Feast of Saint James of the Marches

Good morning. As we begin Advent we read in Matthew’s Gospel of the faith of the Roman Centurion. As Christian parents we might ask ourselves how this story relates to our own day-to-day experience. It is of interest that this particular Gospel story makes an appearance today as we begin our Advent journey and we return to using with the Roman Missal, Third Edition, the words of the Centurion at the Invitation to Communion “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.” This declaration of faith is not only a response to receive Jesus into our lives in the Eucharist but it extends beyond that particular moment when we respond to the invitation to receive the Body and Blood of Christ; it likewise is a renewal of our call to sanctity.

As parents we not only are responsible for our own journey to sainthood but we are called as well to guide our children to sainthood. God expects this of us. It is a task which cannot be met by anyone other than a parent, it cannot be handed off to our children’s teachers, or our pastor; if we don’t do it, it will not be done. The greatest gift we have to give is to respond to God’s call to give life and to guide the life of those children in the way of our faith. It is our task to help our children to become the people God created them to be. We are “not worthy” of this task and we will from time to time make mistakes, but like the Centurion we call upon the Lord’s help. It is not always easy to parent a child in today’s world; like our Saint for today, Saint James of the Marches, others may ridicule and challenge our response to God’s call to sanctity and our efforts at raising our children in the faith, but we need only ask and God will provide all the help we need. Make a great day!

Today we recall the good life, gifts, and works of Saint James of the Marches.