. I work too, and I make an effort to get everything done. Yet with you it always seems to be the same: lots of apologies, but you still come home late.
James: There’s no winning with you. Believe it or not, I always try to come home earlier, but there’s always something. It gives me peace of mind knowing that you make the effort to get home earlier, but no matter how hard I try, it’s always the same. I feel judged and constantly criticised. Sometimes I think that no matter what I do, it never seems to be enough.
That evening, during their conjugal prayer:
Margaret: Thank You, Lord. In the light of this Gospel, I realise that I’m no longer arguing with James just about today’s delay, but about all the wounds that have been stored up over these weeks of intense work.
James: Lord, I ask for forgiveness many times, but I’m not making concrete changes to show that I mean it. I realise that I always prioritise what I consider important, putting myself before others.
Margaret: Lord, help me to stop bringing up mistakes that have already been forgiven and to give James the opportunity to begin again.
James: Help me, Lord, to put Margaret and our family before my own things and my own self. I ask You to help us make our marriage stand out not because of our debts, but because of God’s mercy.

Mother,
Your Son never tires of forgiving us. Help us to experience the immensity of God’s mercy each day, so that we may offer that mercy to one another. Give us a humble heart that knows how to ask for forgiveness, and a merciful heart that knows how to grant it. Blessed be God

Gospel

‘If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.’
Matthew 18:15–20

At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.’

The Gospel of the Lord

Hearts of Reparation

The Good Shepherd goes out in search of the lost sheep, and today Jesus teaches us that we too must go out to meet them. All the baptised are members of one Body, the Body of Christ, which is the Church. Saint Paul says: “If one member suffers, all suffer with it” (1 Cor 12:26). That is why Jesus does not leave us indifferent to our brother’s sin, but calls us to go in search of him: “If he listens to you, you have won your brother.” When one member is wounded, the whole Body suffers with him. When we physically suffer a wound, millions of platelets silently rush to close it so that the body does not bleed to death. My sin, the sin of my spouse, my children, or any of my brothers and sisters, opens wounds in the Body of Christ, and we, as members of that same Body, are called to run towards them with our prayer, our sacrifice and our love. When we hear about a scandal, or see a brother’s sin, what do we do? Do I judge, criticise, make the wound worse, spread it? We need to pray for the wound that sin has left in the Church. Jesus wants us to be like those platelets that rush to the wound quickly, silently, without making a noise, without attacking, but helping to heal. Christian husbands and wives, who will repair the Heart of Jesus and the Heart of Mary? There is no time to lose! Every act of reparation closes a wound, and every sacrifice strengthens the whole Body. Let us pray, as the little shepherds of Fatima did, the prayer that the Angel taught them: “My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love You. I ask forgiveness for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You.”

Applied to Married Life:

Margaret: Have you heard what happened to that couple from the school? It’s dreadful! I have to tell my sister; she won’t believe it…
Liam: Wait, wait. What if instead of telling her, we pray for them?
Margaret: Pray? But we don’t even know them! What they have done is terrible!
Liam: Precisely because of that… They don’t need us to make the wound bigger by talking about them; they need someone to help heal it through prayer.
Margaret: You’re right. I thought there was nothing we could do… but you’re right, we can pray for them tonight.
Liam: “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” So, if we pray together for them, Jesus will make Himself present, and then our little prayer at home will become a bridge between heaven and earth.
Margaret: How beautiful! Here we are praying for them in our sitting room, while they have no idea that someone is praying for their marriage.
Liam: We can also offer our silence to the Lord, choosing not to tell others about it. What do you think?
Margaret: Of course! How many times could we turn our conversations about others into prayers for them!

Mother,
make us little hearts of reparation. Blessed and praised are You!