Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 11, 2023
A demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus,
and when the demon was driven out the mute man spoke.
The crowds were amazed and said,
“Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”
But the Pharisees said,
“He drives out demons by the prince of demons.”
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.”
In today’s gospel, a person whose identity is defined by his demons encounters Jesus. He, more than many in the crowd, must have come to Jesus feeling troubled and abandoned. In that encounter, after being without a voice, he is able to speak. I wonder what he said.
I imagine that it wasn’t just that he was speaking but also the truth of his words that caused the crowds to be amazed. As we encounter Christ, especially in the places we feel farthest from him, we are invited to move from being sheep without a shepherd to laborers for the harvest like this man did when he spoke in the glory of God’s Love.
Benedict of Nursia, whose feast we celebrate today, is regarded as the founder of Western monasticism—a movement rooted in Christian “Ora et Labora,” translated as “Prayer and work,” that called people from the 500s to today to be harvest laborers.
In the prologue to his monastic rule of life, St. Benedict’s words resonate with today’s gospel: “Seeking his workman in a multitude of people, the Lord calls out to him and lifts his voice again: Is there anyone here who yearns for life and desires to see good days? If you hear this and your answer is ‘I do,’ God then directs these words to you: If you desire true and eternal life, keep your tongue free from vicious talk and your lips from all deceit; turn away from evil and do good; let peace be your quest and aim (Ps 33 [34] 14-15). ” (RB Prologue 14-16)
How do we define ourselves or each other by our demons? In what ways can we allow Christ’s love to drive out those lies and speak the truth through us? In what ways is God inviting us to be a laborer for the harvest of peace?
Prayer
Lord, forgive us for the times we think that you are not concerned about us or that you have forgotten us. The gospel today reminds us that your heart was moved with pity for the crowds. In the same way your heart is always attentive to our needs. Thank you for being a shepherd to us. Help us, O Lord, to truly live the vocation that you call us to. Help us to know that all of us, because we are baptized, are called to be shepherds to your people. Thank you for this great privilege. We pray this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day

St. Benedict is often called the father of monasticism in the Roman Catholic Church, but his influence extends beyond monasteries--the rule of life he wrote 1,500 years ago is still a pillar of Christian spirituality today.
He was the twin brother of St. Scholastica—the two were born in 480 to a noble family in Italy. Benedict was educated in Rome, but as a young man became repulsed by the laziness and promiscuousness of his classmates. In about 500, he left the city to live in the countryside about 40 miles away.
There, he met a hermit living nearby, St. Romanus, who saw something special in Benedict. He encouraged the young man to take on a life of solitude, and offered him the use of a cave near his hermitage in an area known as Subiaco, and Benedict lived there for three years. Romanus would visit him on a regular schedule, and brought him food.
Soon, people in the region started hearing stories of Benedict’s holiness and wisdom, and many sought him out. When the abbot of a nearby monastery died, the monks asked Benedict to lead them. He agreed, and imposed on them a strict way of life. They soon changed their minds about him and tried to poison him.
On the first attempt, they poisoned his drink. Benedict received the cup, and when he blessed it, the cup broke (notice this cup in the painting of him from the Basilica). Undeterred, they poisoned his bread next. When he received it, he blessed it and a raven flew by and stole it away (the raven symbolizes him in the stained glass window below from the chapel in Dillon Hall).
Benedict returned to Subiaco and gathered people around him, founding 12 different monasteries and transforming the region into an area of learning and spirituality.
In 525, Benedict left Subiaco and settled in Monte Cassino between Rome and Naples. He destroyed a temple to Apollo there and evangelized the people living nearby. He eventually built the famous monastery, and wrote a rule of life for its monks. This “Rule of St. Benedict” has shaped Christian spirituality and monastic life for centuries.
The Rule offers practical advice for living a Christ-like life and for the administration of a monastery. It is based on common sense and encourages moderation, especially in asceticism and discipline. Prayer (especially with the psalms), study, work, obedience, stability, zeal, community, and hospitality are benchmarks of the Rule, which can be summed in the famous phrase, ora et labora, “pray and work.”
Benedict grew in holiness and became famous for his holiness and wisdom. He gave advice to kings and popes and could read peoples’ consciences. He had the gift of prophesy and worked miracles.
He died on March 21 in 543, but this date almost always falls in Lent, so the Church moved his memorial to July 11. He was named co-patron of Europe in 1964, and is patron saint of students.
The relics of St. Benedict rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica, and he is depicted there in a wall mural. His image also stands in a stained glass window in the chapel in Dillon Hall.
St. Benedict, your common-sense rule of life still shapes Christian spirituality—pray for us!