Meditation

Today's Gospel opens our eyes to the unavoidable fact the student may, at times, be misunderstood, face obstacles or even be persecuted for declaring himself a follower of Christ. Jesus' life was a continuous service in defense of truth. 

Today, the Gospel emphasizes the troubles and contradictions we Christians have to suffer because of Christ and his Gospel, and how we must stand firm and persevere to the end. Jesus promised us: “I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28, 20); but He did not promise his disciples an easy journey; on the contrary, He told them: “You will be hated by all because of my name” (Mt 10, 22).
 

Jesus tells us to always be bearers of peace. When the priests brings the Communion to a sick person he says, 'Lord’s Peace to this house! ". And the peace of Christ remains there, if there are people worthy of it. To receive the gifts of God's kingdom one needs a good inner will. On the other hand, we also see many people making excuses for not receiving the Gospel.
 

Today, the Gospel shows us Jesus sending his Apostles on a mission: “Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them…” (Mt 10, 5). The twelve make up the “Apostolic College”, that is “missionary”. 
 

St. Josemaria Escriva wrote: “If we were consistent with our faith when we looked around us and contemplated the world and its history, we would be unable to avoid feeling in our own hearts the same sentiments that filled the heart of our Lord”, which would take us to a very generous apostolic task. 
 

Today, the liturgy of the Word invites us to admire two splendid manifestations of faith. So splendid were they that they deserved to move Jesus Christ's heart, provoking his immediate reaction. Our Lord does not allow himself to be won over in generosity!
 

Today, Jesus shows us two realities that define Him: no one knows the Father except Him, and He is “meek and humble of heart” (Mt 11, 29). We can also discover two necessary attitudes to understand and live what Jesus offers us: simplicity and the desire to approach Him.
 

We are living in times of expectation. This is why it is convenient to renew ourselves every day with the new spirit of Jesus, to give up our old routines, to abstain from what may prevent us from advancing towards a full identification of Christ, towards sanctity. “Fair is our crying —our fasting— if we have a burning desire to see him” (St. Augustine).
 

These words of the Gospel are topical. Jesus keeps on inviting us to follow him, each one of us according to his condition and profession. And, more often than not, to follow Jesus means to leave behind some messy passions, or some poor family relationships, or just a waste of time,...

Today's Gospel is another instance of the Savior’s mercy, in two respects: the illness of the body and the sickness of the soul. And, the soul being more important, is where Jesus starts. He knows the sick man has repented of his faults, He sees his faith and that of those bringing him, and says: “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven” (Mt 9, 2).
 

Today, we are given to contemplate a sad contrast. “Contrast” because we admire the power and divine majesty of Jesus Christ, to whom the demons submit voluntarily (a certain sign of the arrival of the Kingdom of heaven). But, at the same time, we deplore the narrowness and stinginess which the human heart is capable of, when refusing the bearer of Good News...
 

Jesus' Word brought the calm over the waters; but this calm was not meant to affect only the turbulent winds and waters of the lake: Jesus' Word, above all, was addressed to appease his disciples' fearful hearts. “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” (Mt 8, 26).
 

“My Lord and my God!” (Jn 20, 28). How beautiful these words are! Thomas calls him “Lord” and “God”. He makes an act of faith in the divinity of Jesus. When seeing him resurrected, Thomas not only sees Jesus the man, with the Apostles and eating with them, but his Lord and his God.

Today, upon listening to Jesus' words, "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me...” (Mt 10, 37), we are puzzled. However, as we delve deeper, we realize the lesson the Lord wants to convey: for Christians, the only absolute is God and His Kingdom. 

St. Peter Chrysologus says: “The law of love is not concerned with what will be, what ought to be, what can be. Love does not reflect; it is unreasonable and knows no moderation. Love refuses to be consoled when its goal proves impossible, despises all hindrances to the attainment of its object.” Is my prayer like that?

