Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 14, 2022
Jesus said:
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
As I reflect on today’s reading, I think about everything we have been through in the last two and a half years. We have all suffered loss—a burdensome yoke to carry alone.
It may have been the loss of family or friends, a job, opportunities, or simply the loss of the ability to connect with people in the ways we once had. It has been a difficult time, but this has also allowed us to reexamine ourselves and our relationship with God.
Today’s reading reminds us that God is here for all of us, no matter our hardships, trials, or tribulations. Regardless of our differences—social, economic, political, religious, or anything else—the love of Jesus Christ is endless.
God offers us the opportunity to exchange our burdens of sadness, frustration, or anxiety and give us the easy yoke of Christ’s love. No matter what we have happening in our lives, God is there to listen, offer guidance and provide us all with the love we need in these trying times. No matter how significant our differences are, Jesus gets us.
I know that I have personally suffered great loss over the last few years, and it has undoubtedly impacted my health and well-being. However, this has allowed me to reassess my relationship with God. It has helped me to remember that Jesus is truly there for all of us and always available to listen. We can all use these difficult times to remember that no matter how different we are, God is here to help us to let go of the burdens that weigh us down and truly offer us rest.
Prayer
Merciful God, hear your people who cry out to you in their sorrow and need. Console those burdened by trials and suffering. May we find our consolation and peace in Jesus your Son. We ask this in his name. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Kateri Tekakwitha was a Native American who was known as the “Lily of the Mohawks" for her purity and devotion.
She was born in 1656 in what is now New York; her indigenous name is Tekakwitha. Her father was a Mohawk warrior, and her mother was an Algonquin who was captured and brought into the Mohawk tribe.
When she was four years old, both of her parents and her brother died of smallpox. Tekakwitha survived the disease, which left scars on her face and damaged her eyesight; she was adopted by her extended family. As she grew up, she would avoid social gatherings because of her scars, and sometimes wore a shawl or veil over her face.
When she was 17, Tekakwitha’s family encouraged her to marry, but she refused. Soon after that, she met a Jesuit missionary and began learning about the Catholic faith. When she was 19, she was baptized, and took the name “Catherine,” or “Kateri,” after Catherine of Siena.
Because of her faith, and her unusual reluctance to conform to traditional practices to marry, Kateri was shunned from her family and village. They ridiculed her, gave her difficult workloads, and threatened her. She left her home village to live in a Jesuit mission for Native Americans on the St. Lawrence River south of Montreal.
She continued to grow in the faith there, practicing rigorous mortifications. In 1679, Kateri formally dedicated her virginity to God, and encouraged a number of other women who felt the same calling.
When she was 24, her health faltered, in part due to her zealous fasting and harsh bodily disciplines. Kateri died during Holy Week in 1680. She is reported to have appeared to several of her friends and family after her death, telling them that she was “on her way to heaven,” and a number of cures were reported by people who appealed to her help in prayer.
St. Kateri was canonized in 2012 following a miracle in Washington State when a boy was cured of a flesh-eating bacterium through her intercession. The chapel in Welsh Family Hall is named after St. Kateri Tekakwitha, and the image and statue shown above are displayed there.
St. Kateri Tekakwitha, Lily of the Mohawks—pray for us!