Daily Gospel Reflection
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October 6, 2019
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.
“Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place at the table’? Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink’? Do you thank the servant for doing what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless servants; we have done only what we ought to have done!’”
Why would Jesus proceed from instruction on faith to that of service? The answer is obvious; the inseparability of both. One is a gift, the other is an act of responsiveness and gratitude for the gift. In today’s passage, faith (the gift) is described as an enabler, so, what do we do with the enablement? We serve God.
We all know that there is an increased urge for service in our age and time. It has become an integral part of many school curricula for students to volunteer, sometimes outside the country. A curriculum vitae with a plethora of volunteer work surely looks good to recruiters. No doubt, to serve others is good and good deeds nourish the human and emotional formation of both the provider and recipient. Surely, our world is in dire need of women and men ready to give up their time and strength to serve others. But could there be more to service than this?
Jesus takes service to a new level. That is, rather than seeing the recipient of our service as a needful beneficiary, he or she is the medium through whom we serve God and also an opportunity to express gratitude for our gift of faith. In other words, it is God that we serve when serving others, and to serve others is not just a Christian duty but an expression of our faith in Christ. Hence, we say to those we serve “thank you for the opportunity.”
While the gospel reading of last Sunday highlighted the importance of service to the vulnerable, today’s gospel highlights the required motivation for such deeds. To us, Jesus shows the meaning of what we hear in the second chapter of the letter of James: although faith without work is dead but, also, work without faith is not enough.
Prayer
Let us not boast, Lord God, about our accomplishments in your service. What good we have done has been due to your help, grace, and inspiration. Let us be aware of your assistance through fidelity, honesty, courage, and faith. If we are at peace both with ourselves and with others, it is due mainly to your help in keeping us from bitterness, hate, or jealousy. Let our kindness to others reflect your kindness to us. Amen.
Saint of the Day
When she saw the great lack of education on the North American frontier as a sickly young girl, Blessed Marie Rose Durocher had no way of knowing that the Spirit would use her life as an important response to that need.
She was born in Quebec in 1811 and given the name Eulalie Melanie. Her parents were prosperous farmers; Eulalie was the tenth of 11 children. Three of her brothers became priests and a sister joined a community of sisters.
Eulalie intended to follow her sister into religious life, but her health was poor and she was sent home from the convent with regrets. The community noted her humility, gentleness, and courtesy, and saw that she was attentive to the voice of God.
Her mother died in 1830, and Eulalie assumed the duties of a homemaker for the family. Later, as secretary and housekeeper, she helped one of her brothers who had become a priest. In that role, she learned how few schools and teachers there were in their frontier province, and began organizing young women in the parish to meet the need.
Her interest and work was noted, and was asked by the bishop to found a new religious community of sisters to provide Christian education in the region. In 1844, Eulalie and two others professed their vows as sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary; Eulalie adopted the name Marie Rose.
The need was extraordinary, and so was the response of young women willing to meet it. Over the course of five years, the order added five convents for 30 sisters who taught nearly 450 children in both English and French. Her work was not without challenges, though—Marie Rose faced slander and lack of resources, but persevered with a strong will and courage.
Always in poor health and worn out from her many labors, Marie Rose died at the age of 38. On her deathbed, she told a sister who was watching with her, “Your prayers are keeping me here—let me go.”
She was beatified in 1982 after the healing of a Detroit man. He was crushed against the wall by a truck and pronounced dead. He recovered after people asked Marie Rose for help.
There were other stories of Marie Rose helping in the case of wildfire threatening people and property in the state of Washington. Sisters from her order who lived in a community in Spokane prayed for her help when a fire threatened their convent. They placed images of Marie Rose in trees around the convent, and the fire changed direction after coming within 15 feet of the chapel.
Blessed Marie Rose Durocher is patron of those who are sick. Today, some 1,000 Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary educate children in Canada, the United States, Africa, and South America.
Blessed Marie Rose Durocher, you were the Canadian nun who brought Christian education to the frontier—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of Bl. Marie Rose Durocher is used with permission from Catholic Online. Last accessed September 27, 2024.