Daily Readings

August 8, 2025

Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest

Reading 1

Deuteronomy 4:32–40

Moses spoke to the people, saying “Ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him. Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you. And on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire. And because he loved your fathers and chose their offspring after them and brought you out of Egypt with his own presence, by his great power, driving out before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is this day, know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 77:12–13, 14–15, 16 and 21

Response: I remember the deeds of the Lord.

I remember the deeds of the Lord,

I remember your wonders of old;

I muse on all your works,

and ponder your mighty deeds.

Response: I remember the deeds of the Lord.

Your way, O God, is in the holy place.

What god is as great as our God?

You are the God who works wonders.

Among the peoples you showed your power.

Response: I remember the deeds of the Lord.

Your strong arm redeemed your people,

the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.

You guided your people like a flock

by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

Response: I remember the deeds of the Lord.

Alleluia

Matthew 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Gospel

Matthew 16:24–28

 At that time: Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Reflection

Speak of the need for stability. The disciples, who had given up everything to follow Jesus, have just been told he would die! Yet, he also spoke of his resurrection, but they did not pay attention to that. Each one was wondering, what does this mean to me? What will I do, where will I go, and how am I going to survive? That may be how you are feeling today. You might be worried about how you will live and survive. These things can be a real shock. Just the way the disciples were shocked, they had given up much more than you and I have given up. It is at that exact moment that Jesus told them that earthly riches would not profit them like heavenly riches. There is something of far greater value than worldly riches.

St Dominic Guzman Confessor (c.1170-1221)

The name Domingo (Spanish) means “I belong to God”. In time this founder of the great Order of Preachers (Dominicans) was to prove the truth of its meaning by the joy that radiated from his mystical union with God.

Dominic studied at Palencia and, in 1196, joined the Canons Regular (Augstinian Friars) at the Cathedral of Osma. He led a disciplined life of prayer and penance. In 1203, passing through southern France whilst on a trip to Denmark with Bishop Diego of Osma (whom he had succeeded as Prior), he was appalled at the confusion created in the minds of the faithful by the preaching of the Albigenses. The Albigenses—or Cathars, “the pure”—claimed to be Christians but held the heteredox belief that flesh and all matter was evil, that the spirit was of God, and that flesh and spirit were therefore in permanent conflict. Further, they denied the Incarnation and rejected the sacraments. That apart, the Albigenses lived in admirable personal austerity, inveighing continually against the worldliness and wealth of the Church and its Prelates.

Dominic rose to the occasion. He established a convent of nuns at Prouille with a group of women converted from the heresy, and with his group of friar-preachers, was welcomed into Toulouse by Bishop Foulques who established them as “diocesan preachers” in 1215. Subsequent to the Lenten sermons Dominic preached before Innocent III and his court, he was appointed Papal theologian, an office ever since held by a Dominican Priest.

Dominic was canonized in 1234.

Reflection: “A man who governs his passions is master of the world” (St Dominic).

Daily Readings

August 7, 2025

Thursday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Numbers 20:1–13

In those days: The people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there. Now there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarrelled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord! Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” And Moses took the staff from before the Lord, as he commanded him. Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarrelled with the Lord, and through them he showed himself holy.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 95:1–2, 6–7abc, 7d–9

Response: O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts.

Come, let us ring out our joy to the Lord;

hail the rock who saves us.

Let us come into his presence,

giving thanks; let us hail him with a song of praise.

Response: O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts.

O come; let us bow and bend low.

Let us kneel before the God who made us,

for he is our God and we the people

who belong to his pasture,

the flock that is led by his hand.

Response: O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts.

O that today you would listen to his voice!

“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,

as on that day at Massah in the desert

when your forebears put me to the test;

when they tried me, though they saw my work.

Response: O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts.

Alleluia

Matthew 16:18

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Gospel

Matthew 16:13–23

At that time: When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ. From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Reflection

In today’s gospel reading, Jesus’ real identity is revealed and proclaimed, for He was not only for the Jews, and his people, but for the whole of humanity. We also see Peter and his two personalities. At first, he shows great insight and perceptiveness. He calls Jesus “the Son of the Living God”. And Jesus responded by calling him the Rock on which his Church would be built. However, Peter reproaches Jesus for mentioning his impending suffering and death. Jesus makes a swift turnaround from praise to rebuke. He chastises Peter for being an obstacle to his mission. We reflect today on how we are like Peter in many ways. Like Peter, Jesus Christ, my saviour, has held out his hand to save me from drowning in sorrow, selfishness, anger, pride, greed, and even denying God’s existence.  This sense of the impossible becoming possible would not exist without the rock of my spiritual and physical Church community.

