Meditation

Today, Jesus invites us to go beyond what any reliable law-abiding person can go. Even, without falling into any evil deeds, routine quite often hardens the desire of seeking sanctity, by comfortably adapting ourselves to the habit of just a good behavior, and nothing else. St. John Bosco used to say: "The good is the enemy of the best"...
 

Today, we listen to the Lord saying: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets… but to fulfill” (Mt 5, 17). In today's Gospel, Jesus teaches us that the Old Testament is part of the Divine Revelation: First, God made himself known to men through the prophets. The chosen People gathered on Saturdays in the synagogue to listen to God's Word. 

Today, St. Matthew reminds us of those words Jesus said regarding our mission as Christians: to be the salt and the light of the world. On the one hand, the salt is a necessary seasoning to make foods taste good: without salt, most dishes are almost worthless! Throughout centuries, on the other hand, salt has been a fundamental element to keep victuals from corruption. 
 

Today, with the proclamation of the Beatitudes, Jesus helps us realize how forgetful we can be and how we tend to be like children, who usually forget their memories because of their plays. Jesus feared that the amount of his “good news” —his words, his gestures, his silences— would be diluted amidst our sins and worries. 

Today, the Gospel invites us to ponder on two irreconcilable enemies: Jesus and the evil spirit. The Gospel affirms: The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebul" (Mk 3, 22). This verse helps us to understand the concerns of the family members of Jesus who came to take him back home. In fact, Jesus is not accused because he broke the Law, or the Jewish customs, or the Sabbath...
 

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? Faith, obedience, tenderness, availability, spirit of service, fortitude, humility, simplicity, gratitude, and a countless rosary of virtues.
 

Today we are offered before our bodily eyes—better yet, before our “inner eyes,” illuminated by faith—the figure of Christ who, having just died on the Cross, had his side opened by a spear thrust by the centurion. "Immediately blood and water flowed out" (Jn 19, 34). A distressing and, at the same time, most eloquent sight! ...
 

Today, in Mark's Gospel, we see how one of the scribes asks Jesus: "Which is the first of all the commandments?" (Mk 12, 28). The question is somewhat cunning. In the first place, because he is trying to establish some sort of ranking amongst the different commandments; and, secondly, because his question is centered in the Law. This is logical, bearing in mind that the question comes from a master of the Law.

Today, the Holy Church puts at our disposal —through Christ's words— the reality of resurrection and the properties of resurrected bodies. The Gospel mentions Jesus' meeting with the Sadducees who, with a hypothetical and out-of-the-way example, present Jesus with a question about the resurrection of the dead, which they do not believe in, anyway.
 

Today, we marvel again at Christ's wit and wisdom. With his masterly response, He directly points out to the fair autonomy of the worldly realities: “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar” (Mk 12, 17).
 

Today, our Lord invites us to have a walk on his vineyard: "A man planted a vineyard… he leased it to tenant farmers” (Mk 12, 1). We are all tenants of this vineyard. The vineyard is our own soul, the Church and the whole world. God wants fruits from us. First, our personal holiness; then, a constant apostolate with our friends, who will be encouraged by our example and word to get closer to Christ every day;...
 

Today, we solemnly celebrate the Eucharistic presence of Christ among us, the "gift par excellence": "This is my body… This is my blood" (Mk 14, 22.24). Let us prepare to evoke in our souls the "Eucharistic Wonder" (Saint John Paul II).
 

Today, the Gospel is asking us to think what our intentions are when we go to meet Jesus. Some go without faith, without recognizing His authority: this is why “the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders approached him and said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things? Or who gave you this authority to do them?” (Mk 11,27-28).
 

Today, we contemplate the Virgin Mary's Visitation to her cousin Elizabeth. As soon as she was told she had been chosen by God the Father to be the Mother of the Son of God, and that her cousin Elizabeth had also received the gift of motherhood, she decidedly set out for the hills to congratulate her cousin, to share with her the joy of having being blessed with the gift of maternity and to serve her.
 

Today, Christ comes out to meet us. We are all just like Bartimaeus: the blind beggar, by whose side Jesus passed by, and who started to call him out until the Lord stopped and called him. We may have a more advantaged name... but our human weaknesses (moral) resemble the beggar's blindness. We cannot see either that Christ lives amongst our brothers and, thus, we treat them as we do...

