Catholic Daily Reflections

Read OnlineThe angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Luke 1:26–29The Blessed Virgin Mary was “full of grace!” To be “full” means just that—full, lacking in nothing. This fullness of grace signified that she embodied the perfection of every virtue, particularly humility. Humility is seeing oneself in the light of truth, neither exaggerated nor diminished. Mary’s humility is strikingly revealed in her reaction to the angel Gabriel’s greeting—she was “greatly troubled at what was said” and pondered it deeply.Why would the Mother of God be troubled? Why not simply respond with confidence, saying, “Thank you for noticing that I am full of grace?” Because Mary knew that her fullness of grace was not due to her own merits. It was entirely beyond her natural abilities and was the result of God’s gracious initiative. Mary freely cooperated with grace throughout her life, and she knew that God alone was the source of every gift. Therefore, her initial reaction of being “troubled” was not due to doubt or fear but was the fruit of her wonder and awe at the incomprehensible blessings bestowed upon her. She saw clearly her own lowliness and unworthiness in relation to God, and this profound humility made her the most beautiful of all creatures.Her heart, filled with wonder and contemplation, not only made Mary the Immaculate Mother of God but also sets before us a model of perfect discipleship. Though we are not “full” of grace as she was, we receive countless graces daily. Like Mary, we must strive to respond to these gifts with humility, awe, and gratitude.Today, as we honor the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Immaculate Conception, we remember that while Adam and Eve were created in a state of Original Innocence, they fell from grace through disobedience. As a result, humanity inherited a fallen nature. However, by a singular grace, Mary was preserved from the stain of Original Sin from the very moment of her conception. This prevenient grace—a grace that was given to her before any merit or action on her part—was given to her in light of the future merits of her Son, Jesus Christ. Thus, Mary was redeemed in an extraordinary way, and her soul was preserved from concupiscence and all of the effects of sin. Unlike Adam and Eve, who turned away from God, Mary remained faithful to Him throughout her life, earning her the title, “The New Eve.”As we celebrate the Immaculate Conception, reflect today on the mystery of Mary’s life and soul. While we can understand her unique role in salvation history to a certain degree, the full beauty and depth of her Immaculate Heart will only be fully revealed in Heaven. For now, we are invited to meditate upon her profound humility, her life of grace, and her role as the model of Christian discipleship. Dearest Mother of God, you are the Immaculate Conception, filled with grace from the first moment of your existence. You never turned away from God’s gift of grace, given to you through the merits of your Son. Pray for me, that I may come to understand the virtues you embody and strive to imitate your holiness. Help me to embrace the grace that draws me closer to your Son, our Savior. Immaculate Conception, pray for us. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” Matthew 3:11–12This passage comes just before Jesus is baptized and begins His public ministry. John the Baptist had been ministering in the desert of Judea, preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Many came to him to be baptized with a baptism of repentance. But when John saw many scribes and Pharisees coming to him, he said, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.” The passage above is John’s warning to them—and to us—about what will happen if we fail to repent.At that time, when wheat was harvested, it was left to dry. Then, a winnowing fan was used to blow the wheat and chaff into the air. The lighter chaff would blow away, while the grains of wheat would fall to the ground to be gathered, milled into flour, and used for baking. John uses this familiar image to depict what Jesus will do with the righteous and the wicked. The righteous are like the grains of wheat that will be gathered and brought to Heaven. The wicked are like the chaff that, once separated from the righteous, will burn in the unquenchable fire of hell.Though it is comforting to speak of the glories of Heaven and to anticipate being brought there by our Lord, it is necessary to also consider the reality of the unquenchable fires of hell. Pondering the reality of those unquenchable fires is something we should not neglect.In his spiritual classic, The Spiritual Exercises, Saint Ignatius of Loyola presents a format for a thirty-day directed silent retreat, considered by many to be the ideal retreat experience. During the first week of that retreat, the retreatant focuses primarily upon mortal sin and its consequences—the unquenchable fires of hell. Why would Saint Ignatius begin his retreat this way? Because he understood that the foundation of our growth in union with God is repentance, and repentance requires an honest and thorough examination of sin and its consequences.Reflect today on the unquenchable fires of hell, and allow yourself to foster a burning desire to flee from every sin that leads to that end. As we enter the second week of the penitential season of Advent, ponder this warning from Saint John the Baptist. Hear him speak those words directly to you. We must fear sin and avoid it, as much as we want to avoid the unquenchable fires of hell. Start with this foundational truth, so that having fostered deep repentance, you are ready to turn your heart and mind toward the glorious promise of Heaven. Jesus, our Just Judge, You hold the winnowing fan in Your sacred hand and separate the righteous from the sinner. Please grant me the grace to see my sin clearly, so that I may humbly acknowledge it and turn from it with all my might. May I build this foundation of repentance during Advent, so that Christmas becomes an even greater time of union with You. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Adobe StockSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness.” Matthew 9:35This one line speaks volumes about Jesus’ public ministry. He didn’t just preach a few sermons or heal a few who were sick. He “went around to all the towns and villages…teaching…proclaiming the Gospel…” and cured “every disease and illness.”It’s important to contemplate that Jesus’ public ministry lasted approximately three years. Three years of constant preaching, healing, and relating to people. During this time, Jesus encountered many thousands of individuals, and news of His works spread throughout Israel and beyond. Yet, the rest of today’s Gospel reveals that Jesus’ public ministry, though perfect in every way, was just the beginning. It was the foundation upon which His ongoing ministry would be established through the formation of His Church. As the Gospel continues, we gain insight into Jesus’ compassionate heart. When He looked at the crowds, “his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.” His three years of ministry were only the foundation, and His merciful Heart began to overflow with compassion. Though He is God, Jesus limited Himself to human interactions within time and space, making it impossible for Him to engage personally with every troubled and abandoned soul in His human form. That’s why He told His disciples to “ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” After this, He summoned His Twelve Apostles, gave them authority to share in His ministry of preaching and healing, and sent them out to the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Later, as recorded in Luke 10:1–2, Jesus expanded His mission even further by sending out seventy (or seventy-two) disciples ahead of Him as He and the Twelve began their final journey to Jerusalem where He would suffer and die. After His resurrection, Jesus further commissioned His Apostles to “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20). This mission quickly spread to at least 120 disciples gathered in the upper room, and as the Holy Spirit continued to guide the early Church, thousands of new converts became evangelists, spreading the Word of God. Reflect today on Jesus’ Sacred Heart, overflowing with compassion for all who feel “troubled and abandoned.” It is your mission to be Christ’s Heart to them—to love them, to long for their burdens to be lifted, and to lead them to Christ, the Good Shepherd. Do not shy away from this mission, for the mission you are given is a continuation of and participation in the one eternal mission of Jesus Himself. Most holy and Good Shepherd, Your human Heart burns with the perfection of divine love and longs to touch every soul in need of Your mercy. Please transform my heart into Yours so that I may have Your zeal for the salvation of all whom I encounter and become a fitting instrument of Your divine presence in the world. