Daily Gospel Reflection
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March 11, 2026
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
Of the 613 laws found in the Torah, the sacred Jewish text, most were established to help the Israelites maintain a relationship that centered on God and neighbor as the object of one’s attention, actions, and entire way of life. In the words of the prophet, Micah, they outlined the way for the faithful to do what God wishes: “Act justly, love tenderly and walk humbly with God.”
Jesus, of course, fulfilled the letter and the spirit of the law because his human heart was one with his divine heart. As his disciples, how are we striving to bring our human hearts into alignment with what the divine asks of us?
I live in a place where the heavy hand of authoritarianism has come down hard. We have struggled as neighbors who have lived with us for decades, are being persecuted. I do believe all are made in the image of God, and therefore, living faithfully means to call out the lies, the abuses, the corruption, and to accompany, protect, and care for the most vulnerable among us, without exception. Embracing Howard Thurman’s words, I continually pray that all of us experience the ongoing conversion needed to not only worship Christ, but to follow Jesus.
We are mid-Lent. This is our time for self and communal reflection and repentance for when we have fallen short in practicing justice, tenderness, humility, and compassion as a way of life. What is keeping us from centering God and neighbor in our own lives?
Prayer
God, we long to enter the kingdom of heaven. We know that there, every tear will be wiped away and all will be made joy and light. Help us to follow the law and the prophets and your loving example. You promise us that in doing so we will be with you in the kingdom where you live and reign forever and ever. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Angus wanted only a humble life of prayer, but his holiness and wisdom brought him fame. His effort to escape notoriety ended up leaving behind an important record of saints.
He was born near Clonenagh, Ireland, in the middle of the eighth century. He joined the famous monastery near his home, and rapidly advanced in learning and holiness.
People at the time referred to a hermit as "servant of God," which in Gaelic was “Ceile De”—or “Culdee” as we have it now. Angus loved solitude. It was said that no one in Ireland could match him in virtue or learning, but his renown made him seek more time alone for prayer. He left the monastery to live as a hermit on the banks of a river, but people heard of his holiness and sought him out, so he retreated farther into the countryside. Still being found there, he decided to anonymously join a community at a monastery near Dublin.
As he was traveling to Dublin, he stopped in a church to pray and had a vision of angels singing around a tomb there. He inquired about the tomb from the priest of the parish, who replied that the man buried there was not exceptional in any way, but that his practice was to constantly recall the saints and ask them for prayers. Immediately, Angus was struck with the idea to compose a poem of praise to the saints to help people with this devotion.
He reached the monastery at Dublin, and joined the community as a simple layman and laborer without telling anyone who he was. He spent seven years working and praying there, but eventually his identity was discovered. The abbot, St. Maelruan, capitalized on his education, and the two set out to compose a lyrical hymn to the saints (known as the Félire in Irish, or as Festilogium in Latin). The work is the earliest metrical version of a martyrology—a list of saints and their feast days—to be written in the vernacular. It collected Irish saints and combined them with other known Christian saints. A page from his martyrology is pictured here.
After the death of St. Maelruan, Angus returned to Clonenagh, where he finished the work, and was raised to the position of abbot. The custom of the time made the appointment also a designation as bishop. He died on this date in 824, and his relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. Variations on his name are Aengus and Oengus.
St. Angus, you were the Irish bishop who collected stories of the saints to help the faithful—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Angus' martyrology is in the public domain. Last accessed February 4, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
