GOSPEL

“For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say.”
From the Gospel according to Luke 12:8-12
Jesus said to his disciples:“I tell you,everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God. But whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God.
“Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spiri will not be forgiven.When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities,do not worry about how or what your defense will be or about what you are to say.For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Questioning His Presence.

We ask ourselves: When we doubt that Christ is part of our marriage, are we not, in a way, denying Him before others? And when we speak against our spouse in front of others, are we not also denying Christ? What we do to our spouse, we do to Christ.

Applied to married life

Lourdes: When I feel rejected by you, the pain is much deeper than if it came from someone else. This is because we are truly united as one. 
Antonio: And when I reject you, I feel a heavy guilt, especially in my spiritual life and in other areas. 
Lourdes: That’s because there is a Sacrament between us, meaning the Lord is present in our relationship.

Mother,

We will never deny the Lord. Grant us the love we need to remain faithful, no matter what comes our way. Praise be to the Lord.

GOSPEL

“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few”
From the Gospel according to Luke 10:1-9

The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.He said to them,”The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.Go on your way;behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;and greet no one along the way.Into whatever house you enter,first say, ‘Peace to this household.’If a peaceful person lives there,your peace will rest on him;but if not, it will return to you.Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you,for the laborer deserves payment.Do not move about from one house to another.Whatever town you enter and they welcome you,eat what is set before you,cure the sick in it and say to them,’The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.'”

The Gospel of the Lord

Careful! They Are His.

The harvest belongs to the Lord! Let us never forget this, please. The harvest is God’s, and He sends us to His harvest. One of our problems is that we tend to take possession of His harvest. In church movements and parishes: Everyone belongs to the Lord, and we owe them the freedom to choose that place within the Church that brings them closer to the Lord. Let us not forget that. Many of the faithful are suffering because they are made to feel unfaithful for going to a different ecclesiastical setting that helps them draw closer to the Lord. We belong to Christ, they belong to Christ.

In the domestic church, which is our home, the same thing happens. Sometimes we want to take possession of our spouses or our children. They too belong first and foremost to God, and from that comes the enormous dignity and reverence with which we should treat them.

Applied to Married Life:

Charlie: I used to want to change you and mold you to fit my own image. Now I love it when St. John Paul speaks about the respect we owe one another. It’s not the kind of respect that says, “Do whatever you want, I have to respect you,” but the respect that comes from knowing that you belong to God and that God resides in your soul.

Teresa: And out of respect for who we are, children of God, we must behave as such. I ask you to help me make this a reality, encouraging me to belong to Christ. I was born for Him.

Charles: The truth is, I feel very small and unworthy of you and of this mission to which God is calling me: To administer His Love so that you may reach Him, through my self-giving. You are His princess, and that makes me tremble before God.

Teresa: We are very small for this mission. Let us ask the Holy Spirit for the gift of Piety, so that He may be the one to accomplish it.

Mother,

May we treat the harvest with the dignity of those who are sent by God. Praise be to Him, who shares His mission of salvation with us

GOSPEL

“This generation might be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world,from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah”
From the Gospel according to Luke 11:47-54
The Lord said:“Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets whom your fathers killed.Consequently, you bear witness and give consent to the deeds of your ancestors,for they killed them and you do the building.Therefore, the wisdom of God said,‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles;some of them they will kill and persecute’in order that this generation might be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world,from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who died between the altar and the temple building.Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!Woe to you, scholars of the law!You have taken away the key of knowledge.You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”When Jesus left, the scribes and Phariseesbegan to act with hostility toward himand to interrogate him about many things,for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Tools of the devil

How important it is to stay close to the Lord through prayer so that the Spirit can grant us the gift of knowledge. Through this gift, we discern what is right and wrong and recognize when we start to stray. It helps us to value human matters in the light of God. The devil is very clever and can confuse us, just as he did with the Pharisees, but this gift of the Holy Spirit frees us from those errors and misunderstandings that can lead us astray, and cause us to lead others astray as well.

Applied to married life:

Laura: Lately, I’ve noticed that you’re getting very distracted by looking at new car models. Why are you suddenly so interested? I thought you had gotten over that attachment years ago.

Michael: A couple of weeks ago, you mentioned that our car was getting outdated, and that sparked my interest in looking at what’s available, in case we decided to replace it. But you’re right, it’s capturing too much of my attention, and I’m losing focus on what’s central to my life: God and you.

Laura: A few months ago, the same thing happened to me. While thinking about changing the living room cushions, I got caught up in browsing a ton of décor stuff. Thank God I realized it and put an end to it.

Michael: Yes, thank you. It helped a lot that you pointed it out. God bless you. Honestly, the internet and those algorithms that analyze our behavior—they’re like tools of the devil. They show you what grabs your attention, whether you want it or not.

Laura: We need to be alert in all these things and discern what is truly necessary, so we don’t give undue attention to what doesn’t deserve it.

Mother,

We asked for the gift of knowledge so we don’t stray from the path of Love. Praise the Lord, who is the center of our lives.

“Woe to you Pharisees! Woe also to you scholars of the law!”

A reading from the Gospel of Luke 11:42-46

The Lord said:
“Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb, but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God. These you should have done, without overlooking the others. Woe to you Pharisees! You love the seat of honor in synagogues
and greetings in marketplaces. Woe to you! You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.”

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, “Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.” And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Unleashing Love

Watch out for the law and burdens. First for ourselves, and second for placing them on our spouses and children. 

Our faith is based on love, and everything in it is driven by love. What moves me to pray? First, the Love of Christ, I discover how  tremendously loved I am, and second, the love that arises in me in response. Love with a capital “L” calls for love with a lowercase “l.” 

It is then that I discover that He calls me to give myself to my spouse, it is then that I discover the value of my spouse to the Lord, it is then that I discover the value of my spouse to me, it is then that my spouse discovers the value I have for him or her, and it is then that I feel loved by my spouse. 

Everything starts from the Love of God, which unleashes our love.

Applied to Married Life:

Tony: When did you convert to Christian marriage? 

Diana: First, I got married because I felt attracted to you and loved by you in a worldly way. I liked that you pampered me, that you were head over heels for me. It was totally a lustful kind of love. 

Tony: And then came work, the difficulties of living together, arguments because of in-laws… And everything collapsed for you. Right? And finally, your conversion to Christian marriage. 

Diana: Exactly. The first thing was discovering God’s Love. Knowing that I am loved by Him. And He made me realize that you are my mission, your true beauty, and your real worth, and that I love you not only for who you are now but for who you are called to be. And that this journey I had to walk with you, through loving you and giving myself for you. I love you, and I want to see you holy, you know? 

Tony: I know. Me too. I love you, and I want to see you holy.

Mother,

May our giving of ourselves always be out of love, seeking the good of my husband or wife. Praise be to the Lord who loves us so much.

GOSPEL