Jesus, I Trust in You. Reflection for marriages. Matthew 26:36-42

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From the Gospel according to Matthew 26: 36–42

Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

Jesus, I Trust in You

It is wonderful, a great gift and a grace that through the Gospel we are able to know the feelings of Jesus. In it, He reveals His emotions to us: moments of joy, tenderness, anger, and also moments of suffering and anguish. Today the Word tells us that, as His Passion drew near, Jesus withdrew to pray and began to feel sorrow and anguish. Sorrow unto death. So much sorrow and anguish that He fell with His face to the ground. In our lives there may also be moments when emotions take hold of us, moments of fear, uncertainty, sadness, and anguish. Moments in which our imagination overwhelms us and makes us suffer even more. Today Jesus teaches us how to live through those moments: in prayer, united with Him, abandoned into His Heart. Repeating from the depths of our soul: Jesus, I trust in You. Jesus, I trust in You.

Jesus keeps watch with us; He does not fall asleep. He remains. He is there. He is always there.

Applied to Married Life

John: Today the suffering feels so heavy that I feel I cannot keep going.

Ily: Take my hand, dear husband; together we can lean on Jesus and rest in Him.

John: Thank you for not leaving me alone in this very difficult moment.

Ily: We are spouses. Marriage is also this: walking together through pain and supporting one another with faith.

John: Lord, even though my heart is weary, I want to surrender myself to You.

Ily: Jesus, give us serenity, strengthen our hope, and remain in our home.

John: When we pray together, I feel the fear slowly disappearing.

Ily: Because Christ gives us a deep peace that no suffering can take away.

John and Ily: Jesus, I trust in You. Jesus, I trust in You.

Mother,

Teach us to remain in your Heart so that we may rest in the Heart of Jesus. Blessed are you, Mother.

Teach Me to Love. Reflection for marriages. Mark 10:32-45

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From the Gospel according to Mark 10:32-45

The disciples were on the way, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus went ahead of them. They were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. Taking the Twelve aside again, he began to tell them what was going to happen to him. “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, 
and they will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles who will mock him, spit upon him, scourge him, and put him to death, but after three days he will rise.”
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” He replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?” They answered him, “Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.” Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” They said to him, “We can.” Jesus said to them, “The chalice that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. Jesus summoned them and said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Teach Me to Love

Lord, how is it possible that You do not get angry with James and John? You are telling them that You are going to be arrested, scourged, killed… and they are only thinking about securing an important place for themselves. It is so wrong, so unfair that they ignore You and think only of themselves! Shouldn’t You say something to make them realize it, so they can learn? And the others too, shouldn’t You correct them? They are not upset in order to defend You, but because they also want those places of honor.
My Lord, why don’t You get angry? Don’t their words hurt You? Surely it hurt You to see their inability to stop thinking about themselves, their inability to put themselves in Your place. But it hurt You for their sake, not for Yours. Because You truly love. You do not love wrongly, that is, You do not love Yourself in a selfish way. You have no self-centered pride. That is why You react the way You do. Because You are filled with love for them, saddened inside by their sin, yet You embrace their poverty with tenderness and excuse them. You realize that they are unable to see clearly. You are not concerned that they fail to notice Your self-giving, but rather that they desire the first places. There Your love is revealed: love for them, not self-love. That is why You do say something to them, but not by reproaching them for not caring about You. Instead, You show them that it is not right to focus on wanting to rule over others. You tell them that love means giving oneself. That life is not about thinking of oneself, but about loving as You love. About freeing oneself from the slavery of selfish pride, which wounds both oneself and others, and becoming filled with the freedom of God, with Your Love.
Come, Holy Spirit! Teach me to love. Free me from selfish love so that I may love with You.

Applied to Married Life:

Martin: This Gospel is wonderful. It shows us how Jesus teaches us to behave, how to react in situations that hurt us.
Maureen: Absolutely! I would have been outraged by such a great injustice. I tell my closest friends that I am going to be killed, and they just ignore me!
Martin: Yes, and Jesus does not get angry. He does not focus on the fact that they ignore Him, but rather on the fact that life is meant for self-giving, for serving, not for being served. For thinking about others, not about oneself.
Maureen: Because He truly loves. He has no selfish pride; He does not love Himself above others. By contemplating Jesus, I see so clearly so many moments when I become angry at what I consider unfair, when I react badly, when I throw things back in people’s faces thinking that I have to say them, that it is for their own good so they will learn… But really, I am thinking about myself. I am not putting myself in the place of others. I am not loving the way God wants me to love.
Martin: We need to let the Lord fill us with His Love. Only then will we be able to love as He loves. And for that, we need to die to our selfish pride. Please, let us fully commit ourselves to this path of prayer, sacraments, and sacrifices that purify our hearts so that God may do His work within us.

Mother,

Teach me to love as You do, thinking only of doing the will of God. Blessed and praised be God!

Leaving Things Behind. Reflection for marriages. Mark 10:28-31

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From the Gospel according to Mark 10:28-31

Peter began to say to Jesus, “We have given up everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters
or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.” 

Leaving Things Behind

Does the Lord really ask us to let go of all our possessions and even leave behind our relatives and the people we love so much? Little by little, God shows us that what truly matters is knowing how to prioritize and understanding that everything we have and everything around us should be a means to attain eternal life.

Sometimes we act as if this passing world was our ultimate goal, and we place our hearts in material things and even in certain people. We need to become aware that everything is a mediation from the Lord; even we ourselves are a mediation for our spouse, helping them reach eternal life. That is our true purpose and what we should aspire to: to leave everything behind in order to live the Gospel within our marriage and thus reach Heaven together!

