Feast of Saint John of Sahagun

Good morning. Marriage is such a profound and joyous opportunity to glorify God. The idea of spending every day with the same person until death and to share in another’s path to holiness so intimately is such a wonderful opportunity. Yet, to accept and to faithfully live out such a challenge requires being steadfast in one’s faith and to look steadily to God for direction and grace. In today’s Gospel we find delightful words of direction in Christ’s words from the mount, yet being the “salt of the earth” is a great challenge, and being “the light of the world” is likewise challenging. 

The challenge Jesus places before us married couples is for us to live lives of example, to be like salt sprinkled on food, adding flavor and enhancing a good thing. Living as salt of the earth in our marriage gives zest to a way of life which in today’s culture can tend to have a rather bland indistinctive taste. In the sacrament of marriage we are challenged to be as salt to the earth and a light to the world through showing the world, by our faithfulness, our fruitfulness, our perseverance, and our love, the type of love that Christ has to offer each and every one of us. 

Matthew Kelly in his book Mustard Seeds says we are called through our words, actions, and influence, “to preserve your family, your friendships, your workplace, and society from corruption as best you can and to add the flavor to these environments by bringing Christ and his message to them.” He adds "You are light for the world."(Mt. 5:14) Whilst many around us are consumed with discussion of the prevailing darkness in the world there is only one answer-light… When you become a torch set aflame with the love of Christ, wherever you go, whoever you meet, every person and every place that you come in contact with will be set on fire.” 

We can be the “salt of the earth” and “the light of the world” when we demonstrate to the world in our daily living-out of our marriage how delicious marriage can be. We can sprinkle salt about us favorably flavoring other’s lives and cast our light about us so that others may come to know the goodness of a life lived as it was intended from the beginning. We need only to look to God together each day for the strength and to the saints such as Saint John of Sahagun whose life we celebrate today for support and direction. A torch to the world is what we must be. Make a great day! 

Today we recall the good life, gifts, and work of Saint John of Sahagun.