Fr. Mike's Gospel Reflection for - Sunday, February 1, 2026

What do we live for?  Maybe, the better question is, “who do we live for?”  Do we live for our spouses, children, our parents?  Do we live for God?  If we did live for God, what would that even look like?  Today, the readings give us some idea of what it would be like to live for God. Living for God means to be “blessed.”  In Jewish tradition, to be blessed means to increase (in joy, in peacefulness, in gratitude, etc.). Their concept of blessing was twofold: God blesses us and we bless Him. 

When God blesses us, he is increasing in us all that is good and beautiful.  The first reading tells us that the Lord invites (blesses) the humble and lowly to take refuge in Him.  Paul reminds us that God intentionally chose (blessed) those who were viewed by the world to be “foolish,” “weak,” and “lowly” to shame the wise, the strong, and the powerful.  Both passages make it clear that all that we have and all that accomplish are blessings from God and for God.  Therefore, we should never boast about ourselves or our successes.

When we “bless” God, we are both thanking and praising Him.  When the popular contemporary hymn says, “Bless the Lord, oh my soul,” it points us to the source of all good gifts around us.  As the priest receives the gifts of bread and wine at the offertory of each mass, he recites an ancient Jewish prayer over the gifts of Bread and Wine, “Blessed are you Lord God of all creation, through your goodness we have…” 

Jesus turns everything upside down in the Gospel and puts a strange twist on the idea of being blessed.  He reminds us that God blesses us even when things are not going as we had hoped or planned. Jesus says that the poor, hungry, weeping, and hated people are blessed.  How can that possibly be?  Perhaps, because those are the people that are most likely to invite God into their lives.  Those are the people that are most likely to look beyond this life toward eternal life with God. 

To bless and be blessed is a fundamental part of our relationships with God and others. Blessings, whether given or received, help us recognize God in our lives and draw closer to Him.

Fr. Mike