 

Applied to Married Life:

Ethan: Happy anniversary, Eli! My goodness, it’s already been eight years since we got married… time flies…

Eli: It really does… Just yesterday, during prayer, I was thanking the Lord for everything we’ve lived through together, and He showed me how our life has changed over these past years. Do you remember how, at the beginning, we put so many unimportant things ahead of our marriage? Our hearts were set on work, material possessions, or spending more time with friends than strengthening our union, and that caused us a lot of suffering. How good the Lord is, for He has been showing us that the only thing truly important is our marriage, and that in this way we can fight for it and build it together.

Ethan: I’m really beginning to understand what this sacrament is all about, and it seems so precious to me that now I see only God could have created it. I’m also beginning to understand that the differences we have bring us closer every day, and I see how, with your patience and affection, you help me grow closer to God. Now I truly see myself capable of reaching Heaven with you, hand in hand.

Eli: Ethan, when you speak to me like this, that’s when I discover your great heart, and it makes me fall even more in love with you, because I see the Lord in you!

Mother,

We ask you to show us what is truly important, so that we may continue building our union and reach Heaven together. Praise be to the Lord!

Always with Mary. Reflection for marriages. John 19:25-34

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From the Gospel according to John 19:25-34

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. After this, aware that everything was now finished, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I thirst.” There was a vessel filled with common wine. So they put a sponge soaked in vinegar on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth. When Jesus had taken the vinegar, he said, “It is finished.” And bowing his head, he handed over the spirit.

Now since it was preparation day, in order that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for the sabbath day of that week was a solemn one, the Jews asked Pilate that their legs be broken and they be taken down. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead,
they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately Blood and water flowed out.

 

Always with Mary
Today we celebrate the feast of “Mary, Mother of the Church,” which was instituted by Pope Francis in 2018 on the Monday after Pentecost. If the Church is born at Pentecost, it is deeply meaningful that on the very next day, Monday, as the Church begins her journey in the midst of the world, the person and mission of the Virgin Mary within her are especially highlighted.
Mary, at the foot of the cross, not only receives a new motherhood over the Church, but also teaches us the path of married love: to remain faithful even in suffering, to support one another when everything seems dark, and to make the home a place where Christ continues to live.

In every Christian marriage, Mary reminds us that to love is to stay, to care, and to give oneself completely until the end.

 

Applied to marriage life:

Paul: This Gospel always moves me… Mary stayed beside Jesus until the very end, even in the greatest suffering.

Maria: Yes, and it makes me think a lot about our marriage. Because truly loving also means staying by each other’s side in difficult moments, not only when everything is going well.

Paul: Exactly. Jesus says to the disciple, “Behold your mother,” and from that moment on he takes her into his home. It is as if Mary also enters into every Christian family.

Maria: Of course! and how important that is today… to let Mary care for our marriage, and to always have her as an example in the way we speak, forgive one another, and support each other.

Paul: What strikes me is Mary’s silence. She does not protest, she does not run away, she simply stays. I think this is something I often lack: not running away and also emptying my heart more, trying to be more fully present.

Maria: Yes, I lack that too. Now I see that the Virgin Mary is asking me to be there, to accompany, to support… even when I do not understand you.

Paul: Hopefully in our marriage we may also know how to love in that way: with fidelity, self-giving, and always placing Jesus at the center.

 

Mother,

you are Mother of the Church and our Mother. We ask you to teach us to remain united just as you remained beside the cross of Jesus. Help us to live our marriage with fidelity, tenderness, and self-giving, knowing how to accompany one another in joys and in difficulties.

Fruitful Poverty. Reflection for married couples. John 20:19-23

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GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 20:19-23

On the evening of that first day of the week,

when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,

for fear of the Jews,

Jesus came and stood in their midst

and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.

As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”

And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,

“Receive the Holy Spirit.

Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,

and whose sins you retain are retained.”

The word of the Lord

 

Fruitful Poverty

I may feel discouraged when I give myself to my husband and see no fruit in our marriage. It could even seem as though Christ’s own self‑giving had achieved nothing: His disciples hidden away in fear. And yet, from that pierced side on Good Friday until today, Pentecost, the heart of His Bride, the Church, has been forming. It has been a painful but necessary labour. A time of gestation marked by fear, tears, silence, doubts, purification… a time that has led her to recognise her own misery. And it is there, in that acknowledgement, that communion with Christ the Bridegroom is born, and where true evangelisation begins. It is in that poverty that the Holy Spirit finds space, and true fruitfulness comes to life.

 

Applied to married life

Mary has been trying for some time to care more attentively for John, her husband. 

She tries to listen to him better, avoid reproaches, show small gestures of affection, and pray for him every day. Deep down, she hopes that all of this will improve their marriage — that he will change and that the unity they once had will return.

But time passes, and nothing seems to improve. He remains distant, absorbed in work, and not very expressive. Little by little, Mary begins to grow weary inside: “Why should I keep giving of myself if I see no fruit?”

In the midst of that sadness, the Holy Spirit shows her something unexpected: that her self‑giving has not been sterile. All that time of silence, waiting, tears, and struggle has been bringing something far deeper to the surface of her heart: her need to be reciprocated, recognised, and valued.

And right there, in that acknowledged poverty, something within her begins to change. Christ begins to soak her soul. Her love becomes freer, less demanding, more sustained by God than by her husband’s response. She no longer needs to impose or force anything. Without realising it, she begins to radiate peace, patience, and above all, a new and unfamiliar joy.

Then she understands that true fruitfulness had begun long before any visible change appeared in her marriage: it had begun in her own soul.

Mother,

Teach us to purify our hearts so that we may be born anew in your Son. Blessed and praised for ever be He who redeemed us with His Blood.