At that time: Sadducees came to Jesus, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, ‘Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.’
Jesus said to them, ‘Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”? He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.’

The Sadducees present Jesus with a rather contrived situation in order to ridicule the resurrection, trying to understand eternal life through the categories and ways of thinking of this world. The same thing often happens to us. We may spend too much time looking down, interpreting life through our limited perspective, our own criteria, trapped in worries and false securities, forgetting to lift our eyes toward the goal.  Today, the Lord reminds us that we were created for eternal life. How beautiful it is to discover that our marriage is a path to Heaven, that God uses both the love of our spouse and their limitations to enlarge our hearts and lead us to Him. But a day will come when we will no longer need signs or mediations, because we will be gazing upon the Face of God. Lord, today in our prayer we want to awaken our desire for Heaven—to dream of it, to imagine it, to long for that moment when we fall to our knees before You, face to face, and can embrace You, kiss the wounds that saved us, and praise You forever. Then, overwhelmed by love, we will understand that every sacrifice, every cross, and every act of self-giving was preparing us for that eternal embrace. Spouses, lift up your eyes! “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human heart has conceived—the things God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).
“We were not made to look at the ground… You created us to look toward Heaven.”
“I lift up my eyes, fixing them on Jesus. I lift up my eyes, fastened on the Cross.”

Applied to Married Life

Martha: The doctor said the treatment is going to be a long one…
James: I never imagined our life would be like this. Everything changed overnight—our plans, our expectations… I don’t understand why the Lord is allowing this situation, especially now.
Martha: Many times I feel like I’m becoming a burden to you. But, James, I was thinking about something today… Imagine the day when we stand together before God, face to face with Him.
James: Incredible!
Martha: Yes… and I was thinking: do you think this stress and anxiety we’re experiencing right now will matter very much then?
James: Well… clearly not.
Martha: Exactly. What will matter is how much we loved, how much we trusted, and how much we helped each other reach Him. This illness, like so many other problems, will be insignificant. It will have been a means of purifying us and bringing us a little closer to God.
James: Everything looks so different when you think about Heaven!
Martha: Then why do we so often live looking at the ground? Let’s lift up our eyes and walk together toward the goal for which we were created!

Mother,

Gate of Heaven, awaken in our hearts a longing for eternal life and help us seek God together, so that one day, through His mercy, we may behold the Face of Jesus face to face and remain united to Him forever.

The next day as they were leaving Bethany he was hungry. Seeing from a distance a fig tree in leaf, he went over to see if he could find anything on it. When he reached it he found nothing but leaves; it was not the time for figs. And he said to it in reply, “May no one ever eat of your fruit again!” And his disciples heard it.

They came to Jerusalem, and on entering the temple area he began to drive out those selling and buying there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. Then he taught them saying, “Is it not written:

My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples? But you have made it a den of thieves.”

The chief priests and the scribes came to hear of it and were seeking a way to put him to death, yet they feared him because the whole crowd was astonished at his teaching. When evening came, they went out of the city.

Early in the morning, as they were walking along, they saw the fig tree withered to its roots. Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” Jesus said to them in reply, “Have faith in God. Amen, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it shall be done for him. Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours. When you stand to pray, forgive anyone against whom you have a grievance, so that your heavenly Father may in turn forgive you your transgressions.”