Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 13, 2021
On leaving the synagogue
Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.
They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.
Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
When it was evening, after sunset,
they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.
The whole town was gathered at the door.
He cured many who were sick with various diseases,
and he drove out many demons,
not permitting them to speak because they knew him.
Rising very early before dawn,
he left and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.”
He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages
that I may preach there also.
For this purpose have I come.”
So he went into their synagogues, preaching and driving out demons
throughout the whole of Galilee.
Jesus does three things in today’s gospel that I find very difficult. He gets up very early, he goes off to a deserted place, and he prays.
Most mornings, I hit the snooze on my alarm at least a couple of times. I look at my email on my phone before I even get out of bed and scroll through my calendar so I can see what’s waiting for me in the day ahead. Then I bounce around between getting the kids ready and trying to get myself ready. If I find a moment for prayer in the morning, it’s on the drive to work. Except that I haven’t driven to work since last March.
Mornings are tough. I say my prayers before bedtime! But I know that taking at least a moment to start the day with the Lord is very important. That’s why Jesus’ personal actions at the end of this gospel stand out to me.
It’s not just what he does (rise early, find solitude, pray) that is so meaningful, it’s why he does it. It doesn’t take long for his disciples to seek him out and say, “Everyone is looking for you.” Jesus knows that he can’t give these people what they are looking for if he hasn’t offered his day to God. Remember the kids, the emails, and the calendar appointments I just mentioned? Sometimes it feels like everyone is looking for me, too. Can I give them my best if I haven’t offered my day to God?
I think I’ll try to make my morning prayer with my first sip of coffee. That’s a morning ritual I don’t often miss.
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
St. Hilary was hailed by the best minds of his age as an “illustrious” teacher and a “most eloquent man”—high praise from St. Augustine and St. Jerome, two of the greatest theologians the Church has ever known.
He lived in the fourth century and was born and raised in Gaul, what is now France. His family was not Christian, and Hilary came to the faith through intellectual study. His curiosity and reasoning led him to refute polytheism, and when he started seeking one God, he found Scripture. The story of Moses, where God’s identity is revealed as “I am who am,” captivated him, and he immersed himself in the other writings. He was baptized as an adult in his 30s.
Before his conversion, he was married and had a daughter, and his family followed him when the people chose him as bishop of Poitiers. He adamantly refused his selection out of humility, but that just made the people want him more.
As bishop, his learning served the people of his region, and the Church as a whole. He wrote a commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, which still exists, and was an effective orator and poet. He once said that it was the work of his life to use all of his gifts to announce God to the world. He encouraged people to begin and end every action with a prayer.
Hilary fearlessly sought and defended truth—an important quality during his age, which was marked by the Arian heresy, a strain of thought that distorted the nature of Jesus. Because of his opposition to this heresy, and the political forces behind it, he was cast into exile for three years. He departed from Poitiers with an attitude as though he were leaving for a vacation—he welcomed the dangers and hardships he would face and kept his attention focused on God alone.
During his exile, he continued to write; one of his most important works from that time was about the Trinity. The earliest hymns we have in the Latin tradition can be traced to Hilary.
When he was restored to Poitiers, he was welcomed with a great celebration among the people. He was known as a gentle and friendly man, but was unflinching when he faced those who obstinately opposed the true faith.
Hilary died in 368, and was declared a doctor of the Church, a title given to 37 saints who are known for elucidating the faith by their words or example. He is patron saint of children with disabilities, mothers, and sick people; his relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
St. Hilary of Poitiers, you are the doctor of the Church who is patron saint of children with disabilities, pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Hilary of Poitiers is in the public domain. Last accessed November 14, 2024 on Wikimedia Commons.
