Daily Gospel Reflection
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September 12, 2026
Jesus said to his disciples:
“A good tree does not bear rotten fruit,
nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit.
For every tree is known by its own fruit.
For people do not pick figs from thornbushes,
nor do they gather grapes from brambles.
A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good,
but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil;
for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I command?
I will show you what someone is like who comes to me,
listens to my words, and acts on them.
That one is like a man building a house,
who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock;
when the flood came, the river burst against that house
but could not shake it because it had been well built.
But the one who listens and does not act
is like a person who built a house on the ground
without a foundation.
When the river burst against it,
it collapsed at once and was completely destroyed.”
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
Reflection
I’m a tired dad. I have two boys, ages three and two, a little dog, an old cat, and a wonderful wife. Our house is a house full of love, but not one ideal for remote work—the thumping of so many feet and paws would, I imagine, challenge even the most stoic of saints. And so a year ago, I decided to build an office-cabin-hideaway in our backyard.
I’d never built a structure before, so I turned to YouTube to instruct me on everything from the foundation to the joists to the rafters, sheathing, insulation, shingles, windows, flooring, drywall, trim, wiring, switches, and outlets…the sheer number of parts and processes required to make something resilient enough to encounter the forces of nature is truly astounding.
And the forces of nature where I built this cabin are particularly exciting. I live on a small, unbridged island off the coast of Maine, where I hope my YouTube cabin withstands the 60mph gusts howling just outside. Writing this now, a year since beginning the project, I am somewhat amazed that the thing has survived.
But the uncertainty going into those first storms last November makes me think about today’s reading: we often do not know the strength of our foundations until they are tested, and it is only when the river does burst that we have a sense of what weathering the storm really takes. How much patience, how much reflection, how much humility? We are tested daily. Sometimes the weather is clear and easy, and it takes no real muscle to qualify as a good Christian.
Other days are intensely the opposite, and the sky is black with grief, depression, rage. Still other days are shrouded in fog, and we bypass the opportunity to love our neighbor without even thinking about it—the person we could have thanked, the smile we could have returned, the door we could have held. (Fortunately for me, it seems the biggest test of my patience these days comes in the form of a tantrum over the wrong shape of pasta.)
Experience of storms and of knowing what is required to see them through is one definition of wisdom. Put another way, perseverance when life comes against us is both faith and a reward of faith—and when we have made it through to the other side, they ought to deepen one another.
Prayer
Lord, you are the true foundation upon which we are meant to build our lives. Give us the faith to be able to see you and your will in our lives so that we may always build on the firm foundation of your love. May the fruits of our labor reflect the love you have for us and for all your children; may they serve as small reminders of your great care and compassion. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Today marks the feast of the Holy Name of Mary, a Marian feast day that has experienced several reversals in popularity. The feast of the Holy Name of Mary was first celebrated in Spain in 1513 but removed from the calendar by both Pius V and Benedict XIV. It was finally reintroduced by Innocent XI in 1683 after the Holy Roman Empire’s victory in the Battle of Vienna on September 12, 1683, which gives the current feast day its calendar date.
So what does Mary’s name mean, and why is it worth honoring?
The name “Mary” is the anglicized version of the Hebrew name Miryam, often written in biblical Greek as Mariam. Miryam is the name of Moses’ sister who praises God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt and their safe passage through the Red Sea (Exodus 15:20-21), a psalm similar to Mary’s powerful hymn to God’s saving power in her Magnificat (Lk 1:46-55). As Jesus is rendered in the Gospels as the new Moses (Mt 2:13-15, 7:29, JN 6: 48-51), so Mary is portrayed as the new Miryam, the helpmate of Israel’s savior and a leader of her people. Interpretations of her name by biblical scholars and theologians vary widely—some notable examples include Source of Light, Scent of the Sea, and Star of the Sea. Developed in the 16th century in the Italian town of Loreto, the Litany of Loreto catalogs many devotional titles Catholics have applied to Mary, celebrating both her unique role in Salvation History and the beauty of her love for God, from which so many graces flow to us.
Names have a sacred status in the Judeo-Christian tradition. The second of the Ten Commandments requires Israel to keep holy the name of the Lord God. A name is more than just a label; it is part of the person who bears it. Our reverence for the person is reflected in our reverence for his or her name. Our names contain our identities and represent our mission—who and what we are to the world. Mary’s name holds the meaning of her own mission: to lead the world to the light of the world. Mary’s name given in the scriptures reminds us of God’s works of love and deliverance in history and speaks powerfully of who God desires her to be for us.
St. Bernard of Clairvaux writes that Mary is a “clear and shining star, twinkling with excellencies and resplendent with example, needfully set to look down upon the surface of this great and wide sea.” In life, we are constantly “battered to and fro by the gales and storms of this life’s ocean.” In the midst of life’s hurricanes and stormy waves, Bernard enjoins us to “look to the star, call on Mary. ...If she lead thee, thou wilt never be weary. If she help thee thou wilt reach home at last.”
As we pray to and with the name of Mary, as we call to mind her name, may we remember that we are not on the journey of faith alone. And when the storms are particularly troublesome and the night is especially dark, may we look to the Mary, the star that perpetually shines and ceaselessly guides us to the source of her light, her son.
Mary, Star of the Sea and light who guides our way to Christ—pray for us!