As we continue our Decade of Mission 2026 on our journey toward Pentecost, today we reflect on the importance of truly knowing God as the foundation of strong married and family life.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about a tragic spiritual paradox:
“The time is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God” (John 16:2).
Christ explains the reason for this confusion very clearly:
“because they have not known the Father, nor me” (John 16:3).
Today’s reflection is offered by Fr. Andrzej Wasylinko,
who reminds us that knowing God is the beginning of understanding ourselves, others, and the true meaning of life.
When people lose a living relationship with God, they slowly begin to rely only on personal opinions, emotions, or convenience. Gradually, truth becomes relative, and people may become convinced they are doing what is right while unknowingly causing harm to themselves and to those around them.
This reality deeply affects marriage and family life. Many conflicts, resentments, and divisions arise not simply from weakness, but from forgetting to see family life through God’s truth and wisdom.
Without God:
• selfishness can appear as “self-fulfillment,”
• criticism can be mistaken for “honesty,”
• and indifference can be excused as “being tired” or “too busy.”
Christ reminds us today that God Himself is the Creator of marriage and family. Only through a living relationship with Him can families remain strong, loving, and faithful.
To truly know God means more than simply believing He exists. It means allowing His presence to shape our thoughts, decisions, relationships, and daily life.
This relationship with God grows:
• through family prayer,
• through reading Sacred Scripture,
• through participation in the Holy Mysteries,
• and through living according to the Gospel each day.
Bishop Michael Kwiatkowski continues to encourage all faithful of our Eparchy to deepen their relationship with Christ during these Mission Days and to build their homes upon the truth, wisdom, and love of God.
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Tuesday, May 19
“Knowing God as the Foundation of Strong Married and Family Life”
John 16:2–13
Reflection by Fr. Andrzej Wasylinko
📺 No video today.
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Missionary Tasks for Today:
- Personal level:
Ask the Lord to enlighten your heart and mind, so that you may honestly see your own faults, avoid self-deception, and recognize God’s truth in your life. - Parish level:
Ask your priest how you can participate in communal Scripture reading and grow together in God’s Word as a parish family. - Mission level:
Support a family struggling with resentment, addictions, or spiritual distance from God through prayer, encouragement, and personal witness.
May God enlighten our hearts with His truth.
May our families be built not on pride or convenience, but on the wisdom and love of the Gospel.
And may the Holy Spirit guide us to live in unity, humility, and faithfulness to Christ.
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Tuesday, May 19
“Knowing God as the Foundation of Strong Married and Family Life”
John 16:2–13 — Fr. Andrzej Wasylinko
In today’s Word of God, the Lord speaks about one of the most dangerous paradoxes of human life. It consists in this: a person may be convinced that they are serving God by their actions, while in reality opposing Him: “The time is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God” (John 16:2). Christ explains the reason for such a tragic mistake very simply: “because they have not known the Father, nor me” (John 16:3).
Knowing God is the starting point for a correct understanding of oneself, others, and all of life. When a person loses a living connection with God, they gradually lose the ability to clearly distinguish between good and evil. They begin to build life based only on their own ideas, feelings, or convenience. Here lies a great danger: a person becomes their own measure of truth. Good and evil become relative, and truth depends on mood, emotion, or personal benefit. The greatest tragedy is not even that a person does evil, but that they often do not realize it, because they live without God.
How relevant this is in the context of marriage and family life. How many conflicts, resentments, and misunderstandings arise because people are absolutely convinced of their own rightness, yet fail to see their own faults. In family life, it is easy to replace God’s truth with personal interpretations: calling selfishness “self-realization,” constant criticism “standing for truth,” or indifference “fatigue” or “lack of time.”
Thus arises the very paradox Christ speaks of: people may think they are doing what is right and even caring for the good of the family, while in reality gradually destroying it. This happens when a person stops truly knowing God. Without Him, we begin to see not only the world, but also our own marriage and family in a distorted way. Yet we must remember: God is the Creator of marriage, and His plan is the best foundation for family life.
What does it mean to “know God”? In the biblical sense, it is not simply knowing information about Him, calling oneself a believer, or performing certain religious practices. It means having a living relationship with God that shapes our thinking, influences our decisions, and gradually determines our way of life. In the family, this relationship is built through common prayer, reading Sacred Scripture, and full participation in the life of the Church.
Let us ask the Lord today to enlighten our hearts with the truth about Himself and our family life, to free us from self-deception, and to teach us to see others with His eyes. May God help us build our families not on pride or stubbornness, but on the truth, love, and wisdom of the Gospel.
Missionary Tasks:
- Personal level: Ask the Lord to enlighten your heart and mind, so that you may honestly see your own faults, avoid self-deception, and distinguish God’s truth from what only appears to be truth.
- Parish level: Ask your priest how you can concretely participate in organizing communal Scripture reading in the parish, to grow together in God’s Word and learn to live it daily.
- Mission level: With love, support a family struggling with resentment, addictions, or spiritual distance from God—through prayer, a kind word, and personal witness—helping them rediscover God’s truth and the path back to Him.