Gospel Reflection – January 19, 2026

January 19, 2026

Jesus is the “Bridegroom,” the husband. In Him, everything announced by the prophets comes true. He is the “new wine” that warms the heart and lifts the Spirit. He asks His followers to live with a “new heart,” to be “born again.”

It isn’t enough to just correct a flaw here or there, nor is it enough to settle for making small changes. Jesus doesn’t see the point in fasting when His disciples should be enjoying His presence and celebrating it. He is not a man for fasting, but fasting is for man. Just as “Man was not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath for man.”

The new person is breaking through. There is no room here for old penances and fasting. The time for fasting will come when the “Bridegroom” is taken away to be crucified. Then, that fasting will make sense.

Let us ask ourselves if we are willing to drink this wine of Jesus that transforms us but must be poured into “new wineskins,” or if we prefer old patches and refuse to let His newness and His joy in.

Salvador León