August 29, 2026 // Memorial of the Passion of Saint John the Baptist

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Mark 6:17-29

Reflect on the Word // 

My sister called to share that the date was set for her and my brother-in-law’s wedding, August 29th. Rolodexing through the Church’s liturgical calendar, I realized that their wedding would be on the Memorial of the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. Strange, I thought. 

Weeks later, our family was joking at the irony of this Memorial being a romantic day to get married. Suddenly, something came over my sister, and she stopped joking. Instead she stated, “Actually, it’s kind of perfect. It’s the day when we remember that someone was killed defending the dignity of marriage.” We all were rendered speechless.

John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, was martyred for the sake of defending the sanctity of marriage (see Mark 6:18). He died as “a voice crying out in the wilderness’” (John 1:23) that this Sacrament truly matters, that it really is an outward sign of the inward grace of God’s everlasting covenant with mankind. Marriage points to the nuptial reality proposed to each one of us by Christ, the Bridegroom of our souls. This reality is charged with fidelity, intimacy, and fruitfulness. 

In my family’s living room, I was moved to have witnessed a glimpse of the Lord forming my sister’s heart as she and her fiancé prepared for this Sacrament. I am grateful for Him forming my own heart: convinced that that reality awaits each one of us in the eternal communion of Heaven with the Triune God and convicted that it was being offered to me even at that moment as well. 

Today’s Memorial reminds us that the truth offered to us by Christ is our duty and privilege to proclaim to all those we encounter. This truth was worth John the Baptist risking punishment for speaking against Herod and Herodius’ infidelity. This truth is worth each one of us upholding and promoting today—whether it be by the witness of our lives or the witness of our deaths. 

Relate to the Lord // Whose marriage needs your prayers? Intercede for them today through the intercession of Saint John the Baptist, defender of the Sacrament of Matrimony.