Sunday, February 3, 2019
Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
Saint Blase, Bishop and Martyr, or Saint Ansgar, Bishop – Optional Memorial
Et il dit : « Amen, je vous le dis : aucun prophète n’est bien accueilli dans son pays. » Luke 4:24
Sharing the Gospel with your family is not always as easy as sharing it with a stranger. Conversely, listening to the Gospel message from a family member is not always as easy as hearing it from someone else. Why is that?
It may be that familiarity with another, such as the familiarity we have with family members, can tempt us to lack a certain confidence in their convictions and in their Christian witness. Though this is certainly not true of every relationship we have, it can be the case with some. Children, at times, will not put as much confidence in the words of a parent as they may another. Siblings may not be as open to advice from each other as they are from other people.
L’une des raisons en est peut-être que nous sommes souvent bien plus critiques envers ceux que nous connaissons bien qu’envers ceux que nous ne connaissons pas. Il est facile de laisser notre longue histoire commune faire obstacle à notre ouverture envers les membres de notre famille. C’est particulièrement vrai des expériences négatives que nous avons vécues au fil des années. Bien souvent, nous gardons en nous, d’année en année, ces expériences négatives et ces blessures, et nous les laissons devenir un filtre à travers lequel nous percevons tout ce qu’un membre de notre famille dit ou fait.
This statement from Jesus, that “no prophet is accepted in his own native place,” should challenge us to make sure we do not fall into this tendency. We should do what we can to make sure that we do accept the prophetic witness shared with us from our own family members.
The best way to do this is to make sure that we regularly strive to purge any “baggage” we carry in those relationships. Very often, we carry the baggage of hurt, anger and resentment without even realizing it. We also easily focus in on the weaknesses of family members since we easily witness their weaknesses as a result of being close to them.
Aujourd’hui, prenez le temps de réfléchir à votre famille. Demandez-vous en particulier si vous vous laissez porter au-delà des faiblesses et des péchés de vos proches pour voir la bonté de Dieu à l’œuvre dans leur vie. Dieu veut vous dire beaucoup de choses à travers eux. Veillez à ne pas avoir fermé cette porte et soyez disposé à accueillir chacun d’eux comme un messager de l’Évangile.
Lord, I thank You for my family. I thank You for the gift that they have been in my life. Help me to daily show mercy and forgiveness to them as needed. Help me to daily be open to Your voice speaking through them. Jesus, I trust in You.
Autres méditations sur l’Évangile
Méditations sur la Miséricorde divine
Saints of the Day – Saint Blase – Saint Ansgar
