From the Gospel according to Mark
Mark 7:1-13

When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem
gathered around Jesus,
they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals
with unclean, that is, unwashed, hands.
(For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews,
do not eat without carefully washing their hands,
keeping the tradition of the elders.
And on coming from the marketplace
they do not eat without purifying themselves.
And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed,
the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.)
So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him,
“Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders
but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?”
He responded,
“Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites,
as it is written:

This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines human precepts.

You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition.”
He went on to say,
“How well you have set aside the commandment of God
in order to uphold your tradition!
For Moses said,
Honor your father and your mother,
and Whoever curses father or mother shall die.
Yet you say,
‘If someone says to father or mother,
“Any support you might have had from me is qorban”‘
(meaning, dedicated to God),
you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother.
You nullify the word of God
in favor of your tradition that you have handed on.
And you do many such things.”

 

Where the heart goes.

Well, that’s it, honoring Him with lips while my heart is far from the Lord is hypocrisy. The key question today is: Is my heart close to the Lord? If I leave my heart “loose,” will it automatically go towards the Lord, or will it veer off in any other direction?

 

Applying it to married life:

Rosa: It’s true that at first it’s hard until one gets used to it and until one truly falls in love with the Lord and with the vocation of marriage, but when it happens, the Lord steals your heart, and so does your husband.

Ramón: And marriage becomes a priority. But it takes quite some time to reach that affection in the heart.

Rosa: Yes, it also depends on how determined and firm we are about it, because in that measure, grace can act and transform our priorities.

Ramón: That’s true. It took us a few years…

 

Mother,

I love the Lord above all things, and my husband with all my heart. They are the center of my life. Praise be to God who gives me His Love.

From the Gospel according to Mark
Mark 6:53-56

After making the crossing to the other side of the sea,
Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaret
and tied up there.
As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him.
They scurried about the surrounding country
and began to bring in the sick on mats
to wherever they heard he was.
Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered,
they laid the sick in the marketplaces
and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.

It’s a little difficult for me.

Jesus has great news to bring to us: that the kingdom of God has arrived with His coming. But such a big message needs to be delivered in a measured way, and the first thing He does is heal physical diseases to draw the crowds. Then, He teaches them.  

Everyone thought His healings were great, but they were nothing compared to the greatness of the news of the Kingdom. The kingdom of God is already here. Don’t you want to get close to Him and know Him? You’re going to be amazed!

Applying it to Married Life:

Ángel: I want to live the kingdom of God with you. Don’t you want to?  

Sofía: Of course I do, but you need to help me because you know I’m very nervous, and I quickly get distracted and focus on practical things. I need you to help me with love and without telling me off, to be silent and become aware of the Heart that Jesus gives me. It seems so beautiful and so important that He wants me to be in Him, but I notice it’s hard for me because I get distracted without meaning to.  

Ángel: You’re right that, even though I’ve wanted to help you for a long time, maybe instead of helping you enter into silence, I’ve disturbed you more with my demands and harsh words. I will ask the Lord for help so that I can convey to you, with tenderness, the love that is in His Heart for you. 

Sofía: Thank you. You know I try to be docile, but the emotional side is a little hard for me, even though I know that to reach God, it’s through the heart and by entering into His Heart.

Mother, 

May we welcome the kingdom of God, the one in which the Lord wants to introduce us so that we may be in Him. Praise be Christ, the source of Love for us.

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to Luke
Luke 5:1-11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening
to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon said in reply,
“Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets.”
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
“Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men.”
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.

The Incomprehensible

There are times when God’s logic seems incomprehensible, even absurd, according to our way of reasoning and thinking. This is what Peter says to the Lord: If they’ve been fishing for hours and caught nothing, how are they going to fish at the wrong time?
But Peter trusts in His Word above all else, and shows us what happens when we trust in Him. The Lord is generous and abundant.
This is the same experience that we husbands and wives encounter when we do not value our spouse according to our own criteria, but instead embrace the spouse as a gift from God. Then, a miracle of similar proportions to Peter’s catch takes place.

Applying it to married life:

Jorge: We’ve been trying for several years to stay together, but it’s not possible. We are totally incompatible.
Mercedes: You, husband, come in the name of the Lord, but I just can’t fully believe it. But I’m determined to try to see it, even if it means shedding blood, if necessary.  

(After some time…)  

Jorge: Finally, the drought between us is over. We’ve understood that we need to allow ourselves to be influenced by each other, to discover what God wants to give us through each other.
Mercedes: We are learning, overcoming attachments that had us trapped, and we are sharing our intimacy. We have become a great treasure to each other. We thank God for showing us the beauty of our vocation.

Mother,  

We look at each other with our eyes and judge with false criteria, and of course, there are no fruits. Purify our sight and change our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. Thank you, Mother!

Gospel of the Day

Gospel of the Day