Gospel of the day

From the Gospel according to Luke 6:39-42

Jesus told his disciples a parable:

“Can a blind person guide a blind person?
Will not both fall into a pit?
No disciple is superior to the teacher;
but when fully trained,
every disciple will be like his teacher.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”

Sharing the Creator’s Gaze

Lord, how easy it is for us to judge our husband’s actions.

If he shouts at the children, if he argues with his mother, if he only thinks about work—if, if, if… we could spend so much time thinking about all the things we believe he should do better. It seems incredible that we attended the Project retreat, learnt that we must change our way of seeing, went through years of catechesis, and yet at the first opportunity we fall back again. And that is only when it comes to our husband; when it is about our in-laws, colleagues, friends or clients, our gaze is even harsher. And You have told us in words that could not be clearer: “First take the plank out of your own eye.” And how can we do that? With a visit to the Tabernacle, placing all our thoughts before You, with a thorough examination of conscience and a sincere confession: that way our vision is cleansed and we begin to see the beauty within all Your children.

Applied to married life

Michael: Hello Rachel, how was your day? (he comes close and kisses her)

Rachel: Oh Michael, fine here, as always. This morning was very busy with work, but today the children behaved quite well, they did their homework and ate their supper without a fuss. And you—how was your day?

Michael: It was a complicated one. Things were so much easier when I wasn’t the manager. But now that I have to keep an eye on my team, I realise they don’t put in nearly as much effort as they should. They’re always trying to do as little as possible. Today Robert was the last straw—he was supposed to hand in two reports and then told me his daughter had just been left by her boyfriend. What on earth has that got to do with work? Honestly, he’s so irresponsible.

Rachel: Oh, I’m really sorry. If you like, after supper we can make our couple’s prayer and you can place it before the Lord.

(Later)

Michael: Lord, I ask Your forgiveness for all the unfair judgements I make. Rachel, during prayer the Lord reminded me that Robert’s daughter struggles with an eating disorder. I can only imagine how much it must have worried him that, just as she was starting to improve, her boyfriend left her. I realise I haven’t been to confession for quite a while and my way of seeing has become clouded. I’ve lost awareness of my own sin.

Rachel: Go to the priest without hesitation and without fear. Tell him honestly how you feel, and he will help you to make a good confession. He is there in Christ’s name; I’m sure it will help you greatly.

Michael: I’ll do that tomorrow, and I hope you can come with me. I also want to thank you, because when I told you about my problem you listened with such kindness and didn’t judge me.

Rachel: Well, I actually went to confession this morning during breakfast hour. It’s such a blessing—ever since I started taking a piece of fruit to work and, instead of going to the café, I pop into the church nearby to spend a few minutes in prayer. It’s been wonderful for my body’s health and, even more importantly, much better for the health of my soul. Praised be God, who loves us so much and is always waiting for us!

Mother,

No one like you knows how to see the truth and the beauty within each of us. We ask you to teach us to look at our husband, children, friends… in the same way. Blessed are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus!

Gospel of the day

From the Gospel according to Luke 6:27-38

Jesus said to his disciples:
“To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

Learning to Love

Jesus reminds us of the summary of the commandments of God’s law: “You shall love the Lord your God above all things, and your neighbour as yourself.” Yet so often the stain of sin draws us to seek love in return — to love only in proportion to the love we receive — the sadly well-known “today for you, tomorrow for me.” And it is such a pity, for us to waste the greatness of love.

One of the world’s biggest problems is that we do not know how to love; we must learn. And Jesus tells us very clearly in this Gospel: love your enemies, and treat others as you would have them treat you. How often in marriage we may fall into giving ourselves only according to the giving of our spouse, only to find that such a response drives us further apart.

But, specially through the grace of our sacrament, we are called by God to be merciful as He teaches us, to respond always without expecting anything in return, and to reach the point of “today for you, and tomorrow for you, and for you, for you, for you…” The Sacred Heart of Jesus is always waiting for us to pour into us that generous, full, pressed down and overflowing measure — just as we are to pour it out for our spouse and for all others.

Brought into Married Life:

Paula: What’s happened? You seem to be a bit on the edge.

Christopher: Nothing new. I’ve argued with my mother again. She keeps saying how neglected she feels by me, but she doesn’t understand that I only want the best for her.

Paula: She is your mother, and you can’t let yourself be carried away by your feelings. She has always been at your side when you needed her.

Christopher: Yes, I know, and that’s why I try so hard to make sure she’s well cared for, but it seems it’s never enough.

