Thursday of Second Week of Ordinary Time
Or Optional memorial of Vincent the Martyr
Gospel: Mark 3:7-12
The Crowd Seeking Jesus

Today, the Church celebrates the Optional memorial of Vincent the Martyr. The Roman Martyrology tells us that St. Vincent the Deacon was the first martyr in Spain and the patron saint of Lisbon, Algarve, and Valencia.

Today’s Mass Gospel, taken from the Gospel of St. Mark, recounts how after Jesus withdrew to the seaside of Galilee, a large crowd flocked to Him, seeking His healing.

Today, among those who came to Jesus, some were followers from Galilee and Judea, while others came from Jerusalem, Idumea, the other side of the Jordan, Tyre, and Sidon. They came to Jesus not to listen to His proclamation of the Kingdom of God, but to be healed. This scene reminds me of the star-chasing fans and obsessive stalkers that we often see in life, who are willing to abandon their studies for their idols. Such situations also occur within our respective parishes, where some fellow believers, upon hearing others speak of Jesus in their daily lives, receive Christian baptism without much understanding, naively crucify their old selves marked by death along with Christ, and receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit, yet they fail to emulate the virtuous example of St. Vincent by discerning God’s holy will in their lives and acknowledging Jesus Christ as Lord.

Today, let us follow the example of St. Vincent, living our lives under the illumination of the Holy Spirit of God, and courageously bearing witness to the true faith according to the will of the Holy Spirit. St. Vincent, pray for us. Amen.

©Totus Tuus 2026
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica