REFLECTIONS TODAY
The Gospel is chosen for the feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, parents of Mary and grandparents of Jesus. They are righteous people who longed for the Savior; in them and in their daughter Mary, the hopes and dreams of centuries are about to meet, because Jesus the Savior is soon to be born from their lineage.
We have no true primary sources, that is, from the Bible, about Joachim and Anne, but certainly we can agree that Mary had parents. Likewise, we can agree that Mary had good, faithful parents who raised her with love and devotion to God. Joachim and Anne serve as role models for parents, and both deserve to be honored and emulated for their devotion to God and the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God.
On July 26, 2013, in Brazil for World Youth Day, Pope Francis gave this message: “Today the Church celebrates the parents of the Virgin Mary, the grandparents of Jesus, Saints Joachim and Anne. In their home, Mary came into the world, accompanied by the extraordinary mystery of the Immaculate Conception. Mary grew up in the home of Joachim and Anne; she was surrounded by their love and faith: in their home she learned to listen to the Lord and to follow his will. Saints Joachim and Anne were part of a long chain of people who had transmitted their love for God, expressed in the warmth and love of family life, down to Mary, who received the Son of God in her womb and who gave him to the world, to us. How precious is the family as the privileged place for transmitting the faith!”
Gospel • Matthew 13:16-17 [or 13:18-23]
Jesus said to his disciples: “But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
Source: “366 Days with the Lord 2024,” St. Paul’s, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 632-895-9701; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.