Fruit of Bold Prayer

Gospel Reflection for Friday July 25, 2025

In today’s Gospel reading for the Feast of St. James, it’s not St. James’ and John's father who speaks to Jesus on their behalf, it is their mother who petitions Jesus to secure their place in heaven. She almost demands it.

She’s like another determined woman we know from the Gospel — the woman with the veil who captures the image of Christ along His Via Crucis. Like Veronica, Salome (her name according to tradition), is courageous enough to break through crowds to walk among men for the love of God.

The Bible is full of Jariuses, lepered men, and men with withered hands who confidently approach our Lord for miracles, but rarely do we see a woman approach Jesus so confidently to ask her heart’s desire. Only Martha speaks to Jesus with this ‘If only..’ tone. Telling Jesus to “Command” is quite the request!

Yet, she does it for Love — for love of her sons and love of God’s Kingdom.

Jesus replies to her, ‘You do not know what you are asking,’ then seems to ask them all —

Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?

— to which they all reply, ‘We can.’

Jesus affirms, that yes, ‘My chalice you will indeed drink, but —‘

To sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give

but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.

Disputation of the Eucharist, Raphael.

Church tradition tells us those seats were reserved for Mary, the Mother of God, and St. John the Baptist, but God placed this lofty desire in this mother’s heart, for we know all good comes from Him.

Through a mortal mouth, God fills the eternal thrones abandoned by fallen angels with men made strong by Jesus “manifested in our body” as St. Paul tells us in the First Reading —

For we who live are constantly being given up to death
for the sake of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since, then, we have the same spirit of faith,
according to what is written, I believed, therefore I spoke,
we too believe and therefore speak

Do we believe in St. Paul’s same spirit of Faith? To believe, therefore, and open our mouths like Salome and confidently speak?

Many times throughout Scripture, God depends on the faithful responses of the weaker sex to complete His Divine Will.

We immediately recall Mary and her Fiat, Elizabeth’s proclamation that Mary is the Mother of Our Lord, and the public testimony of Simeon’s prophetic friend Anna recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. Add to this the woman at the well yearning for Christ’s Living Water, and even the bride at Cana assenting to the marriage of Jesus’ first public miracle.

Who can forget Jesus’ Bride, Holy Mother Church herself, from whom our Apostolic Age is issued?

Scripture is pregnant with God answering the call of a simple heart.

In today’s Gospel for the Feast of St. James, Jesus says —

Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.

In one moment, this bold mother speaks for ‘these two sons of mine.’ In the next, she forever becomes the Church’s servant through the catalyst of confident prayer.

In asking for heaven for someone else, we instigate our own personal, sometimes hidden sacrifice demanded of all Christians, returning love for Love. This is a way to follow Christ.

Look at what this sacrifice tenders —

R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.

When the Lord brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.

Then they said among the nations,
‘The Lord has done great things for them.’
The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.

R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.

Just as Salome’s matriarchal role fades into the martyrdom of the Early Church led by the Apostles, we are each called as simple children of Holy Mother Church to boldly pray unceasingly for God’s Will to be borne in these times.

We can ask for little, personal things, and we can ask for big, bold things, whatever desire God has implanted into our hearts. We need only speak it confidently, petitioning Jesus.

If our heart’s desire is for the Church to return to God in her Majesty for His Glory, then we know it is God’s desire as well. Then we also know we must sacrifice and boldly pray for new, holy apostles for this age to walk another Via Crucis, a new Camino, like St. James.

Let us be bold, because Jesus invites us to dare for more.

Let us say with the Apostles, ‘Yes, Lord, I will drink the chalice,’ for Alleluia, Alleluia, Jesus promises —

I chose you from the world,
to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.