In this episode of The Rule of St. Benedict for Daily Life, Kris McGregor turns to St. Frances of Rome, a wife, mother, widow and Benedictine oblate whose holiness was formed not in withdrawal from responsibility, but in the middle of it. Frances lived amid family duties, illness, grief, service to the poor and the demands of household life. Yet prayer was not lost there. It was carried within those realities and gradually deepened through them.

Frances shows that ordinary duties are not outside the spiritual life. They can become the very place where love of God is tested and purified. Her famous insight, that a married woman may leave God at the altar to find Him in her domestic cares, does not diminish prayer. It reveals its fruit. What begins at the altar is meant to continue in charity, patience and fidelity toward the people already entrusted to us.

This witness fits naturally within the Benedictine way. The Holy Rule forms the heart through prayer, psalmody and the liturgical rhythm of the Church, so that even when life becomes interrupted, demanding or heavy, the soul can remain steadier within. Frances reminds us that holiness is not found only in set-apart moments. It is also found where duty and charity meet. This episode invites listeners to see that real life is not an obstacle to sanctity. It is often the very place where Christ waits to be loved faithfully.

St. Frances of Rome

“A married woman must leave God at the altar to find Him in her domestic cares.”

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’

1. Do I sometimes think my daily responsibilities keep me from prayer rather than offering a place to live it?
2. Where is God asking for my attention and love in the ordinary duties right in front of me?
3. How have interruptions, fatigue, or family responsibilities tested my fidelity?
4. In what ways can liturgical prayer and the rhythm of the Church continue shaping my heart even in busy seasons?
5. How is Christ inviting me to love Him more faithfully where duty and charity meet?

Copyright © 2026 Kris McGregor. All rights reserved. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, published, or transmitted in any form, including audio, print, or digital media, without prior written permission from Discerning Hearts®.

During this podcast, Deacon Keating will offer his insights on the mystery of this Good Friday.

Amidst the turmoil of the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020, this recording captured Deacon Keating’s profound insights.

Deacon James Keating:

“John is the one who gives us that famous line. It is finished. It is finished. What is finished? This creation, creation is finished. Everything after the crucifixion, the resurrection, everything after that is creation, a sort of groaning as Paul says, to catch up to what Jesus has already done, that perfect man, that perfection of God. And again, perfection is not as we understand it perhaps mathematically with no errors or faults, but scripturally, perfection is what Jesus said it was, be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. And then he contextualized that within the sense of welcoming your enemies, welcoming the other, welcoming those who are not you. And of course, that’s what Jesus was literally doing on the cross. He was welcoming those who were the enemy, who were not him, in other words, were against him, and this is what perfection is for the Christian.

On the cross, Jesus was the perfect man because he was the man who was forgiven, welcoming of the enemy, welcoming of the one who was literally killing him, and still not calling down his angels to destroy them, but actually welcoming the one who is killing into his own heart. As scripture says, “God has the sun shine on the good and the evil”, and that’s what Jesus was doing from the cross. He was saying, “You’re still welcome in me even as you’re killing me because I am love itself.”

And so as we meditate on Good Friday and on the crucifixion, we’re also meditating on our own dignity as Christians. We have, again, through the Holy Spirit, we have that spirit of perfection in us, the spirit of forgiveness, the spirit of welcoming those who are not ourselves. In other words, to no longer live as extensions of our egos, but to literally be hospitable to the other, even the other who would hurt us through the process of forgiveness.

Obviously, great mysteries here that the Holy Spirit must tutor us in real life. We can always think about them and write about them and speak about them, but when it comes to living them, we really need the incredible combustible power of the Holy Spirit moving our will to actually welcome the enemy and forgive those who are hurting us. But it’s all there on the Cross. The perfect man, the forgiven man, the man who is in perfect harmony with God, all of those things Jesus is trying to gift us with as well.”

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., is a professor of Spiritual Theology and serves as a spiritual director at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

Check out Deacon Keating’s “Discerning Heart” page

Msgr. John Esseff guides listeners through a meditation on the Passion of Jesus Christ, drawing upon The Passion of the Christ film and the Stations of the Cross to help internalize Christ’s suffering. He invites the listener to not merely recall Christ’s death as a historical event, but to see it as a present and deeply personal encounter—where one’s own experiences of false accusations, humiliation, abandonment, and physical or emotional pain can be united with Jesus on the Cross. Through the lens of suffering, he encourages the faithful to discover how their wounds, rejections, and even anger can become moments of profound communion with Christ.

The crucifixion is the ultimate revelation of divine love and mercy, extending to every person throughout all time. Jesus’ death was not just an act of redemption but also a call for each individual to carry their own cross in union with Him. Msgr. Esseff reflects on the power of the Cross to overcome evil, the importance of spiritual companions like Mary, Simon of Cyrene, and Veronica, and the intimate way in which Christ shares in all human suffering.

1. How have I experienced false accusation or rejection, and how might I unite that with Christ’s own Passion?
2. In what ways have I been invited to carry my own cross, and how have I responded to that call?
3. Who has been a Simon of Cyrene or a Veronica in my life, helping me bear suffering with compassion?
4. Have I ever felt abandoned by God, and how does Jesus’ cry from the Cross speak into that experience?
5. Do I allow Christ’s suffering and love on the Cross to transform the way I view my own pain and struggles?
6. How can I enter more deeply into the mystery of Good Friday and stay spiritually present with Jesus in the tomb?
7. In moments of humiliation or spiritual dryness, do I turn to Mary, my spiritual mother, for comfort?
8. How does the crucifixion reveal to me the depth of God’s mercy and love for every human person, including myself?
9. What part of the Passion narrative resonates most deeply with my current season of life?
10. Do I see my daily sacrifices and trials as opportunities to grow in union with Christ and participate in His redeeming love?

Msgr. John A. Esseff is a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Scranton. Msgr. Esseff served a retreat director and confessor to St. Teresa of Calcutta. He continues to offer direction and retreats for the sisters of the Missionaries of Charity around the world. Msgr. Esseff encountered St. Padre Pio, who would become a spiritual father to him. He has lived in areas around the world, serving in the Pontifical missions, a Catholic organization established by Pope St. John Paul II to bring the Good News to the world, especially to the poor. He continues to serve as a retreat leader and director to bishops, priests, sisters, seminarians, and other religious leaders around the world.