Daily Gospel Reflection
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September 20, 2024
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
Accompanying him were the Twelve
and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza,
Susanna, and many others
who provided for them out of their resources.
In today’s gospel, we see Jesus at work, preaching and proclaiming the Good News. We’re told he is with his disciples as he journeys from town to town. Maybe this is a lifetime of religion classes talking, but I can picture this scene vividly. What I can’t necessarily picture, however, are Joanna, Susana, and the others who are providing out of their “resources.”
I find it interesting that “resources” is not a defined term. While I suppose Luke could have been up against a deadline and did not have the time to detail what resources were provided, I suspect there is meaning in choosing the general over the specific. Joanna, Susana, and the others gave what they could to further Jesus’s work. They likely had different things at their disposal, and they simply provided what they had on hand.
Let’s fast forward a few millennia to today’s world and consider the resources we have to share. As a working mom, I’m all too aware of loud voices dictating how I should live my vocation, essentially telling me exactly what resources I should share. But what if we accept that we all have different resources and gifts and that only together can we heal our broken world? Perhaps that means sharing monetary wealth, advocating for a just society, or raising humans who care just a little bit more about their neighbors than themselves. Like Joanna, Susana, and the unnamed others, we all have different gifts to share with the world. Let us rejoice in those differences as we work to bring forth the kingdom of God.
Prayer
O Lord, keep us mindful of the journey on which we have embarked from the days of our baptism to proclaim in word and fulfill in deed what the disciples who never abandoned you knew—that male and female share one Spirit in Christ Jesus, who is God forever and ever. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Eustachius is among the most famous early Christian martyrs from our tradition, even though his story, lost to history, has been replaced by legend.
The story is told about Eustachius that he was general of the Roman army, and originally had the name Placidus. One day he was out hunting and saw a stag; a crucifix was lodged in the deer’s antlers. The vision inspired him to convert to Christianity, and he had his whole family baptized, changing his name to Eustachius in the process.
He was asked to lead the army into a critical battle. After victory, he was invited to honor the imperial gods, but he refused. He was condemned to die with his whole family by being burned in a furnace.
An ancient Church in Rome was built in honor of St. Eustachius (who is sometimes called Eustace), and he is patron saint of hunters and of firefighters. Bottles of the Jägermeister liquor bears the saint’s symbol of a cross and stag on its label because jägermeisters were German gamekeepers and foresters and St. Eustachius was their patron.
St. Eustachius’ relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica, and his image is used here with permission from Catholic.org.
St. Eustachius, your story is lost to history, but whose faithfulness and bravery are not--pray for us!