13th week in ordinary time 02/07/2025 Wednesday

 “Prayer is an act of love.” – Saint Teresa of Avila

Dear brothers and Sisters in Jesus Christ,

Today’s readings reveal a profound truth about prayer ; God hears every cry, especially from those who feel forsaken rejected, or cast aside. In our first reading, we witness Hagar and Ishmael exiled to the wilderness, while in the Gospel, we encounter two men possessed by demons, living among tombs—all outcasts from society.

Hagar’s story teaches us that prayer often emerges from our deepest desperation. When she could no longer bear to watch her child die, she moved “a bowshot away” close enough to care, far enough to avoid unbearable pain. Yet Scripture tells us: “God heard the boy weeping.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that “prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God”(CCC 2559), and sometimes this happens not through outspoken words, but through tears, lamentations, and wordless anguish.

Even the demons in the Gospel recognize Jesus as the Son of God, showing that all creation, no matter how fallen, cannot help but acknowledge divine authority. As Saint Augustine taught, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” The townspeople’s reaction asking Jesus to leave reveals how we sometimes prefer our familiar problems to divine solutions.

The Catechism teaches us that “prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part” (CCC 2725). Like Hagar, we sometimes journey into unknown places where God meets us with unexpected grace—prayer becomes less about our requests and more about opening our hearts to His faithful presence.

Saint Teresa of Avila reminds us: “Prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God.” This friendship doesn't shield us from wilderness experiences but sustains us through them.

For those preparing for priesthood, today’s readings offer crucial insights. Seminary formation is itself a wilderness experience—a time of separation from the familiar to discover God's call more deeply. Like Hagar, seminarians must learn to trust that God provides water in the desert of formation.

The Catechism emphasizes that “the priest continues the prayer of Christ”(CCC 1563). This means learning to pray not only for ourselves but for the abandoned, the possessed, the outcasts of society. Our prayer life must be wide enough to embrace Hagar's tears and deep enough to cast out demons.

First: In our spiritual wilderness, we might feel alone like Hagar did, but God’s ear is always turned toward us.

Second: We need to see Christ clearly, especially in moments when the world turns Him away.

Third: Our prayers should lift up those who cannot speak for themselves—the spiritually trapped, the broken hearted, and the outcasts.

God’s heart beats for the forgotten—when Hagar wanders lost, when Ishmael’s tears fall silent, when the tormented cry out from dark places, His answer never wavers: He listens, He arrives, He rescues.

In our faith journey, let prayer flow from the heart, not polished words—God revealed the well Hagar couldn’t see and opens our eyes to His gifts hidden in our hardest seasons, giving us strength to remain when others turn away.

The wilderness becomes sacred ground where we meet the God who never leaves us, transforming our loneliest moments into encounters with His unfailing presence.

Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

Mother of the Church

 “The Gospels did not start the Church; the Church started the Gospels. The Church did not come out of the Gospels; the Gospels came out of the Church.”

Fulton J. Sheen

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today on the day after Pentecost Sunday we enter once again into the season of Ordinary Time, which will continue until the end of this current liturgical year in November this year. And today, we also mark the celebration of Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, or Mater Ecclesiae. The title “Mary, Mother of the Church” is the word mentioned in the Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church from the Second Vatican Council. This document was promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 21, 1964. Mary was officially honored with the title “Mother of the Church” because of her recognized role as the spiritual mother of all faithful people, similar to how St. Joseph was named Protector of the Universal Church.

Mary is the Mother of the Church! Mary is our Mother! This is not a made-up title! Jesus himself used it when He was on the cross. “Woman, this is your Son. Son, this is your mother.” “Woman, this is your Son.” These words were spoken to John and to a few others who were with Mary at the foot of the cross, but also extend to the entire Church. The words “this is your mother,” spoken by Jesus to the disciples and to us through the Gospel, present the entire Church to Mary. In a way, this expanded Mary’s mission.

We are first introduced to Mary as a daughter of Israel who is shaped by faith. She is the hope and charity of the people of Israel, the one who says “yes” to the Lord. In that sense, she was  faithful to her first vocation, to be a child of God and a daughter of the Father.

 Her mission grew as she continued to be a faithful child of God. She was called to become the mother of Jesus, true God and true man. Her life was a pilgrimage of faith. Then, at the foot of the cross, Jesus himself expanded her mission. She was the daughter of the Father, the mother of Jesus, and then, she became the mother of the Church. For this reason, we as a baptised people can truly pray to Mary as our Mother. We pray the Rosary often and with good reason, because we pray to Mary, our mother.

What does Mary, our mother do? As our mother, what does Mary do for us? Mary is the one who gives us Jesus. Her first desire is to give us Jesus!

If, on her part, Mary is a mother who gives life, our part is to receive Jesus who is our life. Mary also prays for us, she intercedes for us so that we may open our hearts to Jesus.

Mary is the one who best received Jesus! Saint Augustin said that before receiving Him in the flesh, she received Him in her heart.

Among all people across history, she is the one who best received Jesus. But at the same time, she is also the one who best gave Jesus to the world, by bringing Him into the world. She is the one who gives Jesus to all humanity and who brings Jesus into the world as the mother of Jesus. In being the mother of Jesus, and in being faithful to Jesus, she becomes our mother.

Mary is the one who gives Jesus to all humanity and who brings Jesus into the world as the mother of Jesus.

 In being the mother of Jesus, and in being faithful to Jesus, she becomes our mother.

Let us not stop praying to Mary because Mary leads us to Jesus. Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort used to say, “We can go to Jesus without Mary, but it is faster with Mary!” Let us not fear to pass by Mary to go to Jesus. That is her vocation, given to her by Jesus himself. And let us pray to the Father. Through her “yes”, Jesus came into our lives. Through the prayer of Mary, let our heart be more open to Jesus. Through the prayer of Mary, let the Church be born and continue to grow. Through the prayer of Mary, let us grow as children of God.

DN. DOMINIC SAVIO JEROME