Daily Gospel Reflection
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August 2, 2019
Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.
They were astonished and said,
“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?
Is he not the carpenter’s son?
Is not his mother named Mary
and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
Are not his sisters all with us?
Where did this man get all this?”
And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and in his own house.”
And he did not work many mighty deeds there
because of their lack of faith.
Recently I had the incredible opportunity to travel to the Holy Land on pilgrimage. As my group traveled to Cana, the Sea of Galilee, and the tomb of Lazarus, among other holy places, our chaplain recounted numerous stories of the miracles performed by Jesus. These mighty deeds worked by Christ have been at the forefront of my mind since returning from the pilgrimage. For this reason, it gave me pause to read in this Gospel that Christ “did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.”
I firmly believe and often take for granted that Christ will intercede and work miracles in my life, not because of my own faith, but simply because God is good. However, we hear time and time again in the Gospels that Jesus healed an individual from chronic illness or cast out demons, not just because he could, but because he recognized the depth of faith of that individual.
Today, my prayer is to have the courage to bring all things to Christ, knowing that no intention is too small, no intention is a nuisance, and all things are made new in Christ. I pray that a lack of faith never prevents Christ from working mighty deeds in my life; I pray for the type of unwavering faith that moves the heart of Christ to perform miracles.
Prayer
Lord, we know that the people of Jesus’ day were not the only ones to reject him and his Gospel. Even though we bear the name of Christian, we, too, all too easily seek to write and live our own Gospels, rather than the one preached by your Son, who is the way, the truth, and the life. Make Jesus and his Gospel the true cornerstone of our lives so that built on the rock who is Christ, we may be your Church, your living presence in this world. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Peter Julian Eymard’s devotion to the Eucharist led him to an active life of love of God and neighbor. He was a contemporary of Blessed Basil Moreau, and both priests sought to revive the Church in the wake of the French Revolution.
Peter Julian was born in 1811 to a poor family just after the Revolution. Peter decided to become a priest and joined the seminary against his family’s wishes. He soon got sick, however, and had to withdraw from his studies—he never fully recovered his health.
A few years later, he tried again, and was successful in his training—he was ordained a priest in 1834 and joined the Marist Fathers. His life and ministry was marked by a strong devotion to Mary and to the Eucharist, and these were the focus of much of his preaching and teaching.
“We believe in the love of God for us,” he wrote. “To believe in love is everything. It is not enough to believe in the truth. We must believe in love and love is our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. That is the faith that makes our Lord loved. Ask for this pure and simple faith in the Eucharist. Men will teach you, but only Jesus will give you the grace to believe in him. You have the Eucharist. What more do you want?”
With the encouragement of his friend, St. John Vianney, Peter Julian founded two new religious orders dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament. Though the orders struggled at first, they eventually succeeded in bringing about his vision of a united community of people—priests, deacons, sisters, and laypeople—deeply formed by the Mass and prayer before the Eucharist.
Towards the end of his life, he took a long retreat in Rome and received a mystical experience of communion with Christ, which he described in a series of letters and meditative works. He died on this date in 1868 after suffering a stroke in France. His relics rest in the Basilica.
St. Peter Julian Eymard, who loved Christ in the Eucharist, pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Peter Julian Eymard is available for use under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Last accessed March 28, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
