Gospel for February 11 2024 – Mark 1: 40-45
Gospel Reflections for February 11 2024
You cannot meet Jesus and stay the same.
In today’s Gospel, a desperate man in need of healing meets the Lord …and walks away completely cured.
Whenever you meet the Lord good things happen …broken hearts heal, souls are saved, and hope comes alive for a better future. That is why everything we do at St. Bruno is meant to help you meet the Lord in a personal way that makes a real difference in your life.
Lent begins this Wednesday, so now is the time to meet Our Lord in a deeper way than ever before. Starting Thursday you can join a University Series session every weeknight at 7pm that will help you do just that. See theuniversityseries.org or the catalogs at the church doors.
Every session hopes to provide what Jesus did for that person in need of healing. We hope every session will help make your life more happy, healthy, and holy. (That is even better than a Super Bowl win!) Every session is designed to connect faith with real life.
Wednesday is both Ash Wednesday and St. Valentine’s Day. A strong tradition says Valentine was a priest in the late 3rd century. The Roman emperor, Claudius II, needed more soldiers for conquest, but at that time soldiers had to be single, so in order to draft more recruits …Claudius outlawed marriage!
Valentine would have none of that! He announced that he would perform marriages no matter what the risk. He evaded Roman authorities and performed countless marriages in nearby forests. Hundreds of couples risked arrest to receive the Sacrament of Marriage from St. Valentine. It is a powerful testament to how much these young people wanted the blessing of God on their commitment to love each other forever.
St. Valentine was eventually caught and executed. Before he died, he wrote a letter to one of the couples he married and signed it, “…from your Valentine.” and so a loving tradition began.
Ash Wednesday simply affirms that one day your life will come to an end. Why not then learn deeper and deeper lessons about love. That is what Lent, and the University Series is for.
The love of Jesus for a sick man in today’s Gospel heals and changes him for the better. Authentic love heals, strengthens and brings great joy, as both Jesus …and Valentine affirm.
God Bless!
Fr. Dave
Dear Father Dave,
Thank you for retelling the Valentine story, which I’d forgotten. It’s a dynamite testament of love—human and God centered.
Looking forward to the meaningful season of Lent.
God bless you.
Sincerely,
Kathleen
More people should know the St. Valentine story.
Thanks Father for the story of St. Valentine. I had never heard it. The establishing a Personal Relationship with Jesus is a wonderful Goal for Successful Relationships in Life . Great lives are dependent on knowing our Faith and on what Jesus was showing us in his life and example here on Earth.
Sounds like your University Series can establish the Creation of this . I enjoy the different aspects of our Liturgical Calendar that reminds us of the need to experience the various aspects of our needs in Life. I appreciate these assists in deepening our understanding of what we need to be better Catholic Christians.
Yes, that is exactly what the Liturgical Year is for. Great comment.
Thank you Fr. Dave for the wonderful variety of topics in your
University Series…something for everyone.
It is getting better with more parishes involved and more topics
addressed.
May you be blessed for all your efforts.
I am glad to see the University Series growing!
Love our preciious Jesus, love our Saint Valentine, love all you precious priests that give us Jesus in Holy Communion and loving Homilies and our destiny is to live His love every day!!!!I feel we can all make the world beautiful in Jesus’ love by one giving act of love every day!!! Loveeeeeee it!!! Love your University series for our Faith comes alive and we must act in love!!!! Thank you for being a beautiful, precious priest and friend giving us the true meaning of LOVE!!! Living Jesus’ Love!!! Loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeFranca and Dick