Today, the Lord teaches us which our attitude before the Cross must be. The ardent love of Jesus for His Father's Will, to carry out the salvation of Mankind, of each man, of each woman, urges Him to quickly move towards Jerusalem, where "the Son of Man will be given over (…) they will condemn him to death (…) they will scourge him and finally kill him" (Mk 10,33-34). 

The Lord's promise is very generous: “you will receive a hundred times more now in this present age (…) and eternal life in the age to come” (cf Mk 10, 30). He cannot be surpassed as far as generosity. But He adds: “with persecutions.” Jesus is very realistic and He does not want to deceive anybody. To be a disciple of his, if we are truly so, will bring us troubles and problems. 

In our Christian life we must learn to master that tendency we have to consider our faith just a mere matter of fulfillment. Our faith is much more than that. It is a sincere adhesion to Someone's heart, Someone who is God. When we set our heart upon something, we also place our life therein and, in the case of our faith, we then overcome the conformism that seems to grip the existence of so many believers. 

Today, the liturgy invites us to worship the Most Holy Trinity, our God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One only God in three Persons, in whose name we have been baptized. By the grace of Baptism, we are called to participate in the life of the Most Holy Trinity down here, in the darkness of faith, and, after death, in eternal life...
 

Today, children are the news. More than ever before, children have a lot to say, even if the word “infant” means “he who does not speak”. We can better appreciate that in electronic devices: they know how to switch them on and off, how to use them properly and, even how to teach us, adults, to correctly use them. A noted reporter used to say that, “even if infants do not speak it does not mean they do not think”.
 

Today, dear Lord, I would like to say a little prayer to thank you for your teaching. You taught with authority, and took the opportunity to do so on every occasion they let you; as a matter of fact, I understand Lord that your basic mission was to transmit the Word of the Father. And you did it.
 

We all have to overcome trial by fire. It is the fire of love and charity that redeems us from our sins so we can be the salt that flavors love, service and charity. As Christians, we find in our prayers and in the Eucharist the strength of faith and the good flavor of the salt of Christ. We shall not remain without our reward!

Today, we hear a recrimination against the apostle John who sees people doing good in the name of Christ but without being one of His disciples: “Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.” (Mk 9, 38). Jesus tells us how we should treat these people; embrace them and broaden our minds with humble spirit to be always in communion with them, sharing the same faith,...
 

Today, the Gospel teaches us two lessons of Jesus that are closely linked together. On the one hand, He tells them that “and they will kill him, and three days after his death he will rise” (Mk 9, 31). The Father's purpose for His coming to this world was precisely this: to set us free from sin's slavery and eternal death; thus, we shall become the sons of God...

Today we remember Mary, Mother of the Church. In this sense, we contemplate the spiritual motherhood of Mary in connection with the Church, which is —in itself— Mother of the People of God, since "no one can have God for Father, who has not the Church for his Mother" (Saint Cyprian)...
 

Today, on Pentecost, the promise that Christ made to the Apostles is fulfilled. On the evening of Easter Sunday, He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit" (Jn 20, 22). The coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost solemnly renews and brings to completion this gift with outward manifestations. Thus, the Paschal mystery is culminated.
 

Today, we read the end of St. John's Gospel. Actually, it is the end of the appendix St. John's community added to the original text. In this particular case, it is a willingly significant fragment. The Resurrected Lord appears before his disciples and confirms they are to follow him, particularly as regards Peter. Next, comes the text we proclaim today in the liturgy.
 

Today, Gospel tells us another story of Jesus’ appearance to His disciples. Intensely, the dialogue between Jesus and Peter illustrates God's mercy as a great love for the disciples and the world. This is not a common dialog between Jesus and His disciple, Peter. Both Jesus and Peter talk about love according to their perspectives. Jesus’ three questions: "Do you love me more than these?" could be seen as His act of reaffirming Peter's twofold status:...
 

Today, we find a solid basis for trust in the Gospel: “I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word...” (Jn 17, 20). It is Jesus' heart, which, in the intimacy of Jesus with his disciples, opens up the inexhaustible treasures of His Love. He wants to strengthen their hearts overwhelmed by the sense of farewell that, during the Last Supper, the Master's words and gestures have left them with.

Today, we live in a world which does not know how to be truly happy with the happiness of Jesus, a world which seeks the happiness of Jesus in all the wrong places and in the wrong ways. Seeking happiness without Jesus only leads to deeper unhappiness. Just look at the soaps on TV, there is always somebody in trouble. The soaps on TV show us the misery of a godless life.