Daily Gospel Reflection
Join the Notre Dame family of faith. Receive God’s Word and a unique reflection in your inbox each day.
January 4, 2019
John was standing with two of his disciples,
and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said,
“Behold, the Lamb of God.”
The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus.
Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them,
“What are you looking for?”
They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher),
“where are you staying?”
He said to them, “Come, and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying,
and they stayed with him that day.
It was about four in the afternoon.
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter,
was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus.
He first found his own brother Simon and told him,
“We have found the Messiah,” which is translated Christ.
Then he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said,
“You are Simon the son of John;
you will be called Cephas,” which is translated Peter.
One of the most challenging pieces of advice I’ve ever received was from a Holy Cross priest. It was a piece of advice I was all too ready to misuse as a 22-year old, and other advisors and realists in my life have been quick to dismiss vehemently. Are you ready for it? Take a deep breath:
“Deadlines are merely suggestions.”
Without getting into the grim details of how experimentation with this idea has played out in my life, I’ll let you think about all the reasons why you couldn’t possibly incorporate it into yours. Every reason you just came up with is completely valid.
Today’s Gospel shows three people who have missed their deadline with Jesus because they needed a little more than what was being offered in the moment. The first follower had tremendous zeal for the idea of following but could not handle the less-than-ideal work conditions. The second and third had loved ones they felt responsible for and could not handle the less-than-ideal timing. Jesus moved on.
“Deadlines are merely suggestions,” has, over time, come to represent this truth for me: God’s timing is the one that matters and is not in our control. God’s timing does not answer to our personal or professional goals. Shortly after today’s selection of Luke’s Gospel, seventy disciples will be sent out to do the hard, gritty work of building the Kingdom, less-than-ideal work and not blocked out on anyone’s schedule. Yet when they returned, they were energized. The disciples celebrated as Jesus informed them that their names were written in Heaven.
Our God is a God of Grace, but when Jesus calls us to do his work, are we prepared to say yes to him? Or will we feel compelled to put him off for just a bit longer so we can meet our other, seemingly more pressing, deadlines?
Prayer
Good and gracious God, when the apostles responded to Jesus’ invitation to come and follow him, they recognized him as the Messiah. Grant each of us the grace to follow Christ, who calls us each by name. We ask this in his holy name. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was the first native-born citizen of the United States to be canonized.
Born Elizabeth Bayley, today's saint was born in 1774 and came of age with our young nation during the tumultuous years of the American Revolution. The Bayley's were part of New York City high society, and Elizabeth was raised with all the comforts of a young heiress. In 1794, Elizabeth married a wealthy man named William Seton and their first years were full of happiness. The memory of that happiness would remain with Elizabeth in the hard years ahead.
William’s father suddenly died, and the young couple took on the care of William’s seven brothers and sisters. Soon after, William’s business failed and he contracted tuberculosis. In a desperate move to save William, they sailed to Italy for a warmer climate, where William had business partners, but he died there.
Elizabeth had a life-long love of Scripture, and the Word of God sustained her in these difficult years of her early widowhood. It was during her time in Italy that she awakened to Catholicism—especially the Eucharist—and she began taking instruction in the faith there. In 1805 she joined the Church, alienating many of her Episcopalian family members.
To support her family as a widow, and to provide for the education of her five small children, Elizabeth opened a school. At the invitation of Archbishop John Carroll and with the help of two other women, she opened a school in Maryland, one of the first free Catholic schools in America.
The small community was known as the Sisters of Charity and they adopted a common rule of life, which made an allowance for Elizabeth to continue to raise her children. Over time, the community would grow to six groups of nuns and grew rapidly, establishing many other orphanages and schools throughout the United States.
Elizabeth herself contracted tuberculosis but continued to guide her five children through her illness. She died at the age of 46 in 1821, after only sixteen years as a Catholic. Elizabeth was canonized in 1975 by Pope Paul VI, the first native-born United States citizen to be canonized.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is the patron saint of widows, the state of Maryland, and of Catholic Schools. A statue of St. Elizabeth sits in the Knott Hall Chapel on Notre Dame's campus. The Notre Dame Archives in the Hesburgh Library collects and maintains records that document the life of the Catholic Church and her people as lived in the American context—which includes material from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, patron saint of Catholic schools in the United States—pray for us!