Daily Gospel Reflection
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March 31, 2022
Jesus said to the Jews:
“If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf,
and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.
You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.
I do not accept human testimony,
but I say this so that you may be saved.
He was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.
But I have testimony greater than John’s.
The works that the Father gave me to accomplish,
these works that I perform testify on my behalf
that the Father has sent me.
Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.
But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
and you do not have his word remaining in you,
because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.
You search the Scriptures,
because you think you have eternal life through them;
even they testify on my behalf.
But you do not want to come to me to have life.
“I do not accept human praise;
moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you.
I came in the name of my Father,
but you do not accept me;
yet if another comes in his own name,
you will accept him.
How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another
and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father:
the one who will accuse you is Moses,
in whom you have placed your hope.
For if you had believed Moses,
you would have believed me,
because he wrote about me.
But if you do not believe his writings,
how will you believe my words?”
As a school principal, students are usually sent to my office because they have repeatedly ignored a teacher’s redirection to get them back on-task and re-engaged with the learning goal for the class period. The teacher has given the student three opportunities to correct his behavior, and still, the misconduct persists.
It can be disheartening for me to say to a frequently offending student, “Why have you not corrected your behavior? Why won’t you listen to your teacher? Don’t you believe your teacher is trying to do what is best for you?”
I try to remind students that it is acceptable to make mistakes. All I ask is that they acknowledge the behavior, make an effort to correct it, and do the right thing moving forward.
A student’s life can be a powerful image for us to reflect on during Lent.
Students make choices that need redirection and guidance because, more often than not, they need to acknowledge that their teacher is testifying to the truth. Before this Lenten journey began, did I not examine my own life and ask where I need redirection—where I need guidance towards the truth?
The ultimate goal as a teacher is to help students make the right choice on their own to be fully engaged with their learning. Do we not hope to find ourselves on the path to Heaven, fully engaged with Christ as we finish Lent? This is the beauty of education for teachers and Lent for all of us!
John’s Gospel reminds us that Jesus is the Way and the Truth. The people have heard John’s testimony and have seen Jesus’ works, but they have hardened their hearts.
Today’s gospel asks us to open our hearts. Let us pray that our hearts be open and always remain tractable, open to correction, especially during this Lenten journey.
Prayer
Almighty God, we thank you for the grace that you pour into our hearts, a grace that bears fruit in faith, hope, and love. Deepen these virtues in us and in all your people as we observe this holy season of Lent. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Sts. Quirinus and Balbina were a father and daughter who were martyred for their faith in the early Church.
Quirinus was a Roman officer in the army who was tasked to guard the imprisoned Pope Alexander I. In conversation with Alexander, Quirinus stated that he would convert to Christianity if Alexander’s prayer could heal the officer’s daughter, Balbina, from a goiter that afflicted her.
Alexander told her to venerate the chains that held St. Peter, and, since Quirinus knew where Peter had been held, they went there immediately. When Balbina knelt to kiss the shackles, she was cured. They both returned to Alexander and Quirinus had the pope released and pardoned, and asked for baptism for himself and his daughter.
After that, Alexander built a church to hold St. Peter’s chains, which still stands today in Rome.
In 116, Quirinus was arrested and beheaded for his Christian faith. Scholars believe Balbina was arrested and convicted of being Christian and executed in 130. She was buried with Quirinus in the Roman catacombs, and their graves were located in written guides for early Church pilgrims who visited the tombs.
St. Quirinus’ feast day falls on March 30, and St. Balbina’s today. Relics of Quirinus rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. A statue of Balbina, pictured here, stands as one of the 140 statues on the colonnade of St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.
Sts. Quirinus and Balbina, you were the father and daughter who both gave your lives for the new faith you found—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Balbina is available for use under a Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Last accessed February 13, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
