Daily Gospel Reflection
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September 2, 2024
Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll,
he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
They also asked, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”
He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb,
‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place
the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’”
And he said,
“Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you,
there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.
When it comes to sharing the gospel in each generation, there are those who teach and those who receive, and in that transmission, a bond is formed that links far into the past. After all, even those who instruct now were not so long ago receiving this wisdom from someone else. As we look back on our lives, who were the people most responsible for giving us the gift of our faith?
We might think of our parents, grandparents, priests, religious, or catechists. We owe them a debt of gratitude for what they have offered us, and we take seriously our calling to provide that same benefit to others. And if we zoom out even more, we can imagine the thousands of people in our lineage of faith, people who go back even to the apostles and others who would have listened to Jesus’ powerful words in the synagogue. When faith feels uncertain, embarrassing, or unwelcome in our world today, we only need to reflect upon the legions of saintly people who have gone before us and who are the links in the chain back to Christ!
For many years, our FaithND audience has been a similar source of strength and community to one another, whether as readers, listeners, writers, or guests. We have been so blessed to build each other up in faith through this extraordinary platform, and our team is excited to share that we have been working on a new FaithND website and Daily Gospel Reflection email design. This is the culmination of the efforts and support from so many, and it will allow us to continue well our mission of sharing the gospel with the world.
Some people in today’s reading heard Jesus and hardened their hearts against him, but others listened attentively, allowed him into their hearts, and spent the rest of their lives retelling his story to others. We reaffirm our commitment to being like the latter group, taking up our place in the great cloud of witnesses who will continue to share the Good News until the end of time.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, we know that your rejection by your neighbors at Nazareth is the first whisper leading to the Cross. Help us to see you not just where we expect to, but to see you revealed in the most unlikely places and in the most unlikely people. We make this prayer in your name. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Blessed Jean-Marie du Lau, archbishop of Arles, France, died on this date in 1792 with 190 others during the anti-Church violence of the French revolution.
Two years prior, a populist assembly passed a law that subordinated the Church in France to the government. The law was particularly harsh on monastic orders, and required all clergy to swear by an oath to accept it. Nearly all bishops in France opposed the measure and refused to take the oath.
In the late summer of 1792, violence spread as insurrectionists clashed with the monarchy and its allies. Populist militias massacred more than 1,500, including 191 who were beatified as martyrs.
Many of these martyrs were clergy and leaders of religious communities, and were held in prisons. Most were offered the opportunity to take the oath to accept the primacy of the government over the Church, and when they refused, they were killed on the spot.
Blessed Jean was imprisoned with 150 others in a Carmelite church. All were clergy except for one layman, a cavalry officer who volunteered to accompany his parish priest to prison. Under Jean’s guidance, the group lived a regular life of prayer and worship in prison, and surprised their guards by the joy they displayed.
On this date in 1792, the group was taking a rest period in the garden of the church where they were imprisoned when an armed mob broke into the complex and began killing any prisoners they could find. Jean was in the chapel when the melee broke out, and calmly emerged. He was asked if he was the archbishop, and when he confirmed his identity, he was killed with sword and pike.
After the first wave of killings, the mob set up a mock court and called the surviving clergy, two by two, to swear by the oath. Every single one of them refused it without hesitating and were led down a staircase where they were murdered. One bishop had been injured during the initial outbreak, and when he was called, he replied, “I do not refuse to die with the others, but I cannot walk. I beg you to have the kindness to carry me where you wish me to go.” He, too, was killed when he refused the oath.
One of the imprisoned priests had been in charge of arranging meals with the guards, and he handed to the mob the 325 francs he owed the caterer before being killed. Two other priests heard each others’ confessions before being led before the court.
After dispensing with all they could find there, the mob moved on and the killing persisted into the next day. The 191 are remembered as the Martyrs of September, and were beatified in 1926.
Blessed Jean-Marie du Lau, you refused to deny your faith and the Church in France, and died with the priests you led—pray for us!