All Shall Be Well

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Julian of Norwich, Spiritual Teacher, c. 1417

Today's Readings:
[ Wis 7:21-30; Ps 103:1-4, 13-18; Jn 14:8-11 ]

On the commemoration of Julian of Norwich, the Church remembers a woman who gazed deeply into the power of God and found there not terror, but love and mercy. In today’s Gospel reading, Philip asks Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied”. Jesus replies with gentle astonishment: “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father”.

Julian spent much of her life contemplating exactly this mystery. In Christ crucified and risen, she saw the very heart of God revealed, not wrathful or distant, but tender, compassionate, and endlessly patient. Her famous words, “All shall be well,” were not naïve optimism. They were born from suffering, illness, and the hard realities of life. Yet she trusted that beneath all things was the unshakable love of God.

The reading from Wisdom speaks of divine wisdom as “a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God”. Franciscan theology has long delighted in this vision of creation illuminated by divine goodness. St. Bonaventure taught that all creation bears the “footprints” of God, revealing something of the Creator’s beauty and love. Julian’s visions echo this Franciscan spirit. She once described seeing the whole universe as something small enough to fit in the palm of her hand, held in existence solely because God loves it.

Psalm 103 reminds us that “as a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him”. Julian would perhaps invite us even further, speaking boldly of Christ’s motherly tenderness and nurturing care. She understood that divine love is not abstract theology but intimate mercy.

In a world often marked by anxiety and harshness, Julian’s witness calls us to rest more deeply in Christ. To look upon Jesus is to see the Father’s heart and a mother's care. And what we find there is love stronger than fear, mercy deeper than sin, and grace that quietly holds all creation together.

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