St. Augustine's sentence: "God who created you without you, will not save you without you" has become a classical one. So that we can truly change we must strive to ask our Lord for help.

Today we celebrate the solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, who were basic for the early Church and, therefore, for our Christian faith. Apostles of the Lord, witnesses of the first hour, they lived those initial moments of expansion of the Church and sealed with their blood their loyalty to Jesus. 
 

Today, a new evangelic contrast opens up before our eyes, the one between the good tree and the rotten tree. The avowals of Jesus are so simple they look almost simplistic. But we can affirm that they are certainly not! They are not simplistic, as real life is not simplistic either.
 

The third and last one, the “narrow gate”… Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI asked us: “What does this "narrow door" mean? Why do many not succeed in entering through it? Is it a way reserved for only a chosen few? “ No! The message of Christ is that “everyone may enter life, but the door is "narrow" for all. We are not privileged...
 

But what St. Augustine says is even more interesting: “The Lord prevents us from judging quickly and unfairly (...). We should first ponder whether we have not made a similar sin; let us remember we are fragile, and let us always [judge] with the intention of serving God and not ourselves”. 

Trusting that God will be with us in difficult times gives us courage to proclaim Jesus' words in the light (cf Mt 10, 27), and it gives us the energy capable of doing good, so that through our works people can give glory to our heavenly Father. Saint Anselm teaches us: “Do everything for God and for that happy and eternal life our Savior deigns to grant us in Heaven.”
 

Today, we solemnly celebrate the Nativity of the Baptist. St. John is a man of contrasts: he lives in the silence of the desert, but right from there he appeals to the crowds with convincing voice inviting them to convert; he is humble enough to say he is only the voice, not the Word, but he does not mince his words and dares to accuse and denounce all injustices even to the very king;...
 

Today the Lord tells us that "the lamp of the body is the eye" (Mt 6, 22). Saint Thomas Aquinas understands that, when speaking of the eye, Jesus refers to man's intentions. When the intention is upright, lucid, directed to God, all our actions are brilliant, resplendent; but when the intention is not upright, how great is the darkness! (cf. Mt 6, 23).
 

Today the Lord wants to help us grow in a main issue of our Christian life: the prayer. He warns us not to pray like pagans trying to convince God about what they want. Many times we try to achieve what we want through insistence, being "annoying" to God, believing that we will be heard with our verbosity. 
 

Today, Jesus invites us to act always for the glory of God, to please the Father, as this is why we have been created for. This is how the Catechism of the Church confirms it: “God created everything for man, but man in turn was created to serve and love and to offer all creation back to him.” This is the meaning of our life and our honor: to be liked by the Father, to please God. 

Today, Christ invites us to love. To love without measure, which is the measure of true Love. God is Love, “for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust” (Mt 5, 45). And man, God's spark, has to keep on struggling every day to resemble him, so “that you may be children of your heavenly Father”. Where can we find Christ's face? 
 

Today, Jesus teaches us that forgiveness can overcome hate. Talion's law meant some progress, as it limited the wish to retaliate down to a fair proportion: do unto others as you would have them to, unto you; otherwise, it would be unfairness; this is what the aphorism “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” actually means.

Should Jesus come today, I think He would repeat the same words: that there are a lot of disoriented and confused persons, trying to find meaning in their lives. —O Lord, how can we overcome this big problem? Well, Jesus requests prayer, so He chooses twelve Apostles and sends them over to proclaim His message, the Kingdom of God.
 

Today, we celebrate the memory of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. A spotless Heart, full of God, totally willing to listen to him and obey him. In Bible's language, the heart refers to a person's deepest essence, where all thoughts, words and deeds emanate from. What does emanate from the Virgin Mary's heart? 
 

Today when we find ourselves weary from the daily grind—because we all carry heavy burdens that can sometimes be hard to bear—let's think of these words of Jesus: "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest”. Let's rest in Him, who is the only one that can ease all of our concerns, and thus find the peace and love that the world doesn't always provide.