May 29, 2026
Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time / Pope St. Paul VI
Gospel: Mk 11:11-26

Today is Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time. The Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of Pope Saint Paul VI. The passage from the Gospel of Saint Mark presents us with two images rich in biblical significance: the fig tree, and Jesus entering the Temple and driving out those buying and selling there.

We know that the fig tree serves as a medium for humanity’s encounter with God. The author of Genesis tells us that after our first parents ate the fruit of the tree which God had forbidden, “the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves” (cf. Gen 3:6-7). The New Testament offers a similar example: when Jesus came to Jericho, Zacchaeus, who was short in stature, climbed a sycamore fig tree to see Him (cf. Lk 19:1-10).

Today, Saint Mark tells us that as Jesus and His disciples were leaving Bethany, He was hungry. Seeing a fig tree in leaf from a distance, He went to see if He could find anything on it. But it was not the season for figs. So He said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again” (cf. Mk 11:12-14). In his commentary on this passage, Saint John Chrysostom explains that the Lord cursed the fig tree for the sake of His disciples, that they might have faith in Him. Indeed, everywhere He went, He bestowed blessings and punished no one; yet at the same time, it was necessary to give them a proof of His chastising power, that they might learn that He could even cause the persecuting Jews to wither away. However, He was unwilling to give this proof on men, and so He manifested this sign of His power upon a plant (cf. Catena Aurea, Vol. 2, Ch. 12). In this light, we can understand Jesus’ subsequent action. Coming to the Temple in Jerusalem, He drove out those engaged in various transactions, thereby manifesting His authority as the Son of God the Father (cf. Mk 11:15-19).

By expelling the merchants and their customers from the Temple, Jesus intended to restore order to the Temple, for as He declared, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (cf. Mk 11:17). Yet among us, there exists a Temple greater than this physical one: ourselves. As Saint Paul the Apostle teaches, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?” (cf. 1 Cor 6:19). Therefore, relying on the help of God, we too must strive to remove from our hearts whatever is discordant with the will of the Holy Spirit, so that our thoughts, words, and deeds may always be conformed to what the Word of God requires of us.

Grant us, O Lord, we pray, that the course of our world may be directed by your peaceful rule and that your Church may rejoice,untroubled in her devotion.Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,God, for ever and ever

©Totus Tuus 2026
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica