In today’s Gospel the Lord compares people to children in the street: some play the flute, and others do not dance; they sing something mournful, and those others do not weep. So too we sometimes respond neither to joy nor to pain, as if the heart were locked shut. And the wisdom of God, Christ says, is justified by all who have received it. Today we remember Longinus the Centurion, the Roman centurion who stood at the cross and pierced the side of the crucified Christ with a spear. He was a soldier accustomed to orders, yet it was he who saw in the suffering Savior the Son of God. His path—from harsh soldier to saint—reminds us that no armor is closed to grace. May this day bring you quiet joy and an open heart. May the Lord’s blessing be with you, dear ones, and peace in your soul.