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Adobe StockSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineAs Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying out, “Son of David, have pity on us!” Matthew 9:27Picture these two men for a moment. Just before this passage, Jesus had cured a leper, healed a Roman centurion’s servant, restored Peter’s mother-in-law to health, made a paralytic walk, and stopped a woman’s years-long hemorrhages. He had cast out demons, freeing people from their oppression, and even raised a twelve-year-old girl from the dead. This context is crucial as we imagine these two blind men crying out, “Son of David, have pity on us!”Word was spreading rapidly about Jesus and His miracles. In that time and culture, blindness often led to a life of begging unless family could provide. These men suffered greatly, from both their physical blindness and from the marginalization that accompanied it. Then they began to hear stories—one after another—about this new rabbi, a prophet from David’s line, possibly the Messiah everyone awaited. They heard of His miracles and immediately hoped He could heal them too. So when Jesus was passing by, they didn’t hesitate.Although physical healings were not Jesus’ primary mission, these acts were powerful expressions of His compassion and divine authority. By healing, He brought peace and joy to troubled hearts, but more importantly, He demonstrated that His words carried divine authority. The Gospel of Matthew is arranged so that Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount—a summary of His teachings—comes first. Then follows a series of miracles. While these miracles were acts of love for those He cured, they also serve to convince us today to listen to and obey His word.We are called to emulate the faith of these two blind men. We must believe that Jesus is the answer to all our needs, the only one who can heal our souls. We can see their physical blindness as a metaphor for our own spiritual blindness. Just as they cried out for physical healing, we must cry out for spiritual healing.Reflect today on the disposition of these two blind men. Though we know little about them, we do know they cried out to Jesus for mercy and healing. Their prayer must become our prayer; their hope, our hope; their passionate cry, our plea for mercy. The healing they sought is mirrored in the healing we seek today, especially through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is in this sacrament that we find Jesus passing by, where we cry out for mercy and where we are spiritually healed. Let us long for healing from our spiritual blindness and cry out to Jesus with persistence, following Him relentlessly in prayer. He will hear and answer us. My healing Lord, though Your many miracles show Your divine power over nature, demons, and every illness—even death—the greatest healing You offer is the healing of my soul from sin. Please have pity on me, Lord. Heal the spiritual blindness I have so that I may come to know You, follow You, and live according to Your will. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: Jesus healing the Blind by Lawrence OP, license CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand.” Matthew 7:24 & 26Jesus’ words remind us that each of us will inevitably face hardships: “The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house.” He doesn’t suggest that these storms might come; He assures us that they will. Just as a house must be prepared for bad weather, so must our lives be ready for suffering, hardship, and ultimately, death.Imagine someone building a house on sand. When the storms come, the foundation erodes and the house begins to crumble. All the effort spent building that house is wasted because the foundation was weak. In contrast, those who build their houses on rock can remain confident as the storm arrives, knowing their foundations are secure.The metaphor is clear. The house represents our lives, and our foundation is either Christ or sin. If we build our lives on habits of sin—such as love of money, materialism, hedonism, impurities, anger, deceptions, and selfishness—our lives will inevitably crumble when hardship strikes.Jesus’ own life perfectly illustrates this teaching. He was lied about, unjustly arrested, brutally tortured, condemned to death, and nailed to a cross. Yet through it all, the perfection of charity in Jesus’ soul never wavered. He had built His human life on the most solid foundation by fully embracing the Father’s will without hesitation. Jesus listened to the Father’s voice and acted upon it perfectly; as a result, nothing could steal His peace. Even in the face of the Cross, Jesus manifested the perfection of every human virtue, generously bestowing grace upon every repentant sinner who takes up his cross and follows Him.Reflect today on the crosses you have faced and those you might face in the future. How have you handled these struggles? Are you prepared for the storms that will come your way? Most importantly, are you ready for the day our Lord calls you home? Those who face death with a solid foundation do so with extraordinary hope. That foundation is built by listening to Jesus’ words daily and acting upon them. Those whose foundation is habitual sin will despair in the midst of hardship and fail to remain firmly grounded in Christ. Build your life on Christ and His perfect will now and every day, and He will protect you, filling you with every virtue necessary to achieve the heights of holiness in this life and much glory in Heaven. My Lord and Firm Foundation, I pray that my life will be built upon You and Your will alone. Give me ears to hear You and a firm will to follow You so that my love for You and others is so strong that I can endure all things in You, and by You, be brought to the glories of Heaven. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Adobe StockSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineAt that time: Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others. They placed them at his feet, and he cured them. Matthew 15:29–30Why did Jesus perform so many miracles when He walked the earth? The Church Fathers and saints offer various insights. His miracles were personal acts of compassion, expressions of divine love welling up within His human Heart. They were also testaments to His divine authority, reinforcing His teachings and instilling faith. Additionally, Jesus’ miracles fulfilled Old Testament prophecies and served as powerful metaphors, such as the healing of physical blindness, symbolizing the gift of spiritual sight.But why don’t we see similar miracles today? In many ways, we do. Throughout history, miracles have accompanied the ministry of great saints. Saints Francis of Assisi, Vincent Ferrer, and Phillip Neri, to name a few, were known for the countless miracles attributed to them during their lifetimes and through their intercession after their deaths. More recent saints, such as Saints Thérèse of Lisieux, Faustina Kowalska, Padre Pio, André Bessette, and Charbel Makhlouf have also been credited with miracles, both during their lives and since their deaths.Miracles often accompany saints who have entered into profound union with Christ through prayer and service. These saints, filled with compassion, become channels of God’s healing grace. Their miracles give credence to their ministries and fulfill Jesus’ promise: “Whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).If you desire to see miracles, strive for holiness. Though the sanctity that seems to make miracles a normal part of life is extraordinarily high, it is achievable by God’s grace. For the saints, the goal was never to perform miracles; miracles were simply a by-product of their burning love for God and others. Reflect today on the fact that God desires you to become as holy as the greatest saints. He wants His divine charity to overflow from your soul into the lives of others. The holier you become, the more God can use you as His instrument, sometimes even through miracles. Strive to be one of those rare saints whose union with God transforms the world with love. My miraculous Lord, though the gift of salvation far exceeds the value of miracles, You have used miracles to reveal Your compassion and deepen our faith. Please make me holy so that I can become a greater instrument of Your grace in whatever way You choose. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Adobe StockSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineJesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.” Luke 10:23–24 We rejoice over many things in life. We might rejoice if we win a game, do well on a test, complete some task at home or work, or attend a celebration or party. Though rejoicing is an emotion tied to our human nature, true joy is spiritual in nature, a gift that overflows into human emotion.Try to imagine Jesus rejoicing in the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ joy was perfect. As God, His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit was beyond anything we can imagine. Therefore, when He experienced the perfection of spiritual joy, that joy overflowed into His perfect human nature, resulting in an emotional response that was more powerful than any of us will experience until the day we stand with our resurrected bodies before the Beatific Vision in the New Heavens and new Earth.When Jesus prayed, “I give you praise, Father…,” He was not only engaging in an intellectual exercise. He did not just make a public statement so that it would be written in Scripture or because it was the right thing to do. Rather, Jesus spoke His praises to the Father because His lived human experience, in that moment, was a human rejoicing with divine power. Jesus’ all-consuming joy was perfectly ordered, deeply fulfilling, an appropriate response to His Father and the Holy Spirit, and contagious to those around Him. True spiritual joy is never contained; it overflows and touches the lives of others.By experiencing such joy in His human nature, Jesus further elevated human nature itself, making it possible for us to rejoice in the Holy Spirit with Him within our human souls, provided we humble ourselves before Him. Jesus praised the Father for revealing Himself to the childlike, those who are humble of heart. Seeing that was the cause of His joy. To be childlike in the eyes of God means to trust Him completely, to approach Him with openness and wonder, and to depend on Him for all things. It is the opposite of relying on our own understanding and wisdom, which often leads to pride and distance from God.True humility is nothing other than honesty with oneself before God. Humility makes us childlike because it opens our eyes to the truth that we are little spiritual children in need of God’s fatherhood. If we pretend to be “wise and learned” before God, we only reveal our foolishness, the absence of divine wisdom. Reflect today on the perfection of spiritual joy in Jesus’ divinity and its emotional effect upon His humanity. No one has ever rejoiced with the same joy as the Son of God. However, we are all called to live within that spiritual joy. This joy strengthens us in trials, deepens our love for others, and helps us live our faith with greater conviction and authenticity. Humble yourself before God today, begging for greater humility so that you will become a greater partaker of Jesus’ joy, the joy He came to bestow upon the world. My humble Lord, You rejoiced as You saw Your Father reveal hidden and divine mysteries to those who were humble of heart and childlike. Please bestow Your grace upon me so that I will also grow in divine wisdom, remaining humble and childlike, to fill Your human soul with the deepest joy. Jesus, I trust in You.  Image: Sancta Trinitas by Lawrence OP, license CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineWhen Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 8:10–11Jesus looks into the heart, not just at one’s exterior. Today’s Gospel presents us with the profound faith of a Roman centurion—a pagan and Gentile. Though not of the Jewish faith, this centurion recognized Jesus’ spiritual authority to heal. Perhaps he had seen Jesus do so before or had heard of the many stories of miracles. Or maybe he was moved by the Holy Spirit to trust in Jesus. The Roman soldier begged Jesus to heal one of his severely ill servants. But that’s not all he did. Once Jesus offered to go to the servant, the Roman centurion manifested humility and faith by saying, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.” Catholics now pray similar words just before Holy Communion.When Jesus heard this statement of faith, He was “amazed,” because among the descendants of Abraham, He had found no such faith. The centurion’s faith broke through cultural and religious barriers. As a Gentile and a Roman soldier, he was an unlikely candidate for such profound faith. Yet, his humility and trust in Jesus surpassed that of many of the chosen people.Let’s consider two points from this story. First, when you pray the centurion’s words at Mass, just before Holy Communion, does your depth of faith and conviction also lead Jesus to be “amazed”? Do you know and profess your unworthiness, yet beg our Lord to enter your soul nonetheless? The centurion’s humility is a powerful lesson for us. Despite his authority and status, he recognized his unworthiness before Jesus. This humility is vital to approaching the Eucharist, acknowledging our need for God’s grace and mercy before receiving Him into our souls. Consider whether you mean those words every time you pray them or if they have become a habit that you say distractedly.Second, Jesus’ promise to heal this Gentile’s servant illustrates the universality of Jesus’ gift of salvation. Our Catholic faith is not only for those born and raised Catholic; it’s for everyone, and we must do our part to extend that invitation to everyone through prayer and witness. We must turn to our Lord and beg for grace and healing upon others. God has the power to do all things. Like the centurion, we must pray for others, trusting that God hears our petitions and will act in His perfect timing. We must believe that, and then present the needs of those around us to Him, begging Him to draw them to Himself. We must pray, “Lord, only say the word! Say Your word of healing, cleansing, conversion, transformation, and every word that brings forth Your will!”Reflect today on this Roman centurion’s faith and prayerful words and try to internalize them more fully. Meditate on those words outside of the Holy Mass so that next time you attend Mass, that prayer just before Holy Communion will more fully prepare your soul for the gift of Christ Jesus Himself.My amazed Lord, the Roman centurion’s faith touched Your human soul. Please give me the grace I need to have this same depth of faith and to express that faith more fully every time I prepare to receive You in Holy Communion. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Adobe StockSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Matthew 24:42–44How does one “stay awake” as our Lord commands us? We receive this holy exhortation as we enter into a new liturgical year. In Advent, we begin at the beginning. We ponder the Incarnate Son of God dwelling as a human Child in the precious womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. We anticipate the celebration of His birth into the world at Christmas. As the liturgical year progresses, we will prayerfully walk through each moment of His life, from the events of His childhood, to His public ministry, and ultimately His death, resurrection, and ascension into Heaven.Our Lord’s exhortation to stay awake invites us to be attentive to the ways that the Son of God’s human life speaks to us, calling us to become fully united to Him so as to share in the glorious gifts of holiness in this life and eternal salvation in the next. After exhorting us to stay awake, the Son of God said, “For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” Of course, we know He came into this world over 2,000 years ago in physical form. This exhortation is not only a call to ponder that event long ago; it’s also an invitation and exhortation to become continuously more attentive to the effect that His historical coming has upon us today. Advent is a season that invites us to reflect on Christ’s first coming in Bethlehem, His daily coming to us in grace, and His final coming at the end of time. These moments are intimately connected, as each prepares us more fully for the next.From Heaven, the Son of God continues to descend to us, inviting each of us to conceive Him in our souls by grace, to be attentive to His divine presence