Daily Gospel Reflection
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October 3, 2020
The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!”
He said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
At that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to the childlike; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Then turning to the disciples, Jesus said to them privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”
In today’s gospel, the seventy disciples who were sent out to preach the Good News return to Jesus with joyful tales of their success. They seem most impressed by their ability to cast out demons in Jesus’ name, just as he had promised. When he hears this, Jesus gives thanks to God and says: “See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy…”
This line from today’s gospel reminds me of Mary on top of the golden dome on the Main Building at Notre Dame. When I was a student, someone pointed out to me that Mary is treading on a serpent up on the dome. From the ground, it can be a little bit hard to see but it is discernible. I once saw a close up of it in a photograph and the serpent is actually quite large. This is a common part of the depiction of Mary as the Immaculate Conception and represents both Christ’s victory over sin through the incarnation and Mary’s unique role in bringing Jesus to the world since she herself was preserved from original sin by God. Mary was the first to “tread on snakes” as Jesus gave his disciples the ability to do in this reading.
We will always have sin to contend with. Sometimes, the demons that are most difficult to cast out are the ones we carry with us, in small ways, everyday. Our own sinfulness stands as an impediment to truly receiving God’s love and grace in our lives. Today’s reading offers a word of encouragement in this respect. For those who call on the name of Jesus, no sin is too great to overcome. And when I need a little extra help getting to that point, I think of Our Lady on the dome and I ask for her intercession. Let us hope that we too can rejoice, like the disciples in this passage, because our “names are written in heaven.”
Prayer
O God, your will reveals your love for us. May Christ’s triumph over evil, sin, and death light the fire of your love deep within us. As we contemplate your protecting care, help us not submit to the lures of the evil one. Grant us the competence to see and courage to act in your name when we face temptation. Attentive to your voice, may we heed the Spirit, who lives and reigns with you forever and ever. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Mother Théodore Guérin was a bold missionary who, despite her reluctance, established schools in Indiana at the same time that Father Sorin founded Notre Dame.
She was born as Anne Therese in 1798 in France in the thick of the French Revolution. Her father was an officer in the French navy under Napoleon and when Anne was fifteen, he was murdered by bandits. Her mother fell into a deep depression and so Anne devoted herself to caring for her mother and sister and their household for ten years. Throughout all these years, Anne's childhood desire to enter religious life only grew stronger. Finally, when she was twenty-five years old, her mother allowed Anne to enter the Sisters of Providence in Ruillé sur-Loir.
As a nun, Anne took the name Théodore and became a teacher. For a dozen years, she taught in Rennes, in central France and cared for the local poor there. During this time of ministry, Théodore fell ill from smallpox. Although she escaped death, the disease ravaged her digestive system, and for the rest of her life, she was limited to a simple, bland diet. Théodore quickly won over the local children with her charismatic teaching style and she established a thriving school in what was once the sisters' most difficult mission.
The Sisters of Providence quickly recognized Théodore's leadership skills. Thus, when the bishop of Vincennes, Indiana, requested more sisters to come help serve the rapid influx of Catholic immigrants, her community believed Théodore was the only possible woman who could lead such a trying mission. Théodore was reluctant, but nevertheless, left with five other sisters to the unknown diocese of Vincennes, Indiana on July 12, 1840—just a few short years before Father Sorin and seven Holy Cross brothers would make a similar journey before founding the University of Notre Dame in 1842.
When Father Sorin arrived at the site where the University was to grow, he found a simple log cabin that served as a center for missionary activity in the area. Mother Théodore had a similar experience—she and her sisters traveled by steamboat and stagecoach until they arrived in the middle of the Indiana forest to find a simple frame farmhouse that some American postulants had begun to turn into a convent.
On that very site, in 1841, Mother Théodore and her sisters opened St. Mary-of-the-Woods, the first liberal arts Catholic college for women in the United States. Under her leadership, the community went on to establish more schools and orphanages throughout Indiana. Mother Théodore also drew upon the medical training she received in France by adding pharmacies that dispensed free medicine to those in poverty in their school communities.
Mother Théodore was fearless in her ministry to those in need and committed to the sisters' mission of education. Her strong leadership was not always welcomed by the local hierarchy. She stood up many times to Bishop de la Hailandière, who closed one of the sisters' schools and overstepped his authority within the congregation, once even imprisoning Mother Théodore for a full day.
One of the miracles in her canonization cause was the healing of Phil McCord, of Terre Haute, Indiana in 2001. He had long worked at Sisters of Providence facilities in Terre Haute and was now losing his eyesight. He was legally blind and scheduled to have an operation. He prayed to Mother Guerin for strength and when he woke up the next day his eyesight was fully restored. Besides a small laser procedure to remove old tissue, he no longer needed surgery.
St. Mother Théodore Guérin, missionary who boldly built up the Indiana frontier—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Mother Théodore Guérin is an illustration by Julie Lonneman, who holds exclusive rights to the further distribution and publication of her art. Used with permission.