Daily Gospel Reflection
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August 7, 2021
A man came up to Jesus, knelt down before him, and said,
“Lord, have pity on my son, who is a lunatic and suffers severely;
often he falls into fire, and often into water.
I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.”
Jesus said in reply,
“O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you?
How long will I endure you?
Bring the boy here to me.”
Jesus rebuked him and the demon came out of him,
and from that hour the boy was cured.
Then the disciples approached Jesus in private and said,
“Why could we not drive it out?”
He said to them, “Because of your little faith.
Amen, I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed,
you will say to this mountain,
‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.
Nothing will be impossible for you.”
Any parent knows how desperate the father of the afflicted child must have been as he approached our Lord, having already approached Jesus’ apostles and been disappointed. As parents, we spend much of our time in prayer on behalf of our children: for their health, virtue, vocations, possible future spouses, holiness, etc. When our children suffer or fall, we feel the same desperation of the man in this gospel, imploring God’s help. This humble father is a powerful reminder for us that when we approach Jesus with sincerity and humility, even a simple prayer asking for God’s pity can lead to tremendous healing and the banishment of demons.
Because of the intercession of his father, the lunatic boy experiences healing. Because of his son, the father grows closer to Christ. His faith yields graces and greater faith not only for his son but also for himself.
For the first several years of motherhood, I thought it was my job to get my children to heaven. And it is! It is certainly incumbent upon parents to form their children to be fearless and virtuous defenders of Christ. But what I have come to appreciate more fully as my children are growing is how they are uniquely effective at increasing my faith and pushing me to humble and fervent prayer.
For their sake, I find myself surrendering to God more willingly as I come to realize that I can do nothing without the mercy and grace of God. My children are the ones getting me to heaven. I beg for the intercession of the saints. And unlike the father of the lunatic boy, we are not disappointed now when we ask for the intercession of the blessed apostles—because while Jesus chastised them for their lack of faith when they were on earth, their faith is now perfected in heaven, and nothing is impossible for them.
Prayer
Merciful God, may we see the face of your Son in those who suffer. We remember that he died and rose again that all might find salvation through him. Help us to live in union with him and with one another. We ask this in his name. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Cajetan lived in the early 1500s in Italy, at a time when the Church was marked by corruption and indifference. In response, like an effective team captain rallying other players, he reenergized a community of priests who reformed the Church with their zeal and service to the poor.
He was born in 1480 to noble parents and attended the University of Padua, where he dedicated himself to studies and prayer. He received civil and canon law doctorates and returned to his hometown, where he was appointed a senator. After a time, he discerned a call to the priesthood and was ordained when he was 33.
He began to gather other priests around him to care for the poor and sick. Because Cajetan was of noble status, he could have selected anywhere to minister—at court, or in the hierarchy at the Vatican. Instead, he sought out the priests who were living and working among the people of the streets. Though this offended his friends, he persisted. He even founded a bank to offer poor people an alternative to loan sharks.
The group founded a hospital for those suffering from incurable diseases. He told his brother clerics that in church, “we try to serve God by worship; in our hospital we may say that we actually find him."
The Church itself was sick at that time—many of the clergy were corrupt and indifferent. Cajetan and his community of brother priests decided to formalize their efforts as a religious community dedicated to zeal and to spreading authentic faith through their personal witness. They preached, cared for the sick, encouraged people to receive the sacraments frequently, and urged pastors to live a dedicated life of service.
He spent the rest of his life working to reform the Church and mediating civil conflicts. His community of priests went on to play a key role in the reformation of the Church. When he fell ill in 1547, his doctors ordered him to lie on a mattress instead of the bare boards he used for his bed. “My savior died on a cross,” Cajetan said. “Allow me at least to die on wood.”
St. Cajetan’s relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. He is the patron saint of workers and of those seeking employment.
St. Cajetan, who led priests and rallied the Church with his zeal and commitment to the poor, pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Cajetan is in the public domain. Last accessed March 28, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
