Daily Gospel Reflection
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March 1, 2023
While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them,
“This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it,
except the sign of Jonah.
Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites,
so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
At the judgment
the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation
and she will condemn them,
because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
and there is something greater than Solomon here.
At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it,
because at the preaching of Jonah they repented,
and there is something greater than Jonah here.”
Today the Congregation of Holy Cross and, indeed, all who make up this great family of Holy Cross give thanks and praise to our Lord Jesus Christ for the gift Blessed Basil Moreau is to the life of the Church.
Fr. Basil Anthony Marie Moreau united the Brothers of St. Joseph and Auxiliary Priests of Le Mans 186 years ago today. These men were to give their entire lives to evangelizing, educating, and sanctifying the Church in France. Shortly after this union, the Congregation of Holy Cross answered the needs of the universal Church and began missions to spread the Gospel in places like Bangladesh, Algeria, and the United States.
Blessed Basil Moreau envisioned that priests, brothers, and sisters of Holy Cross would live out, complete, and perfect their vocation in imitating Christ and the Holy Family. This union—conforming ourselves to Christ—is the lever with which God, in his divine providence, moves and directs the world.
Today, Jesus gives us the good news that there is something greater here in this world. Even when we, like Jonah, deny the call of Christ to proclaim his salvation and message of repentance, God still uses us, impoverished and sinful as we are, to fulfill his plan of redemption for his people. In this way, we become living signs of our commitment and conformity to Christ.
Instead of hiding within the belly of the whale as Jonah did to evade God’s call, each of us has the vocation of “hiding” our lives in Christ: burying ourselves willingly in the dust of a classroom, the obscurity of a parish church, the inconvenience of family life, the demanding rigor of academic studies, or the wounds of those who are beaten down and abandoned.
May our lives, hidden in Christ, be a sign of true union in an alienated world, for surely only Jesus Christ and his living presence is that which is greater here in this world. Our Lady of Holy Cross, pray for us!
Prayer
Father in Heaven, as he was lifted high on the Cross your son Jesus Christ gave us the ultimate sign of your love. Convert our hearts to rely on you. Deepen our faith, help us to carry our own crosses, so that we may place all our hope in your power to save. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Albinus was so well known for working miracles that faithful people all over Europe, from Spain to Poland, prayed for his intercession. Many French parishes are named after him to this day.
He was born in northern France to a family who landed there from England or Ireland. As a young man, he entered a nearby monastery. By the time he was 35, he was elected abbot of the monastery, and when Angers, France, needed a bishop in 529, the people turned to him.
As bishop, Albinus preached every day, and took great care of the sick and the poor. He had a special care for widows who were raising large families. He also was famous for his work ransoming captives. Nearby barbarian forces would raid the cities, and he spent large amounts of money to buy back prisoners who had been enslaved.
Once, the king himself carried off a beautiful young girl and locked her away for his own pleasure. When Albinus heard about it, he went directly to the castle and demanded her freedom. The guards dared not oppose him and handed her over. The king did not pursue, but had the gall to demand a ransom for her freedom, which Albinus paid himself.
Albinus healed the sick and restored sight to the blind, and even was known to raise from the dead one boy named Alabald. Albinus died in 550.
St. Albinus, you were the French bishop who freed captives, cured the sick, and even raised the dead, pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Albinus is available for use under a Creative Commons license. Edited from the original. Last accessed January 30, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
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