Friday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time
Or Optional Memorial of Saint Januarius, Bishop and Martyr
LUKE 8: 1- 3
The Mission Needs Us All

In today’s Gospel (Luke 8:1–3), we see Jesus on the road. The synagogues were closed to Him; the scribes and Pharisees watched not to listen but to accuse. So He took to the open spaces—the road, the hillside, the lakeshore—because the Word of God cannot be confined. When doors close, the Spirit opens new paths.

Here we are told of a small group of women who accompanied Him and supported His mission from their resources. Among them were Mary Magdalene, healed of seven demons, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s trusted steward. How striking: a woman with a wounded past and a woman from the royal court, walking side by side. This is the miracle of Jesus—He brings together the most diverse people, not erasing their identities, but uniting them in love. The lion and the lamb, as Chesterton said, remain lion and lamb, yet find peace together. This is the Church at her best: a communion of differences, held together by Christ.

We also see that these women served in the way they could. They were not preachers, but they offered their means, their presence, their quiet fidelity. Their support allowed the mission to continue. How many disciples of Christ remain hidden, serving in silence! The parent who sustains a household of faith, the friend who encourages a vocation, the unseen worker whose generosity makes ministry possible—these are the hidden pillars of the Church.

No gift is too small to be offered to Christ. He does not measure by greatness but by love. Today, let us give what we can, in the place we are, with the heart we have. Like those women on the road, we too can walk with Jesus, supporting His mission with our love, our presence, and our generosity.

© Claretian Publications, Hong Kong, China
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica 2025