Daily Gospel Reflection
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November 15, 2025
Jesus told his disciples a parable
about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, “There was a judge in a certain town
who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought,
‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me
I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.’”
The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones
who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Reflection
Today’s gospel reflection reminded me of my mother. When I was a young child, my mother would constantly engage with me and encourage me to pray, asking God to bless me and my family—simple prayers for a simple little boy.
As I grew, mom’s encouragement turned to guiding me to not only ask God for his help but also to thank him for the good things in life. And then, as I continued to grow and mature into adulthood, my mother showed me the depths of her faith as our prayers together often asked God to help us accept and embrace God’s will.
With my mother’s passing nearly two years ago, I feel that I sometimes fall back to the prayers of my childhood, where I merely ask God to bless me and give me what I want and often quickly, rather than to thank God. Today’s gospel reflection is a reminder to me to pray often, but to do as my mother, Ruth Eileen O’Brien, did: seek God’s grace and to see that God’s will is what should be done, not my will.
As my mother aged (while she still had good cognition), I remember a constant prayer that she would say throughout the day. She asked our Lord to heal her, but also added that if such healing were not God’s holy will, she would accept that.
I remember my mother so fondly, and I pray that God will help me accomplish what I seek to achieve, but if that is not God’s holy will, I will accept it. Hopefully, I will remember to do that tomorrow and the following days too.
Prayer
Our Father, have you heard our cries? Have you heard our calls, our small voices, hoarse and tight? You tell us not to lose heart. Wash our hearts with grace so that we may trust your promise, so that our heavy hearts will not be lost in the night. You promise to send your justice, bright and burning. Will the Son of Man find faith on the earth? Give us this faith, O God. Quicken our hearts, spark and winnow our hope into a flame of love that expects your justice, and rejoices when it blossoms. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Albert the Great was one of the Church’s greatest scholars.
Albert was born into an upper-class German family in 1206 and, accordingly, received some of the best education in Europe. Albert spent most of his education at the University of Padua. Despite his family’s disapproval, he joined the Dominicans, and he furthered his education by studying theology in Bologna. He taught at universities in Regensburg, Cologne, and Freiburg. Finally, in 1245, Albert became a master of theology and shortly after began to teach theology at the University of Paris. It was during his tenure at the College of St. James at the University of Paris that Albert taught his most famous pupil—Thomas Aquinas.
Albert was largely responsible for bringing the writings of Aristotle back into the academic conversation. Albert believed that Aristotle's approach to the natural sciences and philosophy was not in opposition to Christianity, but, in fact, could be a useful support to Christians seeking to understand God's work in the world. Albert wrote an encyclopedic commentary on philosopher Peter Lombard's Book of the Sentences. His pupil, Thomas, eventually wrote his own Summa Theologiae largely inspired by Albert's work. Albert was a true polymath and wrote extensively on natural science, logic, music, mathematics, astronomy, metaphysics, natural law, economics, and politics.
Albert introduced, or welcomed, the study of Greek and Arabic, and paved the way for a renewed interest in Aristotle’s works, which fueled Thomas Aquinas’ study of Aristotle.
Albert was a brilliant scientist and a prolific theologian. In a commentary on the Gospel of Luke, he wrote the following about the Eucharistic command to "Do this in remembrance of me":
"He could not have commanded anything more lovable, for this sacrament produces love and union. It is a characteristic of the greatest love to give itself as food. As if to say: 'I have loved them and they have loved me so much that I desire to be with them, and they wish to receive me so that they may become my members. There is no more intimate or more natural means for them to be united to me, and I to them.'"
Albert is known as the “light of Germany” and was given the title “great” because of the depth and breadth of his knowledge. He has been declared a doctor of the Church, a title given to 38 saints who are known for elucidating the faith by their teaching or example.
Albert the Great is the patron saint of scientists, philosophers, and students—for this reason, his statue is featured on the facade of the Jordan Hall of Science. The chapel in Zahm Hall is named after Albert the Great, because he is the namesake of the brother of Father John Zahm, C.S.C., Albert Zahm. Albert Zahm studied at Notre Dame in the 1880s and was a pioneer in flight. Albert Zahm is buried in the Holy Cross Cemetery on campus. A statue of St. Albert the Great stands in the chapel in Zahm Hall.
Albert died in Cologne in 1280. Some of St. Albert's relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
Albert the Great, whose faith sought understanding of all things and who used reason to seek a deeper knowledge of God—pray for us!
Bibliography
1. Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. "Albert the Great." In The Encyclopedia of Saints, 7-8. New York: Visionary Living, Inc., 2001.