St Sixtus II and Companions  Pope and martyr, martyrs (- c.258)

One of the most violent persecutions faced by the Church was the one begun by Emperor Decius in 250 and continued by his successor, Valerian, whose first edict (257) forbade the believers to ever hold assemblies. Thus, incessantly hunted, Pope Sixtus II, who had succeeded Pope Stephen I in August 257, would meet with his clergy for the Eucharist in the catacombs (underground caverns which doubled as cemeteries). On 6 August 258 they were found in the cemetery of Praetextatus on the Appian Way. Sixtus, together with four of his deacons, Saints Januarius, Vincent, Magnus and Stephen were seized and beheaded. Another deacon, St Lawrence was martyred 4 days later. Sixtus was buried in the nearby cemetery of St Callistus.

Persecution apart, in the first and only year of his pontificate, he was faced with a controversy about the validity of Baptism by heretics. He shared the view of the North African bishops who, under St Cyprian, denied recognition of such baptism. However, apparently influenced by Dynosius of Alexandria, he adopted a tolerant attitude as regards the divergent rebaptism policies of the Eastern Churches, even going to the extent of deputing envoys to discuss the matter with Cyprian at Carthage.

The most highly venerated pope martyred after St Peter, St Sixtus II is commemorated in the Roman Canon of the Mass.

Reflection: “Pray that we may think of immortality rather than death. . . . We know that soldiers of Christ are properly not killed, but crowned” (St Cyprian).

Daily Readings

August 6, 2025, Wednesday

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

Reading 1

Daniel 7:9–10, 13–14

“As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened. I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 97:1–2, 5–6, 9

Response: The Lord is king, most high above all the earth.

The Lord is king, let earth rejoice;

let the many islands be glad.

Cloud and darkness surround him;

justice and right are the foundation of his throne.

Response: The Lord is king, most high above all the earth.

The mountains melt like wax

before the face of the Lord,

before the face of the Lord of all the earth.

The skies proclaim his justice;

all peoples see his glory.

Response: The Lord is king, most high above all the earth.

For you indeed are the Lord,

most high above all the earth,

exalted far above all gods.

Response: The Lord is king, most high above all the earth.

Reading 2

2 Peter 1:16–19

Beloved: We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honour and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased”, we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Alleluia

Matthew 17:5c

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Luke 9:29b-36

At that time: Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”– not knowing what he said. As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!” And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

Reflection

How does today’s Gospel touch our lives? The disciples’ experience of Jesus’ transfiguration was an invitation for them to transform themselves too. The goal of our life is to be one with God. How is that transformation to take place? “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!” By listening to Jesus and living by his teachings in life. By integrating his will into my vision of life even if it is hard. It means having total trust in walking his way, which will bring me into full union with God, the source of all Truth, Love, Happiness, and Peace. Today’s Gospel reveals a paradox of our Christian faith: we belong here and we do not belong here. We are to find God in this world, but this is not our permanent home. We are pilgrims on a journey to a place of total union with our God of Truth and Love. However, it is easy to get obsessed with things on the way, but life goes on and it is important to know where it is headed.

The Transfiguration of Our Lord

While living among his disciples, Jesus had often spoken to them of his kingdom, and of his second coming in glory—the parousia at end-time. But, about a year before his passion, in order to strengthen them in their faith in the kingdom and of his glory therein, he gave them a wonderful vision, an experience that was to prepare them the better for what was to come.

He took three of his closest disciples, Peter, James and John atop a high mountain—traditionally referred to as Mount Tabor in Galilee, which is some 2000 ft above Lake Tiberias. There they saw him suddenly transfigured, i.e., his face brilliantly illuminated sun-like and his clothes dazzling a glistening white, while in conversation with him appeared Moses and Elijah.