within us, and to nurture His divine presence so that He will grow and live within us, making us true members of His Body, the Church. Staying awake means being aware of Christ’s presence in every moment and cultivating a personal relationship with Him that is alive and growing. This Advent, ask yourself: How am I nurturing my relationship with Jesus so that I am ready to meet Him whenever He comes?Jesus calls us to be prepared at every moment of every day, “for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Though this is a promise that He will return one day to judge the living and the dead at the end of time, it is also a promise that He relentlessly pursues us here and now, communicating to us by grace and inviting us to be transformed more fully, so as to love Him and manifest His love to the world around us. As we mature in our faith, God often speaks in subtler ways, inviting us to listen with the ears of our hearts. These gentle whispers of grace require us to be even more attuned to His presence, ready to respond to His call in the quiet moments of our day.Reflect today on Jesus’ exhortation to be awake, vigilant, attentive, and ready to love Him in the smallest ways. To stay spiritually awake, cultivate habits that keep you attuned to God’s presence: set aside time for daily prayer, receive the sacraments frequently, and be mindful of opportunities to serve others. These practices will help you remain vigilant and ready to encounter Christ at any moment. Search for Him this Advent, and never tire of loving Him in your prayer and in those around you. The Son of God continuously comes to you “at an hour you do not expect.” By building a spiritual habit of being prepared, you will meet and love Him throughout your day. My ever-present Lord, You surround me with Your grace and flood me with Your mercy day and night. Please give me a heart that is attentive and receptive to You so that I can receive all that You wish to bestow and love You and others with Your Sacred Heart. Jesus, I trust in You.  Image via Web Gallery of ArtSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineJesus said to his disciples: “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth.” Luke 21:34–35This is the final day of the liturgical year. Tomorrow begins Advent and the beginning of a new Church year. On this day, we are once again presented with a Gospel passage that points to the final coming of Christ. In preparation for that day, the day in which we meet our Lord for judgment, Jesus points to two grave dangers that will cause our hearts to become “drowsy” and leave us unprepared. First, He says that “carousing and drunkenness” will make us unprepared. Second, He says that “the anxieties of daily life” will also leave us unprepared.On a literal level, carousing and drunkenness means a person relies upon alcohol for satisfaction in life, and they do so by using it to live a lively and somewhat carefree life. They live for the moment and look for satisfaction in self-indulgence. And though drunkenness is specifically mentioned here, there are numerous ways that people attempt to live this way.Everyone wants to be happy in life. We cannot not work to achieve this innate desire. No one intentionally chooses to be unhappy. However, many people regularly choose things in life that do lead to unhappiness and discontentment. But they do so with the false conviction that this or that action will satisfy. And though there are many things that provide temporary or superficial “happiness,” the truth is that there is only one thing and one thing alone that provides the happiness and fulfillment we desire. That one thing is the presence of God alive within our souls.The “anxieties of daily life” are also a great burden to so many. No one intentionally chooses to be anxious. No one wants to experience this form of interior disturbance. And though anxiety can come from many sources, physical, psychological and spiritual, one primary source of anxiety is stress that is not dealt with in a proper way. Stress can come from tensions at work, at home or within one’s own soul. Stress usually occurs when some difficulty is faced and reacted to with fear, confusion, anger, despair and the like. According to Jesus, giving in to these anxieties can leave a person unprepared for the day of their judgment at the end of their life or the end of the world. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Stress and tension, and the anxiety that results from them, is most decisively cured by turning from the difficulty one experiences and turning to a deep and total trust in the providence of God. At Mass, the priest prays after the “Our Father” that God “free us from all distress” and that we will instead “await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.” Faith and hope in God and in His final coming at the end of time is the spiritual cure for the anxiety and distress we often experience in life. Trusting in our Lord, with the utmost confidence, will enable us to achieve this peaceful disposition and with joyful hope and confidence.Reflect, today, upon those things that hinder you the most from being ready to meet our Lord. Perhaps you struggle with ongoing choices that reflect a life of “carousing and drunkenness.” Or perhaps you struggle deeply with worry, distress and anxiety. If this is you, know that freedom awaits. It awaits you if you can only embrace and live the final prayer of this reflection: “Jesus, I trust in You.” Trust Him. Entrust your poor decisions in life to Him. Entrust your sin to Him. And entrust all of your worries and tensions that lead to an unsettled heart. As you do so, try to rest in the consoling arms of our Lord so that you will be fully prepared for that glorious day of our Lord’s judgment that awaits.My hopeful Lord, You and You alone are the answer to every struggle in life. You and You alone can relieve me of my burdens and the poor choices I make. Help me to trust in You always and in every circumstance in life. I do entrust myself to You and choose to make You the single focus of my life. Jesus, I do trust in You!Image: Michelangelo, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” Luke 21:32–33As we approach the final days of this liturgical year, we continue to read about the end of the world. Today we read that both Heaven and earth, as they currently are, will pass away. This is worth pondering.We know that life is full of change. It has been said that the one thing that never changes is change itself. Everything else changes. But when it comes to earth, it is hard to believe that it will one day “pass away.” Some scientists believe that the earth has existed for over four and a half billion years. That’s a long time! Now consider the fact that Jesus prophesied the end of this earth as we know it today. When will it happen? Only God knows.Heaven, as it exists today, is also prophesied by our Lord to pass away. Heaven, as it is right now, is a pure spiritual reality in which the only corporeal bodies present are those of Jesus and our Blessed Mother. The rest of Heaven consists of the Divine Essence, the souls of those who have been redeemed and the angels of God. But if Heaven even passes away, what awaits?First of all, the only reason that these two realities, Heaven and earth, will pass away in their current form is because, at the Final Judgment, there will be a “New Heavens and a New Earth,” as spoken of in the Book of Revelation. At that time, Heaven and earth will be united as one, and this new creation will exist for eternity.But is there anything that is currently eternal? Anything that will never experience change? We humans will be changed at the resurrection of the dead, the angels will encounter a new home, so to speak, and God will establish a new and permanent Kingship. But, according to Jesus’ teaching today, the one thing that will remain are His words: “...my words will not pass away.” Again, this is worth pondering.In a world filled with change and uncertainty, we need some form of stability. And that stability is the Truth found in the Word of God. The Word of God, as revealed to us through the Scriptures, must become our rock foundation upon which our whole lives are built and exist. Pondering, praying with, meditating on, and believing the Word of God enables us to stand on firm and unchanging spiritual ground as we go through the change of this life and even the changes that will come at the end of time. Though this may seem somewhat mysterious in nature, it is a helpful truth to understand and believe. Everything will pass away except Jesus’ words. Thus, the most secure thing we can do in life is to cling to His words and never let go. Reflect, today, upon the importance of truly immersing yourself in the Word of God. How much time do you spend each week reading it, praying with it and allowing it to become your daily food? The Word of God is not simply a book of teachings meant to inspire you or guide you. The Word of God is a Living Word. It is God in His unchangeable form. God, in His essence, will never change, and engaging Him through the revelation of His written Word is one essential way by which you will be able to experience true stability in life and prepare for each and every change to come until the final order of life is permanently established. My Eternal Word, You are unchanging and eternal. You are the rock foundation upon which I must always rely. As I continue to experience the many changes encountered in this life, please enter my soul through Your written Word, so that I will find the stability I need. As I stand firm in You, I look forward with joy to the New Heavens and New Earth that await. Jesus, I trust in You.Image via Pixabay.