Daily Gospel Reflection
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September 8, 2019
Now large crowds were traveling with Jesus; and he turned and said to them, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
“For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’
“Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.
“So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.”
Reflection
Reading today’s Gospel leaves me feeling inadequate, unprepared, and materialistic. Can I give up all my possessions? Can I carry the cross? Do I have solid foundations and adequate plans? Like many, my days are a whirl of unexpected meetings, errands, and sweet bedtime routines with little ones. I hardly feel collected, prepared, or detached.
Yet, what I think the Gospel calls us to do is to put God first and to offer all of our lives, including our possessions, to God. This sentiment is echoed in the “God, Country, Notre Dame” inscription emblazoned on the Memorial entrance to the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Notre Dame’s campus: God comes first. In putting God first and giving God all that we have, God returns it to us in abundance to go about the work to which we are called.
With God first, it is also easier to cultivate detachment to the material things that can get in the way. For me (and I am just beginning this process), with every bag delivered to a thrift store, with every small piece of unworn jewelry sold, I regain a bit of freedom. I have one less item to store, one less distraction. For some items with a sentimental attachment, my husband and I have taken to photographing them: keeping the image and shedding the object. These are small steps to be sure, but I suppose they are each a small brick in a simple foundation, grounded in God.
Prayer
Christ our King, you know well that our spirits are willing to follow you, but we are often overwhelmed by other desires. In your great love, send your Holy Spirit to drive out all that separates us from obeying your will. May we always see in you the way, the truth, and the life that leads to heaven. Give us the courage to help lead our brothers and sisters to eternal happiness with you. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Today, we remember the birth date of the one honored as the “God-bearer.”
Mary’s birth was the first realization of the promise of salvation through Jesus Christ. She was born without sin, pure and holy—“full of grace”—to prepare her to bear God’s Son to the world.
Among the saints, only Mary and St. John the Baptist have commemorations on the dates of their births and their deaths (or assumption to heaven, in Mary’s case). These two, above all other saints, heralded and participated in the arrival of our savior.
The birthplace of Mary is not known for certain. One ancient tradition holds that she was born in Nazareth. Another tradition states that she was born in Jerusalem in a neighborhood near the pool of Bethesda. Today there is a church in that neighborhood dedicated to St. Anne, Mary’s mother, and a crypt under that church designates a spot where Mary is believed to have been born. View images from that church in this part of our virtual pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
In the account of the first sin in Genesis, Eve was led astray by the figure of the serpent. Immediately upon discovering their sin, God said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel” (Gen 3:15).
Because the offspring of the woman lethally strikes at the serpent’s head, this passage is allegorically understood as the final triumph of good over evil. Here is the first promise of a redeemer for fallen humanity, Jesus, and the passage notes he is born of woman, Mary. With her obedience, Mary reverses Eve’s disobedience and brings life to the world through her Son, Jesus.
When Father Edward Sorin, C.S.C., arrived at a missionary outpost on the American frontier in northern Indiana in November of 1842, he saw a frozen lake covered in snow. The purity of the scene reminded him of Mary, and he named the university he founded after Our Lady of the Lake: the University of Notre Dame du Lac.
Images of Mary abound on campus, including a depiction of her birth in the mural shown above from the Basilica. Of course, she also appears atop the golden-domed Main Building, where she stands 19 feet high and weighs 4,000 pounds. Relics of Mary, including pieces of her clothes and hair, rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
Mary, Our Lady of the Lake, your obedience reversed Eve’s disobedience and brought life to the world—pray for us!