Theme: Origin
1. Lectio
Gospel: Mark 11:27-33
“Was John’s baptism of heavenly or of human origin? Answer me.”
The chief priests, scribes, and elders wished to question Jesus, but Jesus questioned them first. They wanted to discuss authority while avoiding the deeper question of origin. They feared the consequences of answering honestly. If John’s baptism was from heaven, they stood condemned for ignoring it. If it was merely human, they risked the anger of the people.
Their answer, “We do not know,” was not born of ignorance but of caution. They knew enough to recognize the truth; they simply did not wish to follow where the truth might lead.
Pope Leo XIV reminds us in Magnifica Humanitas that technological power increasingly rests in private hands, often beyond public accountability. The question remains the same: What is the origin of this power, and to what end is it directed? Every age must answer that question anew.
2. Meditatio
What is the origin of my actions today?
The question sounds simple until it is directed at me.
When Jesus asks whether something is of heavenly or human origin, I instinctively begin examining everyone else. I wonder about the motives of bishops, politicians, billionaires, technology companies, and even my neighbors. Yet Christ turns the lantern around and shines it directly into my own heart.
What is the origin of this Lectio Divina?
What is the origin of my concern for the Church?
What is the origin of my desire to be heard?
I am often tempted to answer exactly as the chief priests did: “I do not know.”
But perhaps not knowing is itself an answer. If I cannot immediately recognize God as the source, perhaps I have allowed my own ambitions, fears, resentments, or need for approval to muddy the waters.
Pope Leo warns that technological power increasingly belongs to private interests. Yet there is a more dangerous private power than artificial intelligence or multinational corporations: the little kingdom of self that exists inside my own chest. There is no tyrant more difficult to govern than the man who believes he is acting for God when he is really acting for himself.
The paradox is that God rarely shouts His origin. Pride announces itself with trumpets; grace usually arrives disguised as a whisper. The origin of God’s work is often recognized not by its size but by its fruit: humility, peace, courage, charity, and joy.
When I ask whether my actions are of heavenly or human origin, I must not merely ask what I am doing. I must ask whether what I am doing leads me closer to Christ crucified or closer to myself enthroned.
3. Oratio
Lord Jesus,
You ask me questions that expose my heart more surely than any accusation.
When I cannot discern the origin of my thoughts, purify them. When I cannot discern the origin of my desires, enlighten them. When I cannot discern the origin of my actions, consecrate them.
Give me the honesty to admit when I act from pride. Give me the humility to receive correction. Give me the courage to follow truth wherever it leads.
Through the intercession of Saint Joan of Arc, grant me the grace to listen attentively to Your voice and not merely to my own.
May every word I write, every concern I raise, every field I tend, and every sheep I feed have their origin in You.
Amen.
4. Contemplatio (Chestertonian Synthesis)
Saint Joan of Arc heard voices.
The modern world finds this scandalous, yet it readily believes in invisible algorithms directing elections, markets, and desires. We are skeptical of saints and trusting of software.
Joan’s greatness was not that she received private revelations. Many people claim private revelations. Her greatness was that she submitted those revelations to God, the Church, and ultimately to sacrifice.
A private revelation becomes holy only when it ceases to be private.
The same is true of every inspiration I receive. An idea may begin in solitude, but if its origin is truly heavenly, it will eventually bear fruit in charity, humility, and service to others.
The saints are not people who never heard their own voices. They are people who learned to distinguish their own voices from God’s.
The chief priests feared the crowd. Joan feared God. Therein lies the difference.
5. Actio
Pope Francis writes in Laudato Si’:
“Human beings and material objects no longer extend a friendly hand to one another; the relationship has become confrontational.” (LS 106)
Today, before beginning any task, I will pause and ask a simple question:
“What is the origin of this action?”
In the spirit of Synodality, I will listen carefully to others—not merely to discover whether they agree with me, but to discern together whether the Holy Spirit may be speaking through them.
The Church walks together only when she continually returns to her true origin: the Father, through the Son, in the Holy Spirit.
6. Song Pairing
“Immigrant Song” – Led Zeppelin
Caption: Every Christian is, in a sense, an immigrant. We journey from one kingdom toward another. The question is not where we are going but what is the origin of the voice calling us there.
7. Movie Pairing
Origin (2023)
Caption: A film about tracing ideas back to their roots. The Gospel asks an even deeper question: not merely where ideas come from, but whether they originate in heaven or in ourselves.
8. Poetic X-Verse
“Was it of heaven or merely of me?” Christ asks the question beside Galilee.
I search the world for hidden schemes, Yet seldom question my own dreams.
The saint seeks not applause or fame, But follows faithfully the Name.
For every path and every choice, The origin is found in whose voice.