Msgr. Roger J. Landry
National Director, The Pontifical Mission Societies
Daily Reflection for September 10, 2025
Here is the video of today’s reflection.
The YouTube generated transcript for today’s reflection is
I’m Monsignor Roger Landry, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies, coming to you from a Manhattan rooftop. It’s September 10th and in the gospel today, Jesus gives us a second version of the beatitudes. It’s from what we call the “sermon on the plain” that Jesus gave at the seashore in Galilee. And he describes four contrary ways to live. His way versus another. his way. He says, “Blessed are you who are poor.” And he contrasts that to those who are rich. Jesus was poor in spirit. Didn’t even have a place to lay his head. Everything he had and was was to spread the kingdom. There’s a wisdom there. It doesn’t mean we have to be physically poor, but it does mean that all that we have is meant to be used out of love for God and for others. Second, he says, “Blessed are you who weep for you will be consoled.” And he contrasts that to “woe to those who are laughing now.” To weep means we are so sensitive to others’ misfortune that it touches us very deeply on the inside and inspires us to action. Sometimes when we’re laughing, when we make life a joke, we can just coast through life without taking the gift of life seriously. He says ,”blessed are you who are hungry now for you will be satisfied,” versus “woe to you who are now satiated.”
Jesus wants us to be desirous. He wants us to have a fire. He wants us to hunger and thirst for holiness as he taught us in St. Matthew’s version of the beatitudes. Whereas, if we’re all satisfied, we can be like that rich fool he describes in a parable who says, “I’ve got nothing to do other than to eat, drink, and be merry. I’ll build greater grain bins. I’ll neglect the people at my gates.” And then finally, Jesus says, “Blessed are you who are hated now,” versus “woe to you who are praised by others.” Jesus wants us to live in such a way that we’re so united with him that the same opposition he incredibly received we might receive just for fidelity by those who want to put themselves rather than God in the center. This is actually the way to happiness.
Earlier this week, Pope Leo canonized St. Pierre Giorgio Frassati and St. Carlo Acutis. And both of those men show us how to be poor in spirit even though they came from rich families. How to hunger for the things of God. How to be really deeply touched for those who are suffering. And they sacrificed so much in order to be able to help the poor. “Blessed are you who are hated.” They were made fun of for their faith to the Lord.
They inspire us. Another group that likewise sometimes takes ridicule are missionaries who leave behind so many worldly possibilities in order to go to remote places to share the gospel. What great examples they are for all of us in living today’s gospel.
The Gospel reading on which the reflection was based was:
Gospel
Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.
“Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.
For their ancestors treated the prophets
in the same way.
But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”