Daily Catholic Lectio
Wed, 3 June 2026
Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
2 Tim 1:1-3, 6-12. Mk 12:18-27
God of the Living
In today’s Gospel, another group comes to challenge Jesus. After the Pharisees and Herodians, it is now the turn of the Sadducees. They were influential religious and political leaders of Jesus’ time. Unlike the Pharisees, they accepted only the first five books of the Bible and rejected belief in the resurrection, angels, and life after death. They approach Jesus not to learn but to mock the very idea of resurrection.
To ridicule belief in eternal life, they present an imaginary case of a woman who successively marries seven brothers according to the levirate law. Since all seven die without children, they ask Jesus: “In the resurrection, whose wife will she be?” They believe they have trapped Him. But Jesus does not untie their knot. Instead, He places before them a greater knot that they themselves cannot solve.
Jesus begins by exposing the root of their error: “You know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God.” The Sadducees imagine eternal life as a continuation of earthly life. They think that if there is a resurrection, people must continue the same social relationships, institutions, and limitations that exist now. Jesus teaches that resurrection life is entirely different. Those who rise share in God’s eternal life. They live in a new mode of existence where earthly categories such as marriage no longer define them.
At the heart of Jesus’ answer is a profound revelation about God. Quoting the book of Exodus, He reminds them that God said to Moses, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” God does not say, “I was.” He says, “I am.” For God, the patriarchs are not lost in the past. They are alive in His presence. Therefore, Jesus concludes, “He is God not of the dead, but of the living.”
This Gospel invites us to reflect on the power of God. Human power can generate life, build families, and leave descendants. Many ancient people sought a form of immortality through their children. But God’s power is infinitely greater. God does not merely preserve memories through future generations. He preserves persons themselves in His living presence. What human beings cannot overcome, namely death, God has already conquered.
This truth gives us three important lessons.
First, we are called to trust in the power of God. Very often we think only within the limits of human possibilities. We see sickness, failure, aging, and death and conclude that these have the final word. Jesus reminds us that God’s power goes beyond what we can imagine. The God who created life can also sustain life beyond death. Faith means allowing God’s possibilities to be greater than our own calculations.
Second, because our God is the God of the living, we are called to live for what gives life. Many people spend their energy on things that slowly bring spiritual death: resentment, jealousy, greed, bitterness, and hopelessness. Christ invites us to choose what is life-giving: faith, forgiveness, compassion, truth, and love. Every day we must ask ourselves: Am I dwelling on things that lead to life or on things that lead to death?
Third, belief in eternal life gives us hope. Christians do not deny the reality of suffering, loss, or death. We experience them as everyone else does. But we do not face them without hope. We know that earthly life is not the final chapter. Beyond the struggles of the present lies the fullness of life with God. This hope enables us to persevere even in difficult times.
The first reading beautifully complements this message. Paul writes to Timothy from a situation of hardship and uncertainty. Yet he is not discouraged. He urges Timothy to “rekindle the gift of God” that is within him. He reminds him that God has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but a spirit of power, love, and self-control. Paul can speak with such confidence because he knows that Christ “has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel.”
The Gospel is not merely a set of teachings. Jesus Himself is the Gospel. In His death and resurrection, He has revealed that death is not the end. Through Him, immortality has become a reality. Therefore, Paul can endure suffering without fear. He knows in whom he has placed his trust.
Today, the Lord invites each of us to rekindle that same faith. Let us trust in the power of God. Let us choose what is life-giving. Let us live with the hope of eternal life. And whenever fear, discouragement, or uncertainty enters our hearts, let us remember the words of Jesus: our God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. In Him, life is stronger than death, hope is stronger than despair, and love is stronger than the grave.
Fr. Yesu Karunanidhi
Archdiocese of Madurai
A Yesni Prays Initiative
Yesu Karunanidhi 
Leave a comment