Today is July 19, Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
We read at today’s Mass, “Many people followed him, and he cured them all, but he warned them not to make him known” (Mt 12:15-16).
At first glance, this line in today’s Gospel can seem puzzling. Jesus had come to reveal the Father. Why would he tell people to keep quiet about him? Scripture scholars explain that it was not yet the right moment. Before his passion and resurrection, the full truth of Christ’s mission was not yet revealed. But now, in the age of the Holy Spirit, it is our time to proclaim him openly.
Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati understood this. For him, faith wasn’t a private matter. He believed Catholics must let the whole shape of their lives show their love for Christ. Pier Giorgio called this the “apostolate of good example.”
How do I make Christ known?
He lived it boldly. At a time when public religious expression in Italy could lead to insults or even fights, Pier Giorgio always joined Eucharistic processions. He prayed and sang loudly, even in the face of hostility. When disputes broke out, he once calmed a crowd simply by declaring, “Praise be Jesus Christ!” His witness was peaceful but firm.
Today, each of us can ask: How does my life make Christ known? Do my choices, my words and my public actions reflect my love for the Lord?
Let us pray,
O God, who show the light of your truth to those who go astray, so that they may return to the right path, give all who for the faith they profess are accounted Christians the grace to reject whatever is contrary to the name of Christ and to strive after all that does it honor. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
