“Give to the Most High as he has given, and as generously as your hand has found” (Sir 35:10).
What a wonderful invitation to honor our Father and live in a loving relationship with Him! It is a matter of becoming ever more aware of His goodness and responding to it with generosity. As we follow this wise direction, many things will change.
Mk 6:1-6
Jesus went away from there and came to his own country; and his disciples followed him. And on the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue; and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get all this? What is the wisdom given to him? What mighty works are wrought by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.”
“God has not commanded any one to be ungodly, and he has not given any one permission to sin” (Ecclus 15:20).
Let us not be deceived by those who would teach us falsehoods and mislead people, thus relativizing the truth.
Today we celebrate once again one of the holy virgins who suffered martyrdom at the beginning of the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire, thus becoming seeds for the growth of the Kingdom of God. It is admirable to see with what faith and determination these young women remained faithful to the Lord, unbowed. Not only should we remember them and imitate their example, but we can concretely ask them to help us to remain faithful to the Lord when we ourselves suffer slander and persecution.
“God allows all kinds of difficulties for those who wish to serve Him, but as long as they entrust themselves to Him, He never allows them to succumb under the burden” (St. Francis de Sales).
For those who prefer to read a reflection on the Gospel of the Day in the Novus Ordo, here is the link: en.elijamission.net/2022/01/31
In the traditional calendar, Saint Francis de Sales is commemorated today. He was born on 21 August 1567 in the Savoy region of France. The young man, who belonged to the nobility, was initially destined for a secular career. He studied law at Paris and Padua. At the same time, he studied theology because the Calvinist doctrine of predestination caused him a crisis. After obtaining a doctorate in civil and canon law, he was to become a senator, but despite his father’s opposition, he decided to become a priest.
“When I find myself with an open heart, I want to give everything to it and through it bestow gifts on other people” (Inner Word).
Mk 1:21-28
And they went into Caper′na-um; and immediately on the sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and taught. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!”
“If you cling unwaveringly to Me, if you reject with all strength all thoughts that confuse you and anchor your heart unfathomably in Me, then it will no longer be you who live, but I will live in you and will have become your life” (Inner Word).
Mc 4:35-41
On that day, when evening had come, Jesus said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” And they were filled with awe, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?”
