The Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes
When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the Lord's name, she came to test him with hard questions. She came to Jerusalem with a very great caravan, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she had come to Solomon, she talked with him about all that was in her heart. Solomon answered all her questions. There wasn't anything hidden from the king which he didn't tell her. When the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food of his table, the sitting of his servants, the attendance of his officials, their clothing, his cup bearers, and his ascent by which he went up to the Lord's house, there was no more spirit in her. She said to the king, "It was a true report that I heard in my own land of your acts and of your wisdom. However, I didn't believe the words until I came and my eyes had seen it. Behold, not even half was told me! Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame which I heard. Happy are your men, happy are these your servants who stand continually before you, who hear your wisdom. Blessed is the Lord your God, who delighted in you, to set you on the throne of Israel. Because the Lord loved Israel forever, therefore he made you king, to do justice and righteousness." She gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again was there such an abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
Commit your way to the Lord. Trust also in him, and he will do this: he will make your righteousness shine out like light, and your justice as the noon day sun.
The mouth of the righteous talks of wisdom. His tongue speaks justice. The law of his God is in his heart. None of his steps shall slide.
But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord. He is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and rescues them. He rescues them from the wicked and saves them, because they have taken refuge in him.
He called all the multitude to himself and said to them, "Hear me, all of you, and understand. There is nothing from outside of the man that going into him can defile him; but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!"
When he had entered into a house away from the multitude, his disciples asked him about the parable. He said to them, "Are you also without understanding? Don't you perceive that whatever goes into the man from outside can't defile him, because it doesn't go into his heart, but into his stomach, then into the latrine, making all foods clean?" He said, "That which proceeds out of the man, that defiles the man. For from within, out of the hearts of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, sexual sins, murders, thefts, covetings, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile the man."
Today we celebrate Our Lady of Lourdes, honoring Mary's appearances to Saint Bernadette in 1858, where she revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception and established Lourdes as a place of healing and pilgrimage.
What strikes me most about these readings is how they both reveal the importance of looking deeper than surface appearances. The Queen of Sheba traveled great distances because she had heard reports about Solomon's wisdom, but she couldn't truly grasp it until she experienced it firsthand. "Not even half was told me," she exclaims after witnessing Solomon's court.
Jesus makes a similar point about looking beyond the obvious. The religious leaders of his time were obsessed with external ritual purity—what foods you ate, how you washed your hands. But Jesus redirects our attention inward: "What comes out of the man is what defiles him." He's not dismissing the importance of our actions, but reminding us that our hearts are where transformation begins.
This feels especially relevant in our image-obsessed culture. We're constantly managing how we appear to others—curating social media profiles, maintaining professional facades, even presenting polished versions of ourselves at church. But Jesus sees right through all of that to what's actually happening in our hearts.
What I find beautiful here is that this isn't meant to discourage us, but to free us. When we acknowledge the messy reality of our inner lives—those moments of envy, pride, or selfishness that we'd rather hide—we create space for God's grace to work. Like Mary at Lourdes, God meets us in our vulnerability and offers healing from the inside out.
How honest are we being with ourselves about what's really going on in our hearts? What would change if we focused more on cultivating inner virtue than managing our external image?