Daily Gospel Reflection

Join the Notre Dame family of faith. Receive God’s Word and a unique reflection in your inbox each day.

May 23, 2023

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter
Jn 17:1-11a
Listen to the Audio Version

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said,
“Father, the hour has come.
Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
just as you gave him authority over all people,
so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him.
Now this is eternal life,
that they should know you, the only true God,
and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
I glorified you on earth
by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do.
Now glorify me, Father, with you,
with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

“I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world.
They belonged to you, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word.
Now they know that everything you gave me is from you,
because the words you gave to me I have given to them,
and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you,
and they have believed that you sent me.
I pray for them.
I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me,
because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours
and everything of yours is mine,
and I have been glorified in them.
And now I will no longer be in the world,
but they are in the world, while I am coming to you.”

Reflection

Katie Moran Peterson '15, '17, M.Ed.
Share a Comment

Too often, my mind dwells on the future. I plan my dinner before I’ve finished lunch. I frequently say, “I can’t wait until it’s Friday,” or, “After I get through this challenge, all will be well.”

What strikes me about today’s gospel is this line: “Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.” This is eternal life. Present tense. Not “this eventually will lead to eternal life.”

God did not put us on this earth merely to muddle through until heaven. Yes, we should look forward with hope and excitement to that ultimate union with God in heaven when we experience the fullness of Christ’s risen glory, but eternal life can begin now because we can know God now.

We come to know one another and strengthen relationships by spending intentional time together. The same is true of our relationship with God. God is always present to us; in fact, God is seeking us and profoundly desires a relationship with each of us.

How can we be present to God and recognize God in everyday life? Sometimes it’s as simple as taking a moment to see. My husband and I started a nightly ritual of reflecting on our day and sharing where we encountered God, both in the challenges and blessings. Reflecting on where God was that day has helped us over time to recognize God in the present moment the next day.

God’s presence truly infuses everyday moments with the peace, joy, and hope of eternal life. May we all recognize and know God more deeply today and thus experience eternal life, not only in the future but right now.

Prayer

Rev. Brad Metz, C.S.C.

God of compassion and strength, visit us and give us the hope of your Spirit dwelling within and around us. Help us to trust in the relationships of our lives that reveal to us your abiding love and lasting peace. Enliven us to always trust in your presence, especially when we embrace our brothers and sisters in joy, as did Mary and Elizabeth. Grant this through Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.

Saint of the Day

St. Crispin of Viterbo

Though he sought out the most humble of roles wherever he was, people did not fail to notice St. Crispin's holiness.

He was born in 1688 in Italy. His mother taught him a deep devotion to Mary, and as a young adult he received a little education at a Jesuit college before joining his uncle, a shoemaker, as an apprentice.

When he was 25, he applied to join the Franciscans and was accepted to a monastery in Viterbo. He was a small man who looked sickly, but gave himself to all kinds of manual labor. He liked to call himself the "Capuchin Ass," humbly thinking himself the equal to a beast of burden. He worked in the garden and cooked food.

During several epidemics that struck the area, he helped care for the sick and was known for cures. He also took on a role begging from the local town to obtain money for the sustenance of the monastery. He became well-loved by citizens there, and when he was reassigned and another was sent in his place, everyone in the town refused to offer any money. The superiors were forced to return Crispin.

His last years were spent in Rome, where he was known for his prophecies and miracles. He died at the age of 82, and his relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. His image is used here with permission from Catholic.org.

St. Crispin of Viterbo, you were the shoemaker who helped people fix their souls--pray for us!