The Transfiguration was thus a turning point in which Jesus was not only seen revealed firsthand as the long-awaited Messiah, but was acknowledged as the beloved and only begotten Son of God by the Father. For Peter, James and John, it was a foretaste of the very essence of his redemptive work that would translate itself into the Resurrection, the basis of which is suffering and death. Indeed, the transfiguration prefigures the everlasting enthronement of Christ. It is this glorification that the Church celebrates today.

Reflection: “It is indeed good to be here, as you have said, Peter. It is good to be with Jesus and to remain here forever. What greater happiness or higher honour could we have than to be with God, and to be made like him and to live in his light?” (Bishop Athanasius of Sinai)

Daily Readings

August 5, 2025

Tuesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Numbers 12:1–13

In those days: Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman. And they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it. Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all people who were on the face of the earth. And suddenly the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” And the three of them came out. And the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward. And he said, “Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them, and he departed. When the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous, like snow. And Aaron turned towards Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. Let her not be as one dead, whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother’s womb.” And Moses cried to the Lord, “O God, please heal her – please.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 51:3–4, 5–6ab, 6cd–7, 12–13

Response: Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Have mercy on me, O God,

according to your merciful love;

according to your great compassion,

blot out my transgressions.

Wash me completely from my iniquity,

and cleanse me from my sin.

Response: Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

My transgressions, truly I know them;

my sin is always before me.

Against you, you alone, have I sinned;

what is evil in your sight I have done.

Response: Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

So you are just in your sentence,

without reproach in your judgment.

O see, in guilt I was born,

a sinner when my mother conceived me.

Response: Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Create a pure heart for me, O God;

renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me away from your presence;

take not your holy spirit from me.

Response: Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Alleluia

John 1:49b

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!

Gospel

Matthew 14:22–36

[After the crowd ate and were satisfied,] Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent word around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.

Reflection

In the struggles and complexities of life, it seems natural for Christians to seek signs of God’s will and His presence. Yet the true Christian challenge is to believe in the presence of God precisely when it is least discernible. Peter’s challenge to Christ came not from a strong (even if impetuous) faith in Jesus, but from the sad reality of “little faith.”  The Christian cannot walk on water and is not meant to do so. But God does empower every disciple to believe against the odds, to face the struggles, and to mature and grow in faith in the process. The essence of Christian life is not signs but faith. The desire for signs does not originate from God. Yet it is precisely from instances of “little faith” that Jesus is prepared to “reach out his hand and catch” the waverer. On the Christian journey, Jesus invites disciples to follow. In this incident, Peter took the initiative, and Jesus accepted his challenge to underline for Peter, and for all subsequent believers, the meaning of deep faith.

Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major

Theological debate over Christ’s dual nature as God and man turned into dissent in Constantinople in the early 5th century with Bishop Nestorius and his chaplain, Athanasius preaching against the title Theotokos, i.e., “Mother of God”, insisting that Mary was merely the mother of the human Jesus. The Council of Ephesus in 431, however, reaffirmed Mary’s title as Mother of God. In commemoration, Pope Sixtus III (432-440) rebuilt the Liberian Basilica in Rome and dedicated it to Saint Mary Major.

Built atop the Esquiline, one of the seven hills of Rome, it is one of the four Patriarchal Cathedrals commemorating the first centres of the Church, Saint John Lateran representing Rome, the See of Peter, Saint Paul Outside the Walls, the See of Alexandria, and Saint Peter’s, the See of Constantinople being the other three. Saint Mary Major, representing the See of Antioch is the largest Church in Christendom honouring God through Mary. Legend has it that this magnificent Basilica, originally built by Pope Liberias (352-366), was the result of a dream of a wealthy though childless Roman couple, desirous of pledging their entire fortune to the Mother of God. Her approval of their vow was indicated by a sudden midsummer snowfall one night in August 355 and in an apparition instructing them to build a church at the spot, an identical dream of the Pope corroborating the same.

It was Pope Pius V, who lies buried in the Basilica, that extended this feast to the Universal Church.

Reflection: “I encourage you, be men and women of deep and abiding faith…. Let the Good News of Christ radiate from your hearts, and the peace he alone gives remain forever in your souls” (Pope Saint John Paul II).  

