18-09-2026, Friday of Twenty Fourth Week in Ordinary Time
1 Cor 15: 12-20; Ps 17: 1, 6-8, 15; Lk 8: 1-3
“Soon afterward Jesus went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.”
Today’s Gospel passage offers a crisp portrayal of the itinerant life of Jesus and the community forming around Him. κηρύσσων καὶ εὐαγγελιζόμενος (kēryssōn kai euaggelizomenos) which means “Proclaiming and bringing good news” Kēryssō is an official, heraldic proclamation of an imperial decree. Euaggelizō shifts that heraldic voice into joy: announcing the gospel of deliverance. There is continuous, unceasing movement in Jesus mission. Jesus does not wait in Jerusalem or Capernaum for people to come to Him; His mission is dynamic, stepping into every city and village.
Rabbis typically avoided teaching women in public, yet Jesus constructs a traveling community where women are neither peripheral nor mere passive spectators. They are active disciples, firsthand witnesses to His healing, and essential partners in the apostolic mission. τεθεραπευμέναι (tetherapeumenai) which means “Having been healed”. Their discipleship does not precede their encounter with grace; rather, grace has permanently reshaped their identity. They follow not to earn favour, but as a living fruit of a restoration already accomplished.
Insights from the Church Fathers
“See how the women are not dismissed, but walk with Him, ministering to Him out of their own substance. The Lord allowed Himself to be fed by them, not because He was in need of food, but to give them an opportunity to practice virtue and to show that women, no less than men, are called to the labours of the Gospel.” – St. John Chrysostom
“What is denoted by seven devils, except all vices? For since all time is comprehended in seven days, by the number seven completeness is rightly figured. Mary had seven devils, for she was full of every vice. But see: she who was weighed down with sin was lifted up in grace to become a witness of mercy.” – St. Gregory the Great
Insights from the Carmelite Saints
“It is not because I have been preserved from mortal sin that I lift up my heart to God in trust and love. I feel that even if I had on my conscience all the sins that could be committed, I would go, my heart broken with sorrow, and throw myself into Jesus’ arms; for I know how much He loves the prodigal son… I recall Mary Magdalene, from whom He cast out seven devils.” – St. Therese of the Child Jesus
“If we consider the attitude of the Lord Himself, we understand that He accepted the free, loving services of women for Himself and His Apostles and that women were among His disciples and most intimate confidants.” – St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)
Insights for Us
Have we not been freed from our sins? Why don’t we respond like these holy women, to live a life of grace?