Memorial of Saint Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
First Reading
2 Samuel 1:1–4, 11–12, 19, 23–27
David learns of Saul and Jonathan’s death and responds with lament. He tears his clothes, weeps, fasts, and speaks honourably of the fallen—grieving what has been lost without turning it into triumph.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 80:2–3, 5–7
Let your face shine on us, O Lord, and we shall be saved.
Gospel
Mark 3:20–21
Jesus returns home, but the crowd gathers again and he cannot even eat. Hearing this, his relatives set out to take charge of him, saying, “He is out of his mind.”
Reflection
Today’s readings bring us into the real world of discipleship: where emotions are complex, and where even good intentions can be misread.
In the First Reading, David models a grief that remains human and holy. He mourns Saul and Jonathan with sincerity. What is striking is David’s restraint: he does not seize the moment to validate himself or rewrite the story in his favour. He laments—honouring relationship, honouring loss, and refusing to let pain become poison. This is grief with integrity.
In the Gospel, Jesus is surrounded by pressure and scrutiny, and his own relatives interpret his life as something unbalanced. He is not only tired; he is misunderstood in the place where he should be safest. Yet Jesus does not retreat into resentment or self-justification. He continues, steady in mission, allowing time and truth to speak.
These readings quietly teach that holiness is often expressed as steadiness:
steadiness that refuses bitterness in grief, and
steadiness that refuses distortion when others misunderstand.
Faithfulness is not always loud. Sometimes it is simply continuing to do what is right, with a clean heart, even when the moment is painful.
A moment of pause
Where are you tempted today to become bitter or defensive—and what would it look like to remain steady in love instead?
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