Daily Readings

August 4, 2025, Monday

Memorial of Saint John Vianney, Priest

Reading 1

Numbers 11:4b–15

In those days: The people of Israel wept and said, “Oh that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.” Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it and ground it in hand mills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it. Moses heard the people weeping throughout their clans, each one at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favour in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a sucking child,’ to the land that you swore to give their fathers? Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favour in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 81:12–17 

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

My people did not heed my voice,

and Israel would not obey me.

So I left them

in their stubbornness of heart,

to follow their own designs.

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

O that my people would heed me,

that Israel would walk in my ways!

At once I would subdue their foes,

turn my hand against their enemies. 

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

Those who hate the Lord

would cringe before him,

and their subjection would last forever.

But Israel I would feed with finest wheat,

and satisfy with honey from the rock.”

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

Alleluia

Matthew 4:4

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Gospel

Matthew 14:13–21

At that time: When Jesus heard [of the death of John the Baptist], he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick. Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.” Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Reflection

Isn’t there some way each of us might feed someone, too? Maybe it’s that co-worker you know who needs some encouragement. Maybe it’s a neighbour who’s having a hard time. Maybe it’s something around the community – helping with Sunday school, sharing a meal, starting a new small group of your own for charity. Let’s not pretend we aren’t capable or qualified or called, even, to respond to the needs of those around us. Let’s hear Jesus’ command to give the world something to eat. And let’s realise that we have all we need to make that happen – that because of God’s love for us, we are called and are capable of doing the work of Christ in and for the sake of the world.

Saint John-Baptist Marie Vianney

Born in the fanatically anti-clerical and irreligious age of the French Revolution, Jean-Baptiste Marie grew up an unlettered farmhand and made his First Communion at 13. As such, he encountered great difficulties in his studies for the priesthood and only his sterling character and spiritual depth, backed by the special intervention of his Pastor, finally procured for him his ordination in 1815.

Assigning him to the obscure village of Ars near Lyons, the Vicar General told him: “There is not much love of God in that parish. You will enkindle it!” In fact, the villagers and farmers were living in a state of acute spiritual and moral neglect. Vianney set about working quietly among them, particularly the poor and sick, spending many hours daily before the Blessed Sacrament, pleading for the conversion of his flock.

His chiefest and most successful labour involved spending 14 to 18 hours daily in the Confessional. So many were miraculously healed, Ars itself being morally and spiritually transformed within a few years that the people, consisting of the well and the sick, among them Cardinals and Bishops (usually incognito), besides priests, religious and lay people from every conceiveable walk of life from all parts of Europe and even America with their problems, in 20 years, totalled over 2 million! To care for them all, the Cure was dispensed by his Bishop from attending the annual Priests’ retreat.

Toward the end of his life he was made honorary Canon of Lyons, and the French government knighted him with the Légion d'honneur, though of course he cared nothing for such accolades.

He was canonized in 1925.

Reflection: “Anything we do without offering it to God, is wasted” (Saint John Baptist Marie Vianney).

Daily Readings

August 3, 2025

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Ecclesiastes (1:2; 2:21-23)

Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. Sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (90)

Response: O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.

You turn man back to dust, and say, “Return, O children of men.” To your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, come and gone, or like a watch in the night.

Response: O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.

You sweep them away like a dream, like grass which is fresh in the morning. In the morning it sprouts and is fresh; by evening it withers and fades.

Response: O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.

Then teach us to number our days, that we may gain wisdom of heart. Turn back, O LORD! How long? Show pity to your servants.

Response: O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.

At dawn, fill us with your merciful love; we shall exult and rejoice all our days. Let the favour of the LORD our God be upon us; give success to the work of our hands. O give success to the work of our hands.

Response: O Lord, you have been our refuge, from generation to generation.

Reading 2

Colossians (3:1-5, 9-11)

Brethren, if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

ACCLAMATION

Alleluia. Alleluia.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Alleluia. (Mt 5:3)

GOSPEL

Luke (12:13-21)

At that time, someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of one’s possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich towards God.”

Reflection

The overall theme of today’s liturgy of the Word is that without God all human actions turn to futility. It is true that what we produce through years of hard work cannot all be enjoyed by us. It is also true that human life is full of pain and suffering and our minds are not always at peace. But a God-fearing person can find meaning in all these. Qoheleth urges us to fear God and obey him. Only when God is taken into account and his will observed does life impart purpose and satisfaction.

The parable of the rich fool centers around a man with a very productive land. The issue with the rich farmer is that due to a bumper crop, he has insufficient storage room for his harvest. Rather than building additional barns and thus taking up land that might otherwise be used for agricultural production in subsequent years, he elects to tear down his current storage facilities in order to make room for larger ones. The intention of farmer becomes clear: he is going to hoard his produce and release it to the market when the prices are high.

Having made plans to resolve his problems, the man concludes that he can now live in total leisure and self-indulgence. Jesus has contempt for his selfish attitude of taking one’s ease, eating, drinking, and making merry. His future perspective is entirely self-centred and selfindulgent. The man’s mistake is that he has laid up treasure for himself alone. He has morally mismanaged his wealth, giving no thought to the needs of others or thanking God. The man mistakenly thinks that he is only responsible for himself. The comfort that allows the man to focus on himself is the product of greed.

Ironically, the years of ease this man eagerly anticipates are unexpectedly cut short by the one who has authority over his life. He did not fulfil his moral responsibility before God to care for the needs of others. Now God issues a rebuke and takes action: he calls the man a fool and requires his soul. God rejects his covetousness. All the benefits of self-directed planning and labour come crashing down by God’s command. God demands an account of the man’s mortal soul and his grain and wealth cannot pay his debt.

Jesus applies the parable by noting that this is the fate of all who store up treasure for themselves but are not rich towards God. The parable does not condemn planning or wealth per se. Rather, Jesus’ complaint is against the person who takes wealth and directs it totally towards one’s self. The message of the parable is simple. The amassing of a superabundance of material possessions for the sake of the good life becomes the height of folly in the light of the responsibility of life itself and the assessment of it which will take place once it is over.

Covetousness is the desire to have more than one actually needs. It not only leads to strife; it also expresses a fundamentally wrong attitude to life, according to which possessions are all that really matter. Thus the rich farmer is a fool, a godless and therefore senseless person.

(Source: The Sunday Liturgy)

St Waltheof Confessor (-1160)

St Waltheof was the 2nd son of Simon, Earl of Huntingdon and Matilda or Maud, niece of William the Conqueror. In his childhood days, while his elder brother Simon liked to build castles and play at soldiers, Waltheof took great delight in building churches and monasteries of stone and wood. Not surprisingly, when Waltheof grew up, he felt strongly inclined to the religious life.

After the death of his father, his mother Maud was given in marriage by King Henry I to St David I, King of Scotland. Following his mother to Scotland, Waltheof formed an intimate friendship with St Aelred who was then master of the royal household there.

Deciding to be a religious, he left Scotland and joined the Canons of St Augustine at Nostell. Not long after he was made Prior of Kirham. But desirous of a stricter way of life, and encouraged by the advice of his friend Aelred, then Abbot of Rievaul, he joined the Cistercian monks. Within barely four years of his profession, he was chosen Abbot of Melrose. When, in 1154, he was nominated archbishop of Saint Andrews, he sought the help of St Aelred in declining the office.

St Waltheof died at an advanced age on 3 August 1160. Miracles at his tomb led to his incorrupt body being transferred to a new marble sarcophagus in 1171, and once again in 1240 to the east part of the chapter house.

Reflection: “What will this avail me to eternal life?” (St Waltheof).

Daily Readings

August 2, 2025

Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Leviticus 25:1, 8–17

The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, “You shall count seven weeks of years, seven times seven years, so that the time of the seven weeks of years shall give you forty-nine years. Then you shall sound the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of itself nor gather the grapes from the undressed vines. For it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you. You may eat the produce of the field. “In this year of jubilee each of you shall return to his property. And if you make a sale to your neighbour or buy from your neighbour, you shall not wrong one another. You shall pay your neighbour according to the number of years after the jubilee, and he shall sell to you according to the number of years for crops. If the years are many, you shall increase the price, and if the years are few, you shall reduce the price, for it is the number of the crops that he is selling to you. You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the Lord your God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 67:2–3, 5, 7–8

Response: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!

O God, be gracious and bless us

and let your face shed its light upon us.

So will your ways be known upon earth

and all nations learn your salvation.

Response: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!

Let the nations be glad and shout for joy,

with uprightness you rule the peoples;

you guide the nations on earth.

Response: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!

The earth has yielded its fruit

for God, our God, has blessed us.

May God still give us his blessing

that all the ends of the earth may revere him.

Response: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!

Alleluia

Matthew 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Gospel

Matthew 14:1–12

At that time, Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet. But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.

Reflection

When King Herod heard of Jesus, he thought that John had been raised from the dead. Why was he thinking of John? Because he was the one responsible for John’s undeserved death; the injustice that he did to John was perpetually bothering him. That is why on learning of the reputation of Jesus, he became so fearful, imagining that Jesus was John came back to life. The wrongs that we’ve done in the past would hang around our neck like an albatross. We would be reminded of it now and then unless we take positive action to be healed of it. Let us avoid doing anything that would hurt anyone, let us always do good and be humble and peaceful. And if we ever offend or hurt the feelings of someone we must not do it again, but confess our sins and make restitution for the same.

Saint Peter Julian Eymard Priest, Founder (1811-1868)

Early on in life, Pierre-Julien Eymard had a strong devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. However, weak health and paternal opposition were initial obstacles to his priestly vocation.

Eventually ordained Priest in 1834, he served in a parish at Grenoble until 1839 when his undying devotion to Mary led him to join the Marist Fathers, a congregation he served as spiritual director of its junior seminary at Belley and as rector of the College of La Seine-sur-Mer. He organized the Third Order of Mary and, in 1845, was named provincial superior at Lyons. A powerful preacher of Eucharistic devotions, his own Eucharistic spirituality began to mature and evolve to a new level, whereby, captivated by the love of God as manifested in Christ’s gift of himself in the Eucharist, he sought to form within the Marists a group specifically dedicated to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. However, with no scope in evidence for such activity within the Marian apostolate he obtained permission to leave the Marists and, in 1856, founded the Blessed Sacrament Fathers in Paris and was their Superior General for the rest of his life.

In 1858, in collaboration with Margurite Guillot, Eymard founded the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, a cloistered contemplative congregation for women, with perpetual exposition and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament as its aim. He also founded the Priests’ Eucharistic League and the Blessed Sacrament Confraternity. He was canonized in 1962.

Reflection: “If one wants to, he can receive daily Jesus-Host, the Son of Mary, the blessed fruit of her womb. Jesus enters into the soul that is free from sin and rests there as in a new crib; he unites himself with us in a physical and spiritual union, permanent and transforming” (Blessed James Alberione).

Daily Readings

August 1, 2025, Friday

Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Reading 1

Leviticus 23:1, 4–11, 15–16, 27, 34b–37

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight, is the Lord’s Passover. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. But you shall present a food offering to the Lord for seven days. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work.” And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest, and he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the Lord. Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the Lord. On the fifteenth day of this seventh month and for seven days is the Feast of Booths to the Lord. On the first day shall be a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. For seven days you shall present food offerings to the Lord. On the eighth day you shall hold a holy convocation and present a food offering to the Lord. It is a solemn assembly; you shall not do any ordinary work. These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim as times of holy convocation, for presenting to the Lord food offerings, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 81:3–4, 5–6ab, 10–11ab

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

Raise a song and sound the timbrel,

the sweet-sounding harp and the lute;

blow the trumpet at the new moon,

when the moon is full, on our feast.

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

For this is a statute in Israel,

a command of the God of Jacob.

He made it a decree for Joseph,

when he went out from the land of Egypt.

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

Let there be no strange god among you,

nor shall you worship a foreign god.

I am the Lord your God,

who brought you up from the land of Egypt.

Response: Sing joyfully to God our strength.

Alleluia

1 Peter 1:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The word of the Lord remains for ever; and this word is the good news that was preached to you.

Gospel

Matthew 13:54–58

At that time: Coming to his home town Jesus taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offence at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honour except in his home town and in his own household.” And he did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.

Reflection

The people who listened to Jesus thought that they knew him. They made the mistake of thinking that they knew everything there was worth knowing about him; he was too familiar to them, and that led to prejudiced ideas about him; they had him all summed up and were ready with their conclusions. In bringing our lives before God, we ask God to enlighten us, to help us look at our situations afresh and to be open to Him rather than making our conclusions. When we come to conclusions out of our prejudices, it may be difficult to go forward.

Saint Alphonsus De Liguori Bishop Confessor, Doctor of the Church (1