— A Reflection for the Friday within the Eighteenth Week after Pentecost (October 2), in the spirit of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin
Readings:
- Epistle: Ephesians 3:8-9, 14-19
- Gospel: Matthew 11:25-30
Today’s liturgical readings, set within the quiet splendour of a Friday in the Time after Pentecost, draw our hearts to the very centre of divine intimacy: the mystery of Christ’s Heart, radiant with charity and lowliness. This is especially fitting as the Church honors St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the humble Visitandine nun who received from the Lord the call to make His Sacred Heart known and loved.
In the Epistle, St. Paul marvels at the mystery entrusted to him:
“To me, the least of all the saints, is given this grace, to preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to enlighten all men, that they may see what is the dispensation of the mystery hidden from eternity in God…” (Eph 3:8-9)
And again:
“For this cause I bow my knees to the Father… that Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts; that being rooted and founded in charity, you may be able to comprehend… what is the breadth and length and height and depth: to know also the charity of Christ, which surpasseth all knowledge…” (Eph 3:14-19)
This “charity which surpasseth all knowledge” is none other than the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the burning furnace of love revealed most tenderly in His condescension. As St. John Chrysostom says:
“See how the Apostle, aiming at the unspeakable, attempts to measure the immeasurable… It is not possible to comprehend it by words but only by experience.” (Homily on Ephesians 7.3)
What St. Paul kneels before in wonder, St. Margaret Mary touched — not by vision alone, but by a spiritual union so profound it surpassed even the understanding of theologians. Through her, the Lord cried anew to His children: “Behold this Heart which has so loved men…”
It is precisely this Heart that speaks in today’s Gospel:
“I confess to Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to little ones.” (Matt 11:25)
This Gospel is the very breath of St. Margaret Mary’s soul: humble trust in the Father’s will, and total submission to the Heart of the Son. The same Lord who revealed divine mysteries to an Apostle on his knees now unveils them to a cloistered virgin, cloaked in obscurity.
St. Hilary of Poitiers reminds us:
“The Lord rejoices, not that the mysteries are hidden from some, but that they are revealed to others who are little — that is, humble, receptive, and pure in heart.” (Commentary on Matthew 11.25)
And who are more little than the saints who surrender to Christ’s yoke?
“Come to Me, all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, because I am meek and humble of heart.” (Matt 11:28-29)
This is no mere metaphor, no poetic turn. The yoke of Christ is the very form of His Sacred Heart, and it is placed upon those who yield to His will and imitate His humility.
St. Augustine writes:
“The burden of Christ does not crush, but bears up. When it is carried, it carries you… for it is a burden of love.” (Sermon 70.1)
And so St. Margaret Mary, carrying this burden of love, offered herself as victim to the Heart of her Spouse. In her, the Church beholds not only a recipient of mystical visions, but a model of hidden suffering, reparation, and unwavering devotion.
As we ponder these readings in light of her feast, we are called not merely to admire the Sacred Heart, but to be consumed by it — to bow our knees like Paul, to become little like children, to rest in the meekness of Christ.
Prayer:
O Sacred Heart of Jesus, burning with love for men, enkindle in our hearts the fire of Thy love. Through the intercession of St. Margaret Mary, grant us to be rooted and grounded in Thy charity, that knowing its breadth and height, we may be filled unto all the fullness of God. Amen.