Daily Gospel Reflection
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September 2, 2026
After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.
Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,
and they interceded with him about her.
He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.
She got up immediately and waited on them.
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases
brought them to him.
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”
But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Christ.
At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.
The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,
they tried to prevent him from leaving them.
But he said to them, “To the other towns also
I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent.”
And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
In 2009, as a 31-year-old husband and father of two young children, I faced unexpected open-heart surgery because of an aortic aneurysm that was caught before it ruptured. While the data showed that the risks of surgery were relatively low, that was cold comfort for someone whose chest would be cracked open and whose heart would stop while doctors repaired his diseased aorta. My anxiety was off the charts; I struggled to push through the weeks leading up to the surgery. I was blessed, however, with family, friends, and strangers, far and wide, praying for me.
Like those in today’s gospel passage, these people “brought” me to the Lord, “interceded with him” for me. When I couldn’t pray because of the anxiety and fear, this multitude of people begged Christ for a miracle or, barring that, safe passage through the grueling surgery and recovery. They carried my family and me to the Lord.
That is why I am always struck by passages in the gospels, like today’s, in which friends and family literally carry the sick to our Lord for cure, for aid. These stories cut against that go-it-alone attitude and posture that we’ve imbibed since we were babies. That sort of atomized individualism isn’t a gospel category.
In these simple vignettes, we learn a lesson about faith. As St. Cyril of Jerusalem wrote in his catechetical lectures, the “power of faith is enormous. It is so great that it not only saves the believer; thanks to one person’s faith, others are saved also.” We are called to carry friends, family, strangers, and enemies in our prayers and in our faith to the Lord. He will do the rest. Sometimes it will be a miracle healing. Other times it will be the grace to sustain someone through deep suffering. Whatever it is, we are our brother’s keeper.
Prayer
Lord, in healing Simon’s mother-in-law you restored his family. We need you to restore health to us, and to our family and friends. Please guide us to do all we can to bring healing and comfort to our minds and bodies and to those we love. Remove our anxiety and give us that peace and hope that surpasses human understanding. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Blessed Jean-Marie du Lau, archbishop of Arles, France, died on this date in 1792 with 190 others during the anti-Church violence of the French revolution.
Two years prior, a populist assembly passed a law that subordinated the Church in France to the government. The law was particularly harsh on monastic orders, and required all clergy to swear by an oath to accept it. Nearly all bishops in France opposed the measure and refused to take the oath.
In the late summer of 1792, violence spread as insurrectionists clashed with the monarchy and its allies. Populist militias massacred more than 1,500, including 191 who were beatified as martyrs.
Many of these martyrs were clergy and leaders of religious communities, and were held in prisons. Most were offered the opportunity to take the oath to accept the primacy of the government over the Church, and when they refused, they were killed on the spot.
Blessed Jean was imprisoned with 150 others in a Carmelite church. All were clergy except for one layman, a cavalry officer who volunteered to accompany his parish priest to prison. Under Jean’s guidance, the group lived a regular life of prayer and worship in prison, and surprised their guards by the joy they displayed.
On this date in 1792, the group was taking a rest period in the garden of the church where they were imprisoned when an armed mob broke into the complex and began killing any prisoners they could find. Jean was in the chapel when the melee broke out, and calmly emerged. He was asked if he was the archbishop, and when he confirmed his identity, he was killed with sword and pike.
After the first wave of killings, the mob set up a mock court and called the surviving clergy, two by two, to swear by the oath. Every single one of them refused it without hesitating and were led down a staircase where they were murdered. One bishop had been injured during the initial outbreak, and when he was called, he replied, “I do not refuse to die with the others, but I cannot walk. I beg you to have the kindness to carry me where you wish me to go.” He, too, was killed when he refused the oath.
One of the imprisoned priests had been in charge of arranging meals with the guards, and he handed to the mob the 325 francs he owed the caterer before being killed. Two other priests heard each others’ confessions before being led before the court.
After dispensing with all they could find there, the mob moved on and the killing persisted into the next day. The 191 are remembered as the Martyrs of September, and were beatified in 1926.
Blessed Jean-Marie du Lau, you refused to deny your faith and the Church in France, and died with the priests you led—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of the Martyrs of September is available for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Last accessed April 3, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
