GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John
Jn 5:1-16

There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him,
“Do you want to be well?”
The sick man answered him,
“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.

Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
“It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.”
He answered them, “The man who made me well told me,
‘Take up your mat and walk.'”
They asked him,
“Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?”
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
“Look, you are well; do not sin anymore,
so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because he did this on a sabbath.

The Gospel of the Lord

Be attentive to the Grace

Like the paralytic, we must be attentive to when the Lord stirs the water to respond immediately. The Lord will come to our rescue if He sees our desire for conversion. He will give us sufficient grace in every moment. He has committed Himself through our sacrament, which has healing grace. Today, I look again at the pool of humility that I’ve been gazing at from the edge, over and over again. But today, I feel the hand of the Lord touching my shoulder from behind and with that transforming voice, He tells me: “Rise, take hold of your self-love and walk on your spiritual path.” But of course, if reaching humility is difficult, maintaining it is even harder. That’s why the Lord tells me again: “Go and sin no more, do not allow something worse to happen to you.”

Applied to Married Life:

Mar: I’m living in peace and harmony with you. With just one day that you’ve done everything right, you’ve won my heart back. Furthermore your dedication to service and your good humour have remained. Not so much pressure that suffocates.

Alberto: Yes, Mar. I’m aware of my tendency to focus on the bad things, towards perfectionism, towards monitoring everything you do, towards rolling my eyes as soon as something isn’t done the way I think it should be… towards sarcastic or inappropriate comments. When I think about humility I see it as something what is missing in my life to be able to love you as you deserve. Therefore, I ask the Lord for it every day, so He can prepare me properly and according to His times, He will free me from my bad behaviour towards you. I would like to love you, Mar.

Mar: Thank you, Alberto. It comforts me to know that you’re aware of your issues and your willingness for the Lord to convert your heart. My stumbling block is sexuality, so I also would like to ask the Lord to heal me and not judge you for what you have giving me or for the way you treat me, but rather teach me to always be with you regardless of your behaviour. My love for you cannot depend on your actions.

Alberto: Lord, today we’ve experienced that You always approach` us with the intention to heal us. We eagerly await for You to take us out of our paralysis, but only when You see us ready.

Mar: Amen.

Mother,

We love You and we want to be in Your Heart. We ask the Lord to lead us into it. Thank You, Lord. Praise be to You

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John

Jn 4:43-54

At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee.
For Jesus himself testified
that a prophet has no honor in his native place.
When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him,
since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast;
for they themselves had gone to the feast.

Then he returned to Cana in Galilee,
where he had made the water wine.
Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum.
When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea,
he went to him and asked him to come down
and heal his son, who was near death.
Jesus said to him,
“Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.”
The royal official said to him,
“Sir, come down before my child dies.”
Jesus said to him, “You may go; your son will live.”
The man believed what Jesus said to him and left.
While the man was on his way back,
his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live.
He asked them when he began to recover.
They told him,
“The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon.”
The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him,
“Your son will live,”
and he and his whole household came to believe.
Now this was the second sign Jesus did
when he came to Galilee from Judea.

The Gospel of the Lord

Because I believe, I see.

John speaks of signs and not of miracles. The word “sign” refers to something I see with my eyes, but whose profound meaning is only discovered by faith. Faith is like an X-Ray that helps me discover what the eyes do not see, and it turns out to be the deepest, the heart of God. My attitude shouldn’t be: “because I see, I believe,” but rather: “because I believe, I see.” The official mentioned in the Gospel “believed in the word of Jesus and set out on his way.” This is the key phrase of today’s Word, do not doubt, do not be afraid, believe in the word of Jesus and set out on your way. You will see great miracles. We are witnesses to this.

Applied to married life:

Pablo: (Praying with Marta) Lord, please don’t let me lose my job.

Marta: Lord, I pray for Pablo’s job… (The next day).Pablo: Lord, please protect me and don’t let me lose my job. Things are really bad. How will I find another job at my age? Marta: Lord, what will we do if they fire him? How will we live? Please, Lord, protect us. Let not our will but yours be done. (A few months later, Pablo is fired)

Pablo: I’m disappointed with God. So many times we’ve asked Him, and He hasn’t listened.

Marta: Don’t worry, Pablo. He will provide. (The next day, Marta and Pablo meet their friend Teresa on the street)

Teresa: Hey! What are you two lovebirds doing here?

Marta: Pablo lost his job, so we’re taking a walk together.

Teresa: I already knew about Pablo’s job. But do you remember when you prayed for your union because Pablo was very stressed? Well, the Lord heard your prayers. Luis mentioned it to me the other day too. We’ve never seen you so united.

Marta: That’s true. Maybe it wasn’t the best job and we needed this.

Teresa: Trust in the Lord, He will not abandon you. (Now Pablo has another job, but Marta and he are closer than ever. Praise be to the Lord.

Mother,

Mother, we are not afraid because You are steering this ship. The Spirit of the Lord guides our lives, and no one loves us more than Him. Open our eyes of faith, so we may see the Heart of the Lord. Make us participants in Divine providence. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to John
Jn 3:14-21

Jesus said to Nicodemus:
“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned,
but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the verdict,
that the light came into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light,
because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light
and does not come toward the light,
so that his works might not be exposed.
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light,
so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God

GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Mark
Mk 12:28-34

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
“Which is the first of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, “The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
“You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Luke
Lk 11:14-23

Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute,
and when the demon had gone out,
the mute man spoke and the crowds were amazed.
Some of them said, “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons,
he drives out demons.”
Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven.
But he knew their thoughts and said to them,
“Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste
and house will fall against house.
And if Satan is divided against himself,
how will his kingdom stand?
For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your own people drive them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons,
then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man fully armed guards his palace,
his possessions are safe.
But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him,
he takes away the armor on which he relied
and distributes the spoils.
Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters.