Revival begins at home: Pray, share the word and share a meal.
Today, we reflect on 1 Maccabees 2:15–29, a passage that reveals the courage of Mattathias and his sons, a courage born from deep conviction and an unshakable love for God’s law. Faced with pressure, threats, and even enticing promises, Mattathias refused to compromise. He was told that if he abandoned God’s law and obeyed the king, he and his sons would become “the king’s friends.” But he did not bend. He did not negotiate his identity. He stood firm on the side of God, even to the point of resisting those who encouraged disobedience.
One thing that touched me is how real that temptation is even today.
How many times have we felt pressured to compromise our values?
How many times have we tried to fit in, with friends, at work, or on social media, at the expense of God’s word?
This is the same challenge Mattathias faced:
To choose the applause of men or the approval of God.
A Societal Dilemma
Our young people are going through this same dilemma daily.
They are being pressured to belong, to fit in, to appear “cool” and sometimes this means engaging in unholy acts: sharing inappropriate images, joining in gossip, stealing small things, disrespecting others, or engaging in harmful behaviours simply so they won’t be left out.
This is why parents must stay awake. Watch over your children. Know what they are doing online, what they are watching, what they are posting, and who they are talking to. Monitor, guide, and moderate. Not to control, but to protect their future and their relationship with God.
In today’s Gospel Luke 19:41-44, Jesus weeps over Jerusalem. The sight of the Temple, once the place of God’s presence, brought Him to tears because it had lost its meaning.
If Jesus were standing in our world today, He would weep again, not only over the public Church, but even over our homes. For many families, the home is no longer a place of encounter, prayer, or peace.
Some homes have become battlegrounds, entertainment centres, or silent houses where everyone is too busy, too distracted, or too distant from God.
Pope St. John Paul II reminds us that the family is the “domestic Church.” That means revival must begin in your living room. Holiness must be awakened around your dining table. Faith must take root in the ordinary interactions of everyday life.
Pray with your children.
Share the Word with them.
Share meals together.
Talk with them.
Listen to them.
Choose a Bible passage you feel comfortable with, read it with your family, ask your children what they think, answer their questions with joy. If you don’t know the answer, don’t panic, search the internet, open the Catechism, or simply ask your priest. What matters is that the seed is planted.
Be the leader of this revival.
Let it begin with you.
Let your home be a place where God is honoured and where His presence is felt.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, may every home become a small church, a place of encounter, love, and light. And may Your Spirit ignite within us a flame that no pressure, no temptation, and no darkness can ever extinguish. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
