Readings: Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 31:8–11 | St. Luke 12:35–40
Liturgical Day: Feria Tertia infra Hebdomadam X post Octavam Pentecostes (August 3rd)
The liturgy of this day sets before us a striking harmony between the just man praised by Ecclesiasticus and the faithful servant whom Christ exhorts to watchfulness in the Gospel. In both passages, virtue is crowned by vigilance, detachment, and fidelity—qualities embodied in the life and labors of St. John Eudes, whom Holy Mother Church commemorates today.
“Blessed is the rich man that is found without blemish…” (Sir 31:8)
The sacred author exalts the man who, though possessing abundance, does not cling to it, but lives free from stain. St. Ambrose, writing in De Officiis, reminds us that riches are not evil in themselves but become dangerous when they ensnare the heart: “Non pecunia culpanda est, sed cupiditas pecuniae”—it is not money that is to be blamed, but the love of it.
St. John Chrysostom likewise insists that the true riches of the Christian are not gold, but virtue: “Non aurum, sed virtus dives est” (Hom. in Matt. 19). The man praised in Ecclesiasticus is rich indeed, not because of what he possesses outwardly, but because he has preserved his soul unstained by attachment. Such a man, notes St. Augustine (Serm. 113), is free in Christ, for “he possesses, yet is not possessed.”
This was the witness of St. John Eudes, who, though endowed with great talents and entrusted with many works—founding congregations, forming priests, and promoting devotion to the Sacred Hearts—remained poor in spirit, attributing all to God and seeking no earthly honor.
“Let your loins be girt, and lamps burning in your hands…” (Lk 12:35)
Our Lord continues: “Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when He cometh, shall find watching” (v. 37). The Fathers see in this readiness a double vigilance: over one’s own soul, and in service to the brethren.
Origen comments that the girded loins signify continence and purity, while the burning lamps denote charity and good works shining before men (Hom. in Luc. 12). St. Gregory the Great, in his Homilies on the Gospels (Hom. 13), teaches that to be watchful is to keep our eyes fixed upon eternity: “Qui in praesenti saeculo vigilat, futurum semper metuit.” The vigilant Christian lives each day as though the Master might arrive at the second watch, or the third.
St. John Eudes lived this vigilance heroically. He girded himself with the mortification of the flesh and carried ever the lamp of apostolic zeal. His tireless missions through France, his establishment of seminaries, and his ardent preaching of the Sacred Heart all testify to a soul consumed with readiness for the coming of the Bridegroom.
The Crown of Fidelity
Ecclesiasticus concludes: “Who hath been tried thereby, and made perfect, he shall have glory everlasting” (Sir 31:10). Such was the life of St. John Eudes: tested in labors, steadfast in fidelity, crowned by sanctity. His teaching on the Hearts of Jesus and Mary calls us also to live in the constant presence of God, girded with purity, and burning with the light of charity.
St. Augustine, once again, gives us the perfect word of encouragement (Enarr. in Ps. 39): “Vigilate, fratres: non enim novimus diem nec horam; et ipsa ignorantia, vigilare nos faciat.”—“Watch, brethren, for we know neither the day nor the hour; and this very ignorance should make us watchful.”
✠ Concluding Prayer
O Lord, who didst inflame the heart of Thy servant John Eudes with an admirable love of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, grant that, like him, we may live poor in spirit, vigilant in charity, and ready at every hour for Thy coming. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.