Isa 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8 Isa 38:10, 11, 12abcd, 16 Matt 12:1-8

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer The Daily Reflections

Church is a beautiful place to convene as a community and share in the traditions of our faith through Mass. Often there is a lot of thought and appreciation given towards the physical looks of a church: tall ceilings, beautiful stained glass, and intricate statues. There is something to say about the physical, outward beauty of a church. But there is more to say about what happens within the walls of the church and even more to say about what happens outside of those walls. For many of us, the church is a place to gather and worship once a week for around an hour, maybe a little more, maybe a little less. It becomes a place of safety and belonging. We share in this tradition with others in our greater community, which allows us to be reminded of the greater church, our neighbors, who like us, cut out an hour of their week just to be here. I think this is just as beautiful than the appearance of the church, if not more.

But, to me, even more beautiful is what we “go forth” to do and who we “go forth” to be. Most of our lives are lived outside of the physical boundaries of a church. Most of our praying and living out God’s will happens in the actions we do and the words we speak outside of the confines of a church. The world outside of the church is just as exceptionally beautiful. Just think of the people in your lives and the surroundings that make your life joy-filled. But our world is also very broken. There are cracks and rough edges everywhere we turn.

And this is where our beauty comes in, for everything is beautiful but sometimes the beauty is hidden by our perceptions. Every Sunday as we are sent forth, I believe we are sent forth to discover the beauty in others. It is not only the church that is sacred, but also every living being, because in every living being, God resides. It is our duty to find the beauty and the sacredness in the people we encounter by sharing our beauty and our sacredness with them.