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.”  Luke 21:28This passage above concludes a series of teachings by Jesus on the suffering and persecution that will come in this world. But His teachings conclude with this line above, which offers great hope in anticipation of Jesus’ return in glory. This passage speaks of the prophetic vision of Daniel (Daniel 7:13–14) that terrified Daniel when he saw it. He witnessed the great persecution to come, as well as the destruction of all evil that will accompany the return of the Son of Man.When you think about both the final coming of Christ as well as your own future death, what comes to mind? If you were informed by an angel that tomorrow would be that day, the day that the Son of Man would return in all His splendor and glory to bring about an end to this world and to issue forth His judgment upon it, how would you react? Would you be terrified? Overjoyed? Hopeful? Confused? Perhaps a little of each of these reactions would be present. Of this time, Jesus said that “nations would be in dismay” and that “People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming into the world.” So what is your reaction to this promised day of our Lord?Those who “die of fright” are clearly those who will experience this day completely unprepared. Meeting the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Savior of the World and the Eternal Judge when you are completely unprepared should be frightful. Imagine, for example, that you were hosting a large dinner party and you got your days mixed up. The day arrived and you weren’t expecting anyone until the following week, but the guests started to arrive in great numbers. Imagine your anxiety and embarrassment. Such an experience would be nothing compared to being unprepared for the judgment of Christ when we stand before Him at the time of our death and then at the Final Judgment at the end of the world.The good news is that on that day, for those who are truly prepared through a life of faith and selfless service of God’s will, they are told to “stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.” If you do all you can to prepare for that day, then it will be a day in which you anticipate with the utmost hope and excitement. You will indeed be able to stand erect, turn your eyes to the coming Judge of All, and receive the eternal reward that He so deeply desires to bestow. But this will be your experience only if you are truly ready for that day through a life lived in complete imitation of Christ.Reflect, today, upon that final day. Imagine every person ever created standing before the Judgment Seat of Christ. Every sin and every virtue will be made manifest on that day. The minds and hearts of all will be seen in the light as they are revealed to all by God. And those who have lived lives of fidelity will rejoice as they see God’s justice and His mercy unite as His judgments are issued forth. If this day is one that frightens you, consider the reasons why. If you do not look forward to this definitive moment in time, then perhaps you need to ponder more deeply those things you need to do so as to be fully prepared. Prepare yourself today. Do not wait. Our Lord could return at any time. Do not be caught off guard. My eternal Judge, You promise to return to earth at a definitive moment in time to bring about the fullness of justice. May I always be prepared for that day through a life lived in union with You and Your holy will. I pray for that day to come quickly, dear Lord, and that all Your children will be ready to meet You when You come. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: © José Luiz Bernardes RibeiroSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” Luke 17:17–19He was saved by faith through the expression of gratitude! What a wonderful story to ponder today as we celebrate the national holiday of Thanksgiving!Though Thanksgiving Day is not specifically a Church holy day, gratitude is certainly central to our Christian faith, as is illustrated by today’s Gospel in which ten lepers were healed by Jesus. And their communal reaction is something of which to take note. Nine of them were healed and went about their business, not returning to the source of their healing to thank Him. But one did. This one leper, who was suddenly no longer a leper, returned to Jesus, glorified Him, fell at His feet and thanked Him. This one leper was a foreigner, a Samaritan, but he manifested a faith that we must all strive to imitate. The faith of this Samaritan was evident by the fact that he knew he needed to not only be grateful for the grace of healing but that he also needed to express it.As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, we are reminded that of all the things for which we must be grateful, nothing is more important than our gratitude to God for the immeasurable graces He has given us. But as the story goes, it is clearly very easy to overlook the importance of our response to God’s blessings. Only ten percent of the lepers responded with such an expression. Therefore, it is helpful today to examine the many reasons we should be thankful and should work to express that gratitude to God.First, God created us out of love. This is no small gift. It is the first gift He has given us and one we often take for granted. God did not need to create us. He did not need to create you. But He did. And the gift of life, the gift of an immortal soul, is something that we must never overlook and always rejoice in.Second, God entered our fallen state through the Incarnation within the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Doing so elevated our fallen human nature to a height never known before. Humanity and divinity were united in the Person of the Incarnate Son of God and Son of Man, and we must be grateful for this unmerited and awe-inspiring gift.Third, we know the rest of the story. God, in the Person of the Incarnate Son, suffered, died and rose again. In so doing, He made it possible for every sin of ours to be wiped away. As we die with Him, we are invited to rise with Him. And as we rise with Him, we are invited to share in His glory in Heaven.Lastly, in each and every life, there are countless graces given to us every day. But as spoiled children, we often overlook these blessings and take them for granted. Examples here do not suffice. It is essential that if you want to have a grateful heart that you learn to see these blessings in your own life. Too often we focus on our struggles and pain. But the blessings are abundant, and the more we turn to our Lord in total surrender, the more the blessings flow. Reflect, today, upon the attitude that you have toward the many blessings God has bestowed upon you. Begin by considering the central blessings of God’s creation and His saving acts of love. From there, try to ponder the many small ways that God has been with you, guided you, strengthened you, and blessed you abundantly. If you do not see these clearly, then use this day to consciously listen so that God can reveal them to you. As you see your blessings, respond as this one leper. Turn to Jesus, glorify Him, fall at His feet in prayer and thank Him. Doing so will fill you with the same saving faith granted to this one leper. My most generous Lord, You have bestowed upon me blessings beyond my imagination. I realize that I will never fully understand how good You have been to me and will never be able to express my gratitude adequately enough. Please do fill me with a grateful heart. Help me to see Your action in my life and to respond to You as this one leper. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: James Tissot, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“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.” Luke 21:14–15This line is embedded in today’s Gospel in which Jesus makes it clear that His followers will be persecuted. Many of them will be seized, sent to prison, hated and even be put to death. For some, this will even happen at the hands of their own family. But Jesus tells them this to prepare them and to let them know that these persecutions will enable them to give testimony to Jesus. The Gospel passage above explains how they are to do this.First of all, giving “testimony” especially means they are to be a witness to Christ. And one of the best ways such a witness is fulfilled is through the various forms of martyrdom. To be a martyr is to be a witness. And those who suffer persecution for the sake of Christ, and then respond to that persecution in accord with the wisdom and inspiration of Jesus, are true martyrs. It’s helpful to note that if one is persecuted and responds with anger or returns the violence in accord with their own irrational will, then they are no martyr. They simply become what they have received. They become angry and bitter people. Being a martyr requires both unjust treatment and a response to that mistreatment in accord with God’s will. For that reason, though persecution is never initiated by God, it does offer the Christian an opportunity to deeply conform themself to Christ by responding as He dictates.Jesus says that responding to persecution requires that we not prepare a defense beforehand. In part, this is because there is great temptation one experiences when persecuted by another. It is very understandable that when a person experiences persecution in any way, they will encounter anger and be tempted to fight back in a way that is uncharitable and only furthers the disorder. Responding to persecution in accord with the will of God requires great attentiveness to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, great humility, and unwavering charity directed at the one doing the persecution. Therefore, Jesus makes the promise that He will be with you in such situations and will give you “a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.” What a grace! But this grace is only available to those who rely completely upon Christ, and not upon their own disordered passions and emotions. Reflect, today, upon this promise from Jesus. Some will encounter little persecution in their lives at various times. But others will encounter severe persecution in various ways, even from their family. Reflect upon any ways that you have experienced the unjust treatment of another and then reflect upon your response. Were you able to immediately forgive? Were you able to set aside your anger, wounded pride and desire for revenge? Were you able to keep your eyes on Christ and rejoice that you have been found worthy to share in the ridicule, persecutions and sufferings that Jesus endured? Pray that you will always be open to the grace of this promise of Jesus so that you will always respond to everyone in accord with the wisdom of God. My persecuted Lord, though You were perfect in every way, You endured much cruelty in Your earthly life. The injustice You endured is beyond our comprehension. But Your response to such persecution was perfect. You were able to transform all ill-treatment into grace and mercy, offered especially for those who mistreated You. Give me the grace I need to imitate Your perfect response and to always rely upon Your wisdom and guidance alone. Jesus, I trust in You.  Image: Follower of Gerard David, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineWhile 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.” Luke 21:5–6In a literal way, this prophecy of our Lord came true. In 70 A.D., the Temple upon which they were commenting was destroyed. After prophesying this, Jesus then goes on to warn the disciples that there will be many confusions that will come. There will be false prophets, wars and insurrections, powerful earthquakes, famines, plagues, “and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.” Why does Jesus prophesy all of these things?The answer was simple. He was not trying to scare them. He was not simply trying to satisfy their curiosity. Instead, He was warning them and preparing us all so that we do not become misled or terrified when they come. He says, “See that you not be deceived” and “do not be terrified.”As the old saying goes, “Life is not a bowl of cherries.” While we live in this fallen world, chaos, confusion, deception, abuse, scandal, conflict and the like will be all around us. And when we do come face-to-face with any such difficulty, there is a temptation to fear, anger and despair. Be it family conflicts, civil unrest or even divisions within the Church itself, God wants us to remain at peace and to trust Him always.Take Jesus’ own life as an example. He was arrested, falsely accused, sentenced to death and crucified. And through it all, He remained at peace, knowing that His suffering would become the very source of new life. God can use all things for good for those who love and serve Him.Reflect, today, upon the undeniable fact that your life will involve difficulty. Sometimes that difficulty is self-imposed as a result of your sin, and sometimes it is unjustly imposed on account of the sin of another. Truth be told, we should only be concerned about our own sin. If other challenges come your way that are out of your control, then use those challenges as opportunities to trust. Entrust all things to God, every suffering, every persecution, every tragedy, every struggle, everything. If God the Father could bring about the greatest good ever known through the brutal murder of His own divine Son, then He can certainly do the same with all that you offer to Him in trust. Trust at all times and in all circumstances, and our all-powerful Lord will bring good from everything. My most powerful Lord, You warned us of the many hardships that would come our way before Your glorious return. You did so to help prepare us and to strengthen us in those moments of testing. Please give me the grace I need to always trust in You and to surrender over to You every cross I carry. I do believe, dear Lord, that You can bring good from everything, even those things that are most difficult in life. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: Jan van Orley, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”  Luke 21:3–4We must all see ourselves as this poor widow by offering our “whole livelihood” to Christ. Everything we have is a gift from God, and it must be offered back to God, sacrificially, as our gift to Him. The material offering made by this poor widow was two small coins worth very little. The truth is that even if you were the richest person in the world and donated all that you had to God, it would greatly pale in comparison to the gift given to us by our Lord. We are all poor in the big picture of God’s grace and His Kingdom. The most any one of us can offer is symbolized by these two small coins.As you look at your own life, how willing are you to give everything you have to our Lord for His glory and service? The only appropriate “offering” we are called to give to our Lord is the “sacrifice” of our entire life. This spiritual truth is something very difficult for those who are very wealthy in the things of this world. Material wealth offers an easy way to live in comfort. Money can provide every modern convenience, entertainment, fun, worldly security and much of what this world has to offer. But money cannot buy fulfillment. It cannot satisfy us in the truest sense. This is why many people who live very luxurious lives are not truly happy.Happiness is found in sacrifice. Specifically, it is found in sacrificial love by which we dedicate everything we are and all that we have to the sole purpose of the glory of God and the furtherment of His Kingdom. Sadly, when one is rich in the things of this world, it is easy to think that offering a portion of their wealth, such as a tithe, means that they can keep and use the rest any way they want. But that’s not true. Giving of ourselves completely to God and to His service does not necessarily mean that we donate all of our money to the Church. But it does mean that we offer everything to God. For many, when this complete offering is done every day, God will lead them to use their material resources for the raising of their family, to take care of their basic needs, and, at times, to even enjoy various comforts in life. But the real question is whether or not you truly live as though all you have and all you are is God’s and is to be used for His glory and the furtherment of His will.Reflect, today, upon this poor widow. She was greatly blessed to have very little. This made it easier for her to remain detached from money and other forms of material wealth. And in that detachment, she gave all to God. She entrusted all to Him, and Jesus noticed and praised her. Reflect upon our Lord’s reaction to you and to the offering of your life to Him. If you are holding back from our Lord, then use the witness of this poor widow to inspire you to daily dedicate everything to the service of God in accord with His holy will.My wealthy Lord, Your riches are all that matter in life. You bestow the riches of eternal salvation and countless other graces upon those who have given all to You. I do give my life to You, dear Lord. I give all that I have and all that I am. Please receive the offering of my life and use me in accord with Your holy will. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: She Gave All She Had by Lawrence OP, license CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Luke 22:42–43What powerful words these were. As Jesus hung dying on the Cross for the salvation of the world, He hung between two thieves. These thieves represent all of us. One of them wanted Jesus to save His earthly life by coming down from the Cross and saving him at the same time. The other thief made a prayer for eternal life, asking Jesus to remember him when Jesus entered His Kingdom. To the latter, Jesus granted his request.Oftentimes we pray for earthly goods and pay little attention to eternal ones. Today, as we celebrate the last Sunday of the liturgical year, we celebrate the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. On this day, we are invited to pray this prayer with the good thief, acknowledging that we are sinners deserving death, but hoping and praying for mercy and a share in the Eternal Kingdom of God.Nothing makes the soul of our Lord more joyful than saving His children. He endured suffering and death out of love. He knew that His death would destroy our death if we cling to Him in hope. On the Cross, Jesus’ gaze was on eternal, not earthly, redemption. He beheld the glorious throne that He mounted. It began with a cross but would end with glory, power and splendor beyond imagination. As we honor Jesus as the great and glorious King of the Universe, we are encouraged to invite Him to establish His kingship in our lives more fully. Though Jesus’ permanent, lasting and visible Kingdom will be established only in the future when He returns at the end of time, His Kingdom must begin now.The Kingdom of God is established here and now every time you allow Him to exercise His kingship in your life. As a King, Jesus desires to order your life. He demands perfect submission of your will to Him. He demands complete obedience. And He demands that you embrace this kingship of His freely, of your own choosing. These are demands of perfect love that bring about a sharing in His eternal Kingdom. How well do you do this?Throughout our world, there are many forms of governments. Democracies are thought by many to be the best form of government because no one person is capable of being the perfect king. Therefore a democracy is more of a safeguard against tyranny and abusive leadership. But when it comes to the end of time, the governance of humanity will take place by a King—the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the only one Who is capable of governing humanity with justice and love. He is the only one under Whose leadership we will all flourish. He is the only one Who will be able to establish universal peace and harmony.Reflect, today, upon the glorious end of the world when our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe, will return in splendor and majesty to judge the living and the dead and to establish His permanent and unending Kingdom. Though we are not able to comprehend what this Kingdom will be at this time, we must believe in it with faith and have supernatural hope that we will share in it. Reflect, especially, upon your mission to allow that Kingdom of grace and mercy to begin now, within the depths of your own soul. Surrender all to Him. Invite Him to reign over your thoughts, will, body and soul. Do not hesitate. Trust in this one and only glorious King Who is worthy of our total obedience. My Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, You and You alone are worthy of our total trust and surrender in all things. I do choose You as my King today. I join with the good thief and come to You with all my sin, praying that You will remember me when You come into Your glorious Kingdom. Jesus, I trust in You.  Mongolo1984, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read Online“That the dead will rise even Moses made known in the passage about the bush, when he called  ‘Lord’ the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” Luke 20:37–38Jesus gives this response to some of the Sadducees who question Him about the resurrection of the dead. The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of the body, whereas the Pharisees did. Thus, the Sadducees asked Jesus about the resurrection of the body using an almost unheard of example. They refer to the levirate law found in Deuteronomy 25:5ff which states that if a married man dies before having children, the brother of that man must marry his wife and provide descendants for his brother. Thus, the Sadducees present the scenario where seven brothers die, each one subsequently taking the same wife. The question they posed was, “Now at the resurrection whose wife will that woman be? For all seven had been married to her.” Jesus answers by explaining that marriage is for this life, not the life to come at the resurrection. Therefore, none of the brothers will be married to her when they rise.Some spouses have a hard time with this teaching, in that they love their spouse and desire to remain married in Heaven and at the time of the final resurrection. For those who feel this way, rest assured that the bonds of love we form on earth will remain and even be strengthened in Heaven. And when the end of the world comes and all of our bodies rise and are reunited with our souls, those bonds of love will remain stronger than ever. However, marriage, in the earthly sense, will be no more. It will be replaced by the pure love of the new life to come.This teaching gives us reason to ponder further the beautiful teaching of our Lord about His return in glory and, as we say in the Creed, “the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” We profess this belief every Sunday at Mass. But for many, it can be hard to understand. So what do we actually believe? Simply put, we believe that when we die, our body is “laid to rest,” but our soul enters a moment of particular judgment. Those who remain in mortal sin are eternally separated from God. But those who die in a state of grace will eternally live with God. Most people who die will most likely die with some lasting venial sins on their soul. Thus, Purgatory is the grace of final purification that the person’s soul encounters upon death. Purgatory is simply the purifying love of God which has the effect of eliminating every last sin and imperfection, and every attachment to sin, so that the purified soul can see God face-to-face in Heaven. But it doesn’t stop there. We also believe that at some definitive time in world history, Jesus will return to earth and transform it. This is His Final Judgment. At that time, every body will rise, and we will live eternally as we were intended to live: body and soul united as one. Those souls who are in mortal sin will also be reunited with their bodies, but their body and soul will live separated from God forever. Thankfully, those who are in a state of grace and have endured their final purification will be resurrected and share in the new Heavens and new Earth forever, body and soul as God intended. Reflect, today, upon this glorious teaching of our Lord that you profess faith in every time you pray the Creed. Keeping your eyes on Heaven and, especially, on the final and glorious resurrected state in which you will live in the new Heaven and Earth must become your daily practice. The more we live with this holy expectation, the more we will live here and now as a time of preparation for this final existence. Build treasure now in anticipation of this glorious day and believe that it is the eternity to which you are called. My resurrected Lord, You now reign in Heaven, body and soul, in anticipation of the final and glorious resurrection of all the dead. May I always keep my eyes on this final goal of human life and do all that I can to prepare for this eternity of glory and love. Jesus, I trust in You.Image: James Tissot, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineSource: You are viewing content from a free RSS feed from catholic-daily-reflections.com — Copyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. This content is provided solely for personal, non-commercial use. Redistribution, republication, or commercial use — including use within apps with advertising — is strictly prohibited.And every day he was teaching in the temple area. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words. Luke 19:47–48Jesus had just entered Jerusalem for the upcoming Feast of Passover. He arrived in that holy city and then returned again the next day and entered the Temple area. As He witnessed the corruption of those selling animals for the Temple sacrifices, Jesus responded with fervent preaching in an attempt to cleanse the Temple from this corruption. He quoted the Prophet Isaiah and cried out, “It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” Luke’s Gospel points out the reaction of the chief priests, the scribes and the leaders of the people. They were “seeking to put him to death.” However, as the Gospel further relates, “they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.”It’s important to consider this passage within its context. The words that Jesus spoke were words that sought to cleanse the Temple of corruption. With the approval of the temple priests, who benefitted from the temple tax, there were many people who were using the practice of divine worship to make a profit for selfish gain, turning the Temple into a marketplace. Jesus could see this clearly, and many of the people would have also sensed the corruption of these practices. Though they needed to purchase animals for the ritual sacrifices and Passover meal, many of them were most likely disturbed by this abuse. Therefore, as Jesus spoke with fervor and condemnation, it angered those who were responsible for the corruption but left the people with consolation. Hence, they were “hanging on his words.”The Gospel is always consoling, and, for those who are open, it leads them to hang on every word that is spoken. It refreshes and invigorates, clarifies and motivates. Usually when we think of the Gospel, we think of words that are gentle and inviting—words of mercy to the sinner and compassion for those who are struggling. But sometimes the pure Gospel message from our Lord fiercely attacks sin and evil. And though this may be shocking to the evil doers, to those with pure faith, these words also refresh and strengthen.Today, we need the full Gospel message. Many need to hear Jesus’ gentle invitation to conversion by which their heavy burdens are lifted. But many others need to hear His firm words of condemnation. And the Church as a whole needs both of these messages to be proclaimed if we are to fully participate in the apostolic ministry of our Lord. Only our Lord has the right to condemn, chastise, and call others to repentance. But we are all called to share in this mission of our Lord. And though we do not have the right to judge the hearts of others, when we see objective evil and disorder within our world and even within our Church, we must cry out with our Lord, “My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.” And when we do hear the holy and inspired words of God’s messengers who boldly and courageously proclaim the truth and call others to repentance, it should inspire, invigorate and console us as we find ourselves hanging on their every word.Reflect, today, upon the Gospel messages that need to be preached in our day and age that are both inspired by God and are also fervently directed at corruption within the world and even within our Church. Allow yourself to support such holy preaching and to be inspired by it. Hang on these holy words of God’s prophets today. As you do, God will protect them and inspire them to continue His holy mission of purification.My purifying Lord, the corruption within our world, and at times even within our Church, requires Your holy preaching and purifying action. Please send Your messengers to those in need so that all may be cleansed as You cleansed the Temple. May I share in this mission in the ways in which You call me, and may I always hang on every word spoken from Your merciful and fervent heart of love. Jesus, I trust in You.  Image: James Tissot, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsSource of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

Read OnlineSource: You are viewing a free RSS feed from catholic-daily-reflections.com—Copyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. This content is provided solely for personal, non-commercial use. Redistribution, republication, or commercial use—including use within apps with advertising—is strictly prohibited.“For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” Luke 19:43–44Jesus spoke these words as He looked at Jerusalem from a distance, preparing to enter that holy city for the last time in preparation for His passion and death. As He spoke these words, the Gospel says that Jesus wept over the city. Of course, it wasn’t primarily tears over the future physical destruction of the Temple and invasion by Roman forces. It was first and foremost tears over the lack of faith of so many which was the true destruction He mourned.As mentioned above, the city of Jerusalem was indeed sieged by the military commander Titus in the year 70 A.D. Titus was acting under the authority of his father, the emperor, and destroyed not only the Temple but also much of the city itself, as well as the Jewish inhabitants. As Jesus approached the city of Jerusalem, so as to enter the Temple one last time to offer His life as the definitive Sacrificial Lamb for the salvation of the world, Jesus knew that many within this holy city would not accept His saving sacrifice. He knew that many within that city would become the instruments of His pending death and would have no remorse for killing the Savior of the World. And though this one point can easily be missed, it should be emphasized that Jesus’ reaction was not fear, it was not anger, it was not disgust. Rather, His reaction was holy sorrow. He wept over the city and its inhabitants despite what many of them would soon do to Him.When you suffer injustice, how do you react? Do you lash out? Condemn? Get defensive? Or do you imitate our Lord and allow your soul to be filled with holy sorrow? Holy sorrow is an act of love and is the appropriate Christian response to persecution and injustice. Too often, however, our response is not holy sorrow but anger. The problem with this is that reacting in unholy anger does not accomplish anything good. It does not help us to imitate Jesus, and it doesn’t help those with whom we are angry. Though the passion of anger can be used for good at times, it becomes a sin when it is selfish and a reaction to some injustice done to us. Instead of this unholy anger, seek to foster holy sorrow in imitation of Jesus. This virtue will not only help your soul grow in love of those who have hurt you, it will also help them to see more clearly what they have done so that they can repent.Reflect, today, upon your own approach to the evil you face in your life. Consider carefully your interior and exterior reaction. Do you mourn with love over sins you witness and experience? Do you mourn, with a holy sorrow, over your own sins and the sins of others? Work to foster this form of love within you and you will find that it can become a motivation for you to help transform the sins you commit and the sins of others you endure.My sorrowful Lord, You endured the sins of many. You were treated with cruelty and injustice. To all of these sins, including those that you foresaw, You reacted with the love of holy sorrow. And that sorrow led you to true compassion and concern for all. Please give me the grace to imitate this same love of Yours so that I, too, may share in the holiness of Your sorrowful heart. Jesus, I trust in You.  Image: David Roberts, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons