Daily Gospel Reflection for August 18, 2023

Join us as we reflect, ponder, and pray together inspired by today's Gospel.

This Gospel reading is particularly difficult for me. Many years ago, as a young bride, my husband left me on our third wedding anniversary. I felt not only abandoned by him, but by God. It was an excruciating time in my life. I wrestled with the Catholic Church’s teachings on marriage and on this passage. I was embarrassed and felt like a failure. It was almost unbearable.

Through that difficult time, I was led to a deeper faith and love for God. I found a true desire to understand and live God’s teachings. The Lord filled the space that the sorrow had carved out with Himself. Eventually, I counseled others in similar situations and wrote a book on the topic. In His infinite goodness, God had a better plan in mind for me (which included a Catholic marriage and many children).

Although this passage is painful for some, ultimately, it should remind us of what God wants marriage to be: a true, complete giving of oneself to another. When sacramentally and validly bound in marriage, two become one! For example, your arm may hurt some days, but you would not cut it off. So, it is with marriage. We can struggle, hurt, disagree. In the end, however, we keep our commitment till death do us part. We trust God to help us to be open to life. We faithfully fulfill our duties in this vocation of marriage. We stay true to each other and God. None of this is possible without the grace of God. Frequenting the sacraments as a married couple can open a waterfall of grace necessary to live out God’s plan for us in love.

Ponder:

How can we reach out to divorced Catholics to acknowledge their pain and better support their journey in the Catholic Church? If we are the ones struggling, how do we reach out to the Church?

Pray:

Lord, help us to recognize the pain in those around us. Give us the grace to lead others back gently and compassionately to You when they are struggling.

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Many years ago, as a young bride, my husband left me on our third wedding anniversary. I felt not only abandoned by him, but by God. It was an excruciating time in my life. #DailyGospel

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