Paula: That’s true, she is getting older, and you are the one who has to give way. You can’t care for her based on how she responds to you, but on what she truly needs.

Christopher: Yes, that’s easy to say, but when she ignores me it’s exhausting and makes me want to give up. Besides, I’ve got other siblings who could take care of her too.

Paula: I understand, but you need to be patient. She’s also going through a hard time with your father’s absence, and you can’t leave her alone, no matter how much she goes against you. You’re being a great example for your children — and I’m sure also for your siblings, who no doubt care for her in their own way.

Christopher: You’re right again. I know my giving cannot depend on her response, and I can’t rely on my feelings. I need to yield and stay by her side.

Paula: Brilliant! You deserve great credit for loving in difficult situations when everything seems against you. And it’s not only with your mother — it’s amazing how much you’ve changed, putting others first.

Christopher: Perhaps, but I know the credit is not mine alone.

Mother,

May your Immaculate Heart be our model for loving our enemies — doing them good, blessing them, and praying for them. Blessed be the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Gospel of the day

From the Gospel according to Luke
6:20-26

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.

“Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.
For their ancestors treated the prophets
in the same way.
But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”

Searching for the treasure 

Our life is a journey towards definitive union with God.

Jesus sheds light on this path. With these four beatitudes and four misfortunes, it seems the Lord is handing us a compass for our way to heaven — a road map so that we do not lose our bearings.

The treasure is not where we usually seek it: in riches, comforts, being well-fed or applauded. In this Gospel, Jesus shows us that the treasure is precisely in those difficult situations that we normally reject. The treasure is in the Cross.

Where there is a difficulty, there is a cross; and where there is a cross, there is an opportunity to grow in love. If the Cross makes us grow in love, then we have found the treasure!

In the daily life of marriage we face situations of misunderstanding, humiliation, judgement, contempt… The marvellous thing is that the Lord uses them to draw us closer to Him. Let us not forget that we are Christian spouses, and that the Cross is our identity.

The Kingdom of God in marriage flourishes when, in the midst of tears, weariness, and renunciations, we continue to choose to love.

Husbands and wives, blessed are we if, in the trials that confront us, we find the treasure hidden within them!

Brought into Married Life:

Alice: I feel so discouraged, with no desire for anything. So many problems are robbing me of joy and the will to live. Nothing goes right: my boss has worn me down, the car repair costs a fortune we don’t have, these pains won’t go away day after day… but worst of all was the argument last night with our children. The older they get, the worse it seems… and I could go on with the list if you like… None of this makes sense. What’s the point of praying if afterwards all this happens to us? It’s just not fair!

Joseph: Well, I think that praying is precisely what we need. Look, today’s Gospel really unsettled me… Notice how Jesus blesses these difficult situations. I think the Lord is asking us to place our trust in Him… And how could we show Him our trust if everything were going perfectly for us and we had no difficulties at all?

Alice: So what are you saying — that everything happening to us is good?

Joseph: Not that it is good in itself, but with the Lord it truly can be very good. They can be moments of grace for us.

Alice: Thank you for that way of looking at it. Seen like that, everything does take on another meaning.

Mother,

You too lived through many difficult situations. Help us to encounter Jesus in each one of them. Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us!

Gospel of the day

From the Gospel according to Luke 6:12-19

Jesus departed to the mountain to pray,
and he spent the night in prayer to God.
When day came, he called his disciples to himself,
and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:
Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,
James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,
Simon who was called a Zealot,
and Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

And he came down with them and stood on a stretch of level ground.
A great crowd of his disciples and a large number of the people
from all Judea and Jerusalem
and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon
came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
and even those who were tormented by unclean spirits were cured.
Everyone in the crowd sought to touch him
because power came forth from him and healed them all.

You Decide

The truth is — let’s not deceive ourselves — we always have time for what we truly want. If I do not live a life of prayer, it is because for me it is not a priority. And if it is not, it means I do not understand what I am risking by living without it.

Perhaps you have come away from one of our retreats filled with the great joy of seeing that it is indeed possible to live a happy marriage. But if time has gone by, and you no longer see it so clearly, what you are lacking is prayer.

Do you want to live a marriage as God intended it? Pray.

Do you want to have peace? Pray.

Do you want to be happy? Pray.

Do you say you love God and yet do not pray? The measure of your love for God is the measure of your prayer. If God always has time for me, how could I ever say that I do not have time for Him?

We see our Lord spending whole nights in prayer. Jesus always prayed (and He was God), but at the critical moments of His life on earth, He prayed even more. We came forth from God and we shall return to Him. Sooner or later we shall enter eternal life. Choose the way of prayer, so that your destination may be heaven. You decide.

Brought into Married Life

(Mary speaks with her mentor)

Mary: Rachel, we’re back to the same old thing again. I admit I’m unbearable, but Paul doesn’t help either. The other day we were leaving the house and already running late. Same story as always: he takes ages to get ready, I lost my patience, shouted at him, shouted at the children — well, at him too a bit. Then he got angry with me… In the end we even went to bed without speaking, can you believe it? It felt just like the beginning again!

Rachel: How long has it been since you last prayed together?

Mary: Ugh…

Rachel: Mary, there is no life of love without prayer. You know this already. It’s not about praying one day and not the next. Live a life of prayer — faithful, daily — because, as the Lord tells us: “Without Me you can do nothing.” It is up to you to make the decision. Courage!

Mary,

You who are full of grace, because your life was prayer, because everything you did was done in union with God: help us to persevere in prayer, help us to realise that without a life of prayer, there can be no life of grace. Blessed are you forever, Mother!

Gospel of the day

From the Gospel according to Matthew
1:1-16, 18-23

The Book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham became the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.
Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah,
whose mother was Tamar.
Perez became the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab.
Amminadab became the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon the father of Boaz,
whose mother was Rahab.
Boaz became the father of Obed,
whose mother was Ruth.
Obed became the father of Jesse,
Jesse the father of David the king.

David became the father of Solomon,
whose mother had been the wife of Uriah.
Solomon became the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asaph.
Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah.
Uzziah became the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah.
Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amos,
Amos the father of Josiah.
Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers
at the time of the Babylonian exile.

After the Babylonian exile,
Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud.
Abiud became the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor the father of Zadok.
Zadok became the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar.
Eleazar became the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.
Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.
When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,
but before they lived together,
she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,
yet unwilling to expose her to shame,
decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
For it is through the Holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet:

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,

which means “God is with us.”

In Three Steps

Today we celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And, on this day, she gives us Jesus. The marvellous thing is that, although it is her birthday, she is so generous that she gives herself so that the gift may be ours. Nothing less than this: she gives us the Saviour who delivers us from our sins.

God prepared a people and a womb in which to be born. A love story answered by Mary, who cradles this God who longs to “pitch His tent” among us. Salvation reaches every marriage that welcomes Jesus into the story of their family.

Mary signifies a new beginning for the chosen people. That is why we entrust ourselves to her, so as to begin new, despite our wounds. If we are as docile as she is, and welcome the plan of Love that God has for our marriage, we shall witness great miracles.

We also look to the docility and trust of Saint Joseph, who, though feeling unworthy of so great an honour, accepted the mission entrusted to him: to guard the Saviour of humanity. In spousal prayer, husbands and wives receive their mission to collaborate in God’s plan, and, like Joseph, we feel bewildered by our smallness.

Three steps for a gift. First, Jesus waits for us to welcome Him into our marriage. Then, through the Eucharist, the Sacraments, and our self-giving, He transforms our hearts and deepens our union. This is the path of salvation. Finally, God proposes to us a mission, according to the gifts He has given, and calls us to collaborate in His plan of salvation for humanity. Shall we say yes, as the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph did?

Brought into Married Life:

Naomi: I think we did the right thing in moving to another country. It was what the family needed. Though I do miss our marriage group, the catechesis, the times of adoration… I’m afraid of loosing everything we have received.

James: That’s true. Welcoming Jesus between us, spousal prayer… it has brought about a change in our life that we never could have imagined… It has saved us!

Naomi: There are so many marriages here in this country that need to know the truth… What if what they told us is really true – that God has sent us here for them?

James : Us? Well, the Virgin would have had poor judgement indeed! No, no, no… Though we shall bring it to prayer, and let the Holy Spirit tell us.

(After that prayer, and with the bewilderment of feeling so small, they accepted the mission that the Holy Spirit entrusted to them. They went to the priest of their parish, and today many couples have come to know this gift and, with the grace of God, have been able to transform their marriage.)

Mother,

Thank you for the gift you have brought to humanity; thank you for Jesus our Saviour. Thank you, Saint Joseph, for saying yes and trusting, accepting the mission of guarding God, who had made Himself small and weak in order to assume our humanity. Praise be to God!