October 31, 2025 // Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Luke 14:1-6

Reflect on the Word // 

It’s hard not to reflect on the recent tragedy that has befallen my community. This past summer, three celibate members of Opus Dei drowned in a terrible accident in Northern California. Six men had hiked out for a day on the river at a familiar spot for rock jumping and swimming. However, the conditions were worse than usual. Matthew Schoenecker, a seasoned diver, jumped first and realized quickly how brutal the current was and how cold the water. Before he could tell the others, cries of help rose from the water. Val Creus, another of the men, had jumped in. 

Without hesitation Matthew jumped back into the water after Val, and Matthew Anthony, another of the six, followed. They lived out the words of today’s Gospel without hesitation, “Who among you, if your son or ox fell into a cistern, would not immediately pull him out . . .” (Luke 14:5). This story could be told a million ways and with a million words, but, in short, the three men—Matthew, Val, and Matt, never resurfaced. They died that day in the water.* 

As members of Opus Dei, which is a group within the Catholic Church devoted to the sanctification of ordinary life, that day was lived no differently for them. Prayer, friendship, a hike, and a swim—ordinary things made extraordinary through the lens of prayer and sacrifice. A life lived close to Jesus in the Sacraments and in prayer allowed them to live, like Christ, for others. Perhaps this is exactly why both Matts jumped in after Val without hesitation. For they had put on Christ, and Christ truly lived within them. 

In our own small ways, we will find ourselves at the water’s edge today. Lord, how will You call me? What will You require of me? If we remain close to the heart of Jesus, we will surely hear His voice over the roar of the river. 

These beloved sons were recovered from those waters on a Saturday evening, after three days in the tomb of the river. Requiescite in pace, Matthew, Matt, and Val.

*For more about these men’s story see here and here.

Relate to the Lord // Pray for the repose of the souls of Matthew, Matt, and Val, as well as any loved ones you’ve lost: Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.