From the Gospel according to Matthew
13:54-58

Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.
They were astonished and said,
“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?
Is he not the carpenter’s son?
Is not his mother named Mary
and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
Are not his sisters all with us?
Where did this man get all this?”
And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and in his own house.”
And he did not work many mighty deeds there
because of their lack of faith.

Leaving a Mark

Sometimes, in our marriage, no matter how much we do or say, it seems like it’s not enough or like it doesn’t make any difference. But without realizing it, we are leaving a mark through what we say, in the way we behave, and in the things we do. It may seem like, in His own town, no matter what Jesus said, it didn’t have much effect. Yet surely many were silently converted—they kept His example and His words in their hearts, and without noticing it, He had changed their lives.

Let us not worry if people don’t listen to us, if they ignore us, or even despise us—everything we do is to manifest what we carry within. God is present in our marriage; it must be evident in all we do, in what we say. It is always the Lord acting through us, and He is the one who should receive all the glory through our actions. Let us leave a mark of God’s love within us. Let us not be ashamed to stand up for the Lord—through our love, our joy, our surrender, and our sacrifice, that is how God reveals Himself to others. Let that phrase of Saint John Paul II resonate in our hearts: “Love is always victorious.”

Brought into Married Life:

Pilar: (Thinking) “I’m going to suggest to Álvaro that we pray the rosary together—it’s so good for both of us. Although, come to think of it, I might be coming on a bit strong lately, so maybe I’ll just pray it on my own for him, and trust that the Lord will gradually place in his heart how important it is to pray together.”

Álvaro: (Coming home tired from work, thinking) “I’m exhausted after a long, hard day, and now Pilar’s probably going to ask me to pray the rosary. It’s hard for me because it feels a bit burdensome, but I’ll offer it up for her because I know it’s actually really good for me.”

“Hi, love. How was your day? I’m wiped out—give me a minute to get into something more comfortable, and if you’d like, we can pray the rosary together.”

Pilar: “What a joy to hear you say that! I have to ask your forgiveness because I doubted you. I already prayed it, but I’m sure Our Lady would be delighted if we pray another one together.”

Álvaro: “Yes, it’s true that it’s tough for me, but through your example and your persistence—even when I get upset—I’m starting to see how much it helps me to pray and to draw closer to the Lord. Thank you for always wanting what’s best for me.”

Pilar: “It amazes me how little by little, what the Lord places in my heart, I’m able to share with you—and how gently you receive it. I’m realizing more and more that we truly are becoming one flesh, and that helps me a lot.”

Álvaro: “Thank you for being so persistent—your perseverance brings me closer to the Lord and to you every day. I love you so much.”

Mother,

Under your mantle and protected by your Immaculate Heart, may we always act with Him, for Him, and in Him, always leaving a mark of God’s love.

Blessed and praised be the Lord.

From the Gospel according to Matthew
13:47-53

Jesus said to the disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,
which collects fish of every kind.
When it is full they haul it ashore
and sit down to put what is good into buckets.
What is bad they throw away.
Thus it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous
and throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

“Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes.”
And he replied,
“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven
is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom
both the new and the old.”
When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.

The Net of Love

Today the Lord reminds us that at the end of time there will be a separation between the good and the bad. But this separation won’t be based simply on having been part of the Church or having known the faith, but rather on having truly lived as a disciple of the Kingdom. That is, on having welcomed the message of the Gospel into our hearts and lived each day according to the law of love that Jesus taught us.

The image of the scribe becoming a disciple is, for us, a call to conversion—to move from being scribes who know the law and commandments, to becoming disciples of the Kingdom; in other words, from theory to real life.

Saint John of the Cross said that “in the evening of life, we will be judged on love.”

It will not be enough to have been caught in the net—it won’t be about how much we knew or how much we did, but how much we loved.

Each day, we can fill the net of our life with “good fish”: acts of love, forgiveness, gestures of affection, prayer… and discard the “bad fish”: selfishness, hardness of heart, resentment, judgment, sin… In this way, at the evening of our life, we will have a net full of love and will be true disciples of the Kingdom, found worthy to live in it forever.

Applied to Married Life:

Nacho: Look, Amalia—right in the middle of the battle against marriage and family, Along Came the Conjugal Love Project. Isn’t it just brilliant? A true gift from Our Lady. It’s completely changed our lives… Nothing extraordinary has happened—and yet, everything has!

Amalia: Absolutely. The transformation the Lord has worked in our hearts is incredible. Everything feels new, and at the same time deeply anchored in the doctrine of the Church… I don’t know if I’m explaining myself well…

Nacho: Of course you are. Before, our faith was a bit like the scribes in Jesus’ time—we knew the Catechism, the doctrine, the Church’s tradition… so many things that have built up our souls. But the truth is, because of the hardness of our hearts, we had stayed stuck there—a faith made up of arguments. I feel like the Holy Spirit has completely renewed our spiritual life.

Amalia: It’s true—this Project from Our Lady has brought us renewal, excitement, hope, joy, and so many blessings. But above all, it has allowed us to live out our faith through our vocation and to live the Gospel in the day-to-day life of our marriage.

Nacho: Yes! We’ve gone from a theoretical faith to a faith grounded in real life, and it has become a true treasure. I think we should involve our children… I would love for them to know this Project and for it to help them as much as it has helped us!

Mother,

To love and to serve in all things!

Thank you for revealing to us the treasures of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Thank you for bringing the Conjugal Love Project into our lives.

Blessed are you!

From the Gospel according to Matthew
13:44-46

Jesus said to his disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,
which a person finds and hides again,
and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”

In Search of the Great Treasure

We are all tireless treasure hunters. The question is: What are we searching for? And why?

We’re constantly seeking what we believe will give us what we need to be happy. So we pour our energy, time, and heart into work, thinking that once we have all the money we think we need, we’ll finally be at peace. We pour ourselves into having our opinions respected, believing that’s how we’ll feel valued. We chase the pleasures of life—good food, travel, comfort—thinking that’s where happiness lies.

That’s how we used to live—chasing false treasures. But then we found the Great Treasure: the instructions for building a holy marriage in Christ. And that led us to begin building God’s Kingdom within our marriage. And then—everything else was given to us as well.

Seek that one treasure that gives you everything else in return!

Applied to Married Life:

María: Looking back, it’s amazing how much we’ve changed over the years.

Álvaro: Totally, love… It’s unbelievable to me.

María: We went through so much before finding this path. We followed so many false instructions, thinking they’d lead us to happiness. Today, we thank God so deeply for helping us “sell” everything that was keeping us from building real love: the need to defend our own opinions, the pursuit of our personal happiness, being demanding with each other, blaming one another… But what joy it is to sell all of that in exchange for what we have now!

Álvaro: Me too, María. And even though we still struggle at times because of our pride, we now clearly know which path to follow—and I’m not turning back, not a chance!

María: Me neither, Álvaro. Thank you, my love, for embracing this.

Álvaro: Thank you, sweetheart, for not settling and for believing. I love you.

María: And I love you!

Mother,

Help us not to be deceived by false treasures that impoverish us instead of enriching us.

We entrust ourselves to you and consecrate our marriage to you.

Praised be Jesus and Mary forever!

From the Gospel according to Matthew
13:31-35

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that a person took and sowed in a field.
It is the smallest of all the seeds,
yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.
It becomes a large bush,
and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.”

He spoke to them another parable.
“The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened.”

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.
He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:

I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

Feel as small as possible.

The Lord teaches Truth to His people through parables, because in that way they understand Him better. In this Gospel, we have two parables. In the first, the Lord shows us what He can do with our almost nothing—when we feel small, insignificant like a mustard seed—if we allow ourselves to be watered and nourished by Him. Through the sacraments, prayer, and mutual self-giving in our marriage, the Lord can turn it into a strong tree, where everything in our life is lived with Him, through Him, and in Him, because His sap runs through our trunk. And in this way, our branches and fruits will reflect the image of the Lord. Even other couples and families will come close to us, because the Lord will use us to welcome them, just as birds nest in the branches. The Lord makes things greater the smaller and more humble the seed is.

In the second parable—the one about the yeast—it is because yeast is discreet, it is not seen, but it transforms. Like small acts of love, service, forgiveness, and self-denial that begin to leaven our home. They transform it and turn it into the presence of Christ.

Brought down to married life:

Mariqui: Gonzalo, don’t eat your father’s dinner. I made it for him because he’ll come home hungry.

Nacho: Mariqui, I’m home. I’m really tired and not in the mood to eat. I’m going to the bedroom.

Mariqui: I was really looking forward to having dinner with you. It’s unbelievable… The more I try to please him, the more rejection I get from him…

(I won’t let myself be guided by my own feelings, because I’m sure he’s had a tough day at work. I’ll go to Nacho even though it’s hard for me.)

Nacho, I know you’ve had a rough day and you’re tired. I’m here with you in case you want to talk. I love you.

Nacho: You’re so beautiful. You don’t know how bad I was feeling, but your kind words have broken through. Thank you for coming to me. I’d love to have dinner with you—and pray the rosary with our kids too.

Gonzalo: Mom and Dad, there’s such peace in our home ever since we started praying as a family.

Mariqui: Blessed be God for the fruits the Lord gives us through the self-giving in our marriage.

Mother,

Thank you for teaching us that we must feel small and humble to give ourselves to our spouse out of love.

Praised be the Lord!