—Ecclus. 45:1
In today’s liturgical observance, falling on the Friday within the 17th week after the Octave of Pentecost, the Church presents us with a pair of readings that invite us to meditate on the nobility of divine vocation and the glory of total renunciation for the sake of Christ. This reflection is imbued with the spirit of Saint Francis Borgia, whose own life stands as a luminous witness to the truths proclaimed in these Scriptures.
I. The Glory of God’s Chosen: A Type of Holiness (Ecclus. 45:1-6)
“Beloved of God and men, whose memory is in benediction.”
The reading from Ecclesiasticus sings the praises of Moses, the man of God, whose calling and mission were sealed by divine election. The sacred author emphasizes Moses’ glory—not a worldly esteem, but a divine glorification. His authority was not self-assumed, but received from the Most High. God sanctified him in faithfulness and truth and instructed him in His law.
Saint Jerome, commenting on the exaltation of the saints in the Old Covenant, teaches that the glory bestowed upon such men comes not from human origin but from the divine economy:
“He who is lifted up in the Lord, though seeming lowly to the world, is more exalted than kings, for he serves not flesh, but the eternal God.” (Epistle 130, ad Demetriadem)
Moses is portrayed as a type—a figure pointing forward—to the apostles, and by extension to all those who would forsake earthly things to serve the Lord wholly. The sacred anointing of Moses prefigures the divine calling of saints in every age. As Saint Gregory the Great writes:
“When God elects a man, He does not do so according to human judgment, but according to the hidden judgments of His will, that the merit may not precede the grace, but grace go before merit.” (Moralium, Bk. I, ch. 23)
Moses is a foreshadowing of the radical life of Saint Francis Borgia, who was called from the court of the Emperor Charles V to the court of Christ. Once a duke, he renounced his titles to become a poor Jesuit priest. Like Moses, he was “glorified in the sight of kings,” not by earthly splendor, but by the humble authority of a sanctified life.
II. The Hundredfold Reward of Renunciation (Matt. 19:27-29)
“Behold, we have left all things and have followed thee: what therefore shall we have?”
Saint Peter’s question echoes a longing that lies in every human heart: If I give up the world for God, what will become of me? The answer of our Lord is clear and overflowing with promise: a hundredfold in this life, and eternal life in the next.
Saint John Chrysostom, in his homily on this passage, emphasizes that the Lord does not rebuke Peter’s question but dignifies it:
“Christ does not blame Peter for seeking his reward; rather, He crowns his faith. For to give up all is difficult, but to believe in a reward from God for that giving is the fullness of trust.” (Hom. 64 in Matt.)
Saint Augustine, too, affirms this divine generosity:
“Do not imagine that anything you give up for Christ is lost. It is laid away; it is being kept safe; and it shall return to you with increase.” (Sermo 105)
Saint Francis Borgia exemplified this. A man of power and wealth, he exchanged his noble estate and courtly life for the poverty of the Society of Jesus. His renunciation was not a sorrowful loss, but a supernatural exchange. He became a prince of the Church not by title, but by sanctity, and received the hundredfold—not in silver or land, but in the spiritual children he fathered, the souls he saved, and the love of Christ crucified that consumed his heart.
III. The Imitation of Saints and the Pattern of Sanctity
The life of Saint Francis Borgia offers a meditation in itself. He embodies both readings: chosen and glorified like Moses, and self-abandoning like Peter. As the Roman Breviary recounts, he embraced mortification, penance, and apostolic zeal, dying with the Holy Name of Jesus on his lips.
He fulfilled the words of Saint Paul:
“I count all things to be but loss for the excellent knowledge of Jesus Christ my Lord.” (Phil. 3:8)
His life challenges us today: Do we dare to leave behind comfort, recognition, and worldly security for the love of God? Have we asked, as Peter did, “What then shall we have?” The answer is still the same: a hundredfold, and eternal life.
Conclusion: Following in the Train of the Saints
On this Friday within the liturgical time of the post-Pentecostal season—a time reflecting the life of the Church between Pentecost and the Parousia—we are reminded that the call to sanctity is not just for Moses or Peter, nor only for Francis Borgia, but for each of us.
Let us pray, with humble sincerity, for the grace to leave all for Christ—not necessarily in the literal renunciation of wealth or position, but by the total gift of our heart, our time, our love. And may Saint Francis Borgia intercede for us, that we may glory not in the world’s honors, but in serving Christ with a heart made pure by sacrifice.
Prayer:
O God, who didst make Blessed Francis, Thy Confessor, to despise earthly honors and to choose with joy the reproach of Thy Cross: grant, we beseech Thee, that by his merits and example, we may learn to seek Thy glory alone and to rejoice in sharing Thy sufferings. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Sancte Francisce Borgiæ, ora pro nobis.