September 8, 2026 Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Gospel: Mt 1:1-16, 18-23 or Mt 1:18-23
Today is Tuesday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. Today the Church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The recently published Roman Missal tells us: “Nothing is known for sure about the details of the Blessed Virgin’s birth. Her parents, traditionally known as St Joachim and St Anne, are not mentioned in Sacred Scripture. Today’s feast originated in the East, probably during the sixth century, and was later introduced to the West. A French legend tells of a man hearing angels singing on the night of September 8 and being told that the Virgin Mary had been born on that night. Her earthly birth is celebrated (much like that of St John the Baptist) because it announced to the world the coming of Jesus, the beginning of the New Covenant.”
Today, the passage taken from the Gospel of Saint Matthew gives us an account of the parents of Jesus and introduces to us what took place between Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary before the birth of Jesus. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections.
If we turn to the Scriptures, we discover that the New Testament contains two genealogies of our Lord Jesus Christ: one recorded by Saint Matthew — which is the Gospel we read today — and the other by Saint Luke (Cf. Lk 3:23-38). Although the two genealogies differ, they both set forth the same origin of Christ. The genealogy recorded by Saint Matthew begins with Abraham, the servant of God, who is called the father of many nations, for God said to him: “I will indeed bless you and multiply your descendants beyond count, like the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore. Your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing — because you have obeyed my word” (cf. Gn 22:17-18), so as to prove that Jesus is the Messiah whom God promised to his chosen people. The genealogy recorded by Luke begins with the first Adam, from whose rib God brought forth the first Eve (Cf. Gn 2:18-25), to show that Jesus is the Savior of all humanity. Thus, through the account of the Evangelists, we can catch a glimpse of how God, through his only Son, fulfills his promise to the world.
After presenting to us the lineage of Jesus, Matthew immediately sets before us the episode that took place between Saint Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary (Cf. Mt 1:18-23). In this episode we behold the obedience of Saint Joseph and the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Messiah spoken by the prophet Isaiah. The prophet says: “But a shot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD” (Cf. Is 11:1-3). The prophecy of the prophet Jeremiah was likewise fulfilled through the obedience of Saint Joseph. The prophet says: “On those days, at that time, I will make a righteous shoot spring forth for David; he shall do what is just and right in the land. In those days Judah shall be saved, Jerusalem shall dwell secure; this is what shall be called: ‘The LORD our justice'” (Cf. Jer 33:15-16).
Today, on this Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, let us with one heart, together with the Blessed Virgin Mary, offer our prayer to God:
Impart to your servants, we pray, O Lord, the gift of heavenly grace, that the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin may bring deeper peace to those for whom the birth of her Son was the dawning of salvation. 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.
September 7, 2026 Monday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time Gospel: Lk 6:6-11
Today is Monday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. The passage taken from the Gospel of Saint Luke presents to us the deeds of Jesus in the synagogue on the Sabbath. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections.
We often resemble those crowds who followed Jesus, choosing to follow Christ for various reasons and based on various motives. Among us there are some who, by means of this faith, seek to earn themselves a good name in this world; others hope to obtain free food from the Church; and still others desire to pursue higher office within the Church, so that their own selfish desires may be satisfied.
In reality, all that we now uphold is founded upon our fragile human nature and upon the ties of affection and kinship that we cannot bear to sever — all of which unceasingly devour our love for God and the fervor we held when we first received the baptism of Christ. At that time, we often cherished boundless longing and desire for our heavenly homeland. But soon, the enemy of the human soul — the devil — like a roaring lion roaming about, seeking someone to devour (Cf. 1 Pt 5:8). He frequently makes use of those who are like us, together with every evil thought that arises from our flesh, to hinder us from drawing near to God. When we desire to take up our own cross and follow Christ, he, just as he tempted Christ at the beginning (Cf. Lk 4:1-13), seeks to prevent us from attaining holiness. As a result, although we have already received the baptism of Christ, our lives are lived as though we were still people who had never known Christ — living in our own world, gradually drifting away from God, away from the Church that Jesus Himself founded upon Peter (Cf. Mt 16:18-19), and away from the shepherd who, for the salvation of our souls, unceasingly offers sacrifice and prayers to God on our behalf. Thus, we often remain living in a state of constant bargaining with God.
Today, let us no longer live in our own world, but rather live in the world of God. Let us no longer hinder anyone from receiving the loving care of Jesus but make ourselves channels of the love of God. Now, let us together offer our prayer to God:
O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance. 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
September 6, 2026 Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Gospel: Mt 18:15-20
Today is the Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time. The passage taken from the Gospel of Saint Matthew offers us the teaching of Jesus Christ concerning reconciliation. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections.
In life, we often quarrel with others for various reasons, and we may even, because of some trifling matters, cease to associate with those who disagree with us. For we follow the logic of this world, and the logic of this world is this: to be self-centered, to put our own interests first, and always to seek, by whatever means, to triumph over the other. Hatred and unrest are the perpetual logic of this world. And the root cause that breeds hatred in the heart and gives rise to unrest is sin. Sin makes a person unfree and fills the heart with a sense of loss, so that one always desires to possess everything, for one seeks, by possessing everything, to overcome others and thus secure for oneself a sense of safety.
Today, Jesus says to us: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church. And if he refuses to listen even to the Church, treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Cf. Mt 18:15-18)
This brings to mind certain challenges the Church has faced of late:
On July 1, 2026, the schismatic Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (SSPX), without the authorization of Pope Leo XIV, consecrated four bishops at Écône, Switzerland. On July 2, 2026, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith promulgated a decree formally declaring that this group, by committing an act of a schismatic nature, had placed itself in a state of schism, and that the persons concerned had incurred latae sententiae excommunication for violating the relevant provisions of the Code of Canon Law. This is the Church’s formal confirmation of an unlawful act in accordance with the law — excommunication is not a penalty “inflicted” by the Church of her own initiative; rather, it takes effect automatically by the very fact of the schismatic act itself (latae sententiae), and the Church’s decree merely declares and confirms this fact.
On July 25, 2026, the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer (FSSR), which adheres to sedevacantism, without the authorization of Pope Leo XIV, illicitly consecrated its Superior General, Michael Mary, as a bishop. They refused to heed the admonition of the Church and were even unwilling to submit to the Successor of the Apostle Peter. The Bishop of Aberdeen, Hugh Gilbert, accordingly imposed the appropriate ecclesiastical penalties upon that group and the persons concerned, declaring them excommunicated latae sententiae for the crime of schism.
On this Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, I invite all brothers and sisters in the Lord to pray together with one heart for these our brothers and sisters who are separated from us, that our prayer offered in communion may awaken the conscience of those separated from us, and that they may, in strict accordance with the process of reconciliation established by the Church, return to the great family of the Church, to the one sheepfold founded by Jesus Christ upon the rock of Peter, to the Church in communion with the Apostle Peter and his Successor — with those Apostles who are in communion with Peter and their successors — so that the scattered People of God may be gathered again into Christ.
O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance. 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
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