From the Gospel accoording to Luke 19:1-10

At that time Jesus came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town.
Now a man there named Zacchaeus,
who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man,
was seeking to see who Jesus was;
but he could not see him because of the crowd,
for he was short in stature.
So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus,
who was about to pass that way.
When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said,
“Zacchaeus, come down quickly,
for today I must stay at your house.”
And he came down quickly and received him with joy.
When they saw this, they began to grumble, saying,
“He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.”
But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord,
“Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor,
and if I have extorted anything from anyone
I shall repay it four times over.”
And Jesus said to him,
“Today salvation has come to this house
because this man too is a descendant of Abraham.
For the Son of Man has come to seek
and to save what was lost.”

Zachary is indeed a sinner, yet he seeks Jesus with burning desire. Nothing stops him; he overcomes every obstacle he finds— the crowd, his small stature, his shame, his sin… When the soul truly longs for Christ, it breaks through any barrier in order to reach Him. And then something happens that he did not expect: Jesus looks at him—though He had been watching him already. He calls him by name and enters into his story, his shadows, his sins, in order to reach even deeper.
What matters to Jesus about Zacchaeus is precisely what others failed to see when they judged him: the longing for God in his heart. Jesus is never indifferent to a heart that recognises its weakness and seeks Him despite all difficulty.
And what is Jesus’s response? “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.”  That is how Jesus is: when you seek Him with a sincere heart and a proven desire, He comes, He goes ahead of you.
Zacchaeus obeys Jesus. He climbs down at once and welcomes Him joyfully, Scripture says. It is a joy that only those who let God inside them, without obstacles, can truly experience. In that encounter, the Lord’s love pierces him within: it awakens his conscience, melts his pride, and kindles the most perfect repentance because it repairs what is broken. The change in his life has already begun, because Zacchaeus chooses to do His will. We want our marriage to change… but do we still fail to seek Jesus with real hunger? Ask the Lord for that hunger!
Do we expect a new life while allowing ourselves to be held back by a thousand excuses—lack of time, work, noise, criticism, selfishness, whims, comfort?
We say we love God, but when He asks something concrete of us… do we hesitate, negotiate, or postpone? If we want the Lord to transform our marriage, let us follow Zacchaeus’ way: seek Him wholeheartedly, let Him look at you, respond without delay, open your heart without reserve. Then Christ will be able to say of you as well:
“Today salvation has come to this house.”

Marianne knew that morning she had spoken harshly to Leonard. Her heart quickly burned to restore their communion, so she called him mid-morning. She barely managed to whisper a timid “hello” before Leonard answered with a tenderness that completely disarmed her: “Hello, my love… shall we go out for lunch today?” Marianne smiled with joy on the other end of the line and immediately replied, “Yes, of course!” And what more? Nothing more.That is how the love of communion is built—so simply—when two hearts are willing to overcome the obstacles of pride, arrogance and judgement, because they have discovered the treasure of living in God’s love.

Mother,

How delicate is the Heart of Jesus, how deeply His gaze penetrates the soul. Make us like Him; teach us how to love. Praised be the Lord!

From the Gospel accoording to Luke 18:35-43

As Jesus approached Jericho
a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging,
and hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what was happening.
They told him,
“Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”
He shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!”
The people walking in front rebuked him,
telling him to be silent,
but he kept calling out all the more,
“Son of David, have pity on me!”
Then Jesus stopped and ordered that he be brought to him;
and when he came near, Jesus asked him,
“What do you want me to do for you?”
He replied, “Lord, please let me see.”
Jesus told him, “Have sight; your faith has saved you.”
He immediately received his sight
and followed him, giving glory to God.
When they saw this, all the people gave praise to God.

Our weakness leaves us blind in a way. It prevents us from seeing the Gift that my husband is to me, and we end up suffering the consequences of that blindness. We live a grey life, full of complaints; a mediocre life that does not reflect the beauty God desires for our marriage. To reach that beauty, we must become aware of this blindness and ask Jesus—who constantly passes by our side, waiting for us to call upon Him in faith—“Lord, let me see again.”
When the Lord opens our eyes to the beauty of our Sacrament, we begin to see the Gift that our spouse truly is, all the greatness and loveliness. Our marriage, and indeed our whole life, takes on a new meaning, and then we give glory to God for it.

Margaret: Frederick, do you remember when I told you I just couldn’t cope any longer? I was desperate. I loved you, but we simply couldn’t understand each other when we talked, and we would end up angry, avoiding each other for days. It was as if I were blind, unable to see the beauty our marriage could have.
Frederick: I felt exactly the same. Thankfully that day we went to the church, and that kind priest recommended the Marital Love Project retreat. It really marked a before and after for us.
Margaret: It truly did. We recognised our need, and the Lord removed that blindness. Now, following the guidance of our marriage mentor, prayer, acts of mutual self-giving and acceptance, and the sacraments are helping us heal and fill our marriage—and our family—with joy.
Frederick: Let us never stop giving Glory to God!
(And their children, who were listening, praised the Lord.)

Mother,

Help us discover our own blindness and to ask the Lord, in faith, to heal us.
Praise be to God!

While some people were speaking about
how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings,
Jesus said, “All that you see here–
the days will come when there will not be left
a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”

Then they asked him,
“Teacher, when will this happen?
And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?”
He answered,
“See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’
Do not follow them!
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end.”
Then he said to them,
“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

“Before all this happens, however,
they will seize and persecute you,
they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons,
and they will have you led before kings and governors
because of my name.
It will lead to your giving testimony.
Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand,
for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking
that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.
You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends,
and they will put some of you to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.
By your perseverance you will secure your lives.”

Peter: Phoebe, this weekend we’re going to my parents’ house; my mum’s not feeling too well, and I’m sure she’d be delighted if we brought the children over. What do you think?
Phoebe: Peter, to be honest, I don’t feel like going at all; I always feel judged by your parents—they’re constantly waiting to catch me out.
Peter: I understand, Phoebe, but they’re getting older and they need affection.
Phoebe: Yes, maybe, but your mum never seems to appreciate anything I do. I try to do everything with as much care as possible, but she always finds fault with everything.
Peter: Let’s go to the parish and bring this to prayer.
Phoebe: Well, I hope they don’t see us going into the church, because last time the comment was: “All that Mass and all that God, yet the children are neglected.”
Peter: Yes… we need a lot of prayer so that the Holy Spirit gives us the right words for them to see the greatness of the Faith we live.
Phoebe: Yes, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to show us what we should say and how we should act so that they may see God’s Love in our lives.
Oh! And forgive me; I know how much it hurts you when I speak this way about your parents. I didn’t mean to hurt you even more.
Peter: You’re forgiven, my dear wife. I caught you off guard, and I should have been more gentle. Let’s do our couple’s prayer and place everything at the Lord’s feet, and you will see how He brings good out of all of this.

Mother,

Help us to love those who do not love us and who do not love Your Son, just as You love us all as Your children. Thank you, Mother. Blessed be God!

Jesus told his disciples a parable
about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, “There was a judge in a certain town
who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought,
‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me
I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.’”
The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones
who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

This Gospel passage reveals God’s unshakable faithfulness towards all His children. Jesus teaches us that if even an unjust judge can listen to a persistent woman, how much more will our heavenly Father hear those who cry out to Him day and night!

The widow represents the soul that refuses to give up in the face of God’s silence. Had she given up after the first rejection, she would never have received justice. Her human perseverance becomes for us a symbol of the spiritual perseverance God expects from His children — a heart that keeps trusting, keeps asking, keeps loving.

And so He invites us to pray always without losing heart. He doesn’t tell us to pray a lot, but to pray always — to live in His presence, to keep our hearts united to His, and to abandon ourselves to Him.

As husbands and wives, He invites us to persevere and to live constantly in marital prayer — loving with perseverance, forgiving, welcoming, and giving of ourselves — allowing the love of God to act within us.

Brought down to married life:

Rachel: Ian, today during Mass, when I heard the words “Will He find this faith on earth?” I asked myself… what does that faith look like in us? Between work, the children, and being so tired all the time…

Ian: Rachel, maybe it looks exactly like this — when we try not to respond harshly to a bad mood, when we make a small gesture of affection even though we’re exhausted, when we embrace the cross together with love… that too is faith.

Rachel: Yes, but sometimes I feel like we don’t pray enough. I miss those long moments of prayer we had before the children were born.

Ian: I miss them too. But I think Jesus is teaching us to pray within our daily lives. Every time I love, serve, or forgive you, I’m united to His Heart — that’s our prayer.

Rachel: So… living in the Heart of Jesus means keeping our souls alight in the middle of ordinary life.

Ian: Exactly, Rachel!

Rachel: Then when Jesus returns, maybe He’ll find us washing dishes or changing nappies — but if we’re doing it united with Him, He will find that faith. What joy!

Mother,

You who pondered everything in your heart, help us to live in prayer.
Blessed and praised forever be the Lord!