Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin [In the Dioceses of the United States]
Reading 1: 2 John 4-9
I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth
just as we were commanded by the Father.
But now, Lady, I ask you,
not as though I were writing a new commandment
but the one we have had from the beginning:
let us love one another.
For this is love, that we walk according to his commandments;
this is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning,
in which you should walk.
Many deceivers have gone out into the world,
those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh;
such is the deceitful one and the antichrist.
Look to yourselves that you do not lose what we worked for
but may receive a full recompense.
Anyone who is so “progressive”
as not to remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God;
whoever remains in the teaching has the Father and the Son.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:1, 2, 10, 11, 17, 18
R. (1b) Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
With all my heart I seek you;
let me not stray from your commands.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Within my heart I treasure your promise,
that I may not sin against you.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Be good to your servant, that I may live
and keep your words.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Open my eyes, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Alleluia: Luke 21:28
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Luke 17:26-37
Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of Noah,
so it will be in the days of the Son of Man;
they were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage up to the day
that Noah entered the ark,
and the flood came and destroyed them all.
Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking, buying,
selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left Sodom,
fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.
So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.
On that day, someone who is on the housetop
Meditation
Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ,
The Word of God invites us today to reflect on two fundamental realities of our Christian life: our faithfulness to Christ and the way we live in expectation of His coming. For being a Christian does not simply mean bearing the name of Christ, attending church, or carrying out a few religious practices. Above all, it means choosing to walk with Him every day, living according to His teachings and keeping our hearts ready to encounter Him.
In the first reading, Saint John reminds us of an essential requirement of Christian life: “Let us love one another.” But he immediately makes it clear that true love is not limited to feelings, words or beautiful declarations. Rather, it consists in walking according to God’s commandments. In other words, to love means allowing God’s Word to guide our choices, behaviours and relationships with others.
Today, we sometimes encounter people who speak a great deal about love, God and faith, but whose behaviour contradicts the values they profess. We ourselves can fall into the same contradiction: praying while refusing to forgive, speaking about brotherhood while promoting division, or proclaiming our attachment to Christ while living in lies, wickedness or indifference.
That is why Saint John warns us: “Anyone who remains faithful to the teaching of Christ has both the Father and the Son.” True faithfulness to Christ is therefore demonstrated through the way we live. It is not enough to know the Gospel; we must also put it into practice. It is not enough to say that we love God; we must learn to show genuine love to those around us.
The Gospel deepens this challenge through Jesus’ words about the coming of the Son of Man. By referring to the days of Noah and Lot, Jesus reminds us that people were going about their usual activities: eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting and building. The problem was not these activities in themselves, but rather the fact that people were living as though God had no place in their lives, as though earthly life were all that mattered.
This message speaks directly to us. We too have occupations, responsibilities, projects, ambitions and daily concerns. We work to provide for our families, seek to improve our living conditions, prepare for the future and pursue our dreams. All these things are legitimate. However, danger begins when these concerns eventually take up all the space in our lives, to the point of making us forget God, our salvation and our responsibility towards others.
Brothers and sisters, there is a question that should challenge us today: if the Lord were to come and meet us today, would He find a life that reflects His Gospel? Would He find hearts capable of loving, forgiving and serving? Or would He discover people so absorbed in their personal interests, resentments and worries that they no longer have room for Him?
Let us not simply wait for Christ; let us start living now as people who belong to Him. For those who walk in truth today, who genuinely love and remain faithful to God’s Word have no reason to fear their encounter with the Lord. They are already learning to live with Him.
LET US PRAY
Lord Jesus, teach me to live faithfully according to Your Word. Forgive me whenever my words do not correspond to my actions, whenever I claim to love without knowing how to forgive, and whenever my daily concerns make me forget Your presence. Deliver me from every attachment that draws me away from You. Give me a vigilant, available and persevering heart, so that my entire life may become a preparation for my encounter with You. Amen.
INTERCESSION
Lord Jesus, we entrust to You all those who have drifted away from You, those who live in spiritual indifference and those who are prisoners of their bad habits. Awaken in them the desire to return to You. We also ask You to strengthen those who struggle to remain faithful to Your Gospel amid life’s trials, temptations and difficulties. May they find in You the strength to persevere until the end.
SPIRITUAL EXERCISE
– Today, I will take some time to examine the consistency between my faith and my behaviour: does the way I live truly reflect my attachment to Christ?
– I will identify an attachment, a habit or a resentment that prevents me from growing spiritually, and I will make a concrete decision to break free from it.
– I will perform a concrete act of love: forgive someone, reconcile with someone, offer help or show kindness and concern to a person I tend to neglect.
Abbé Martial SOH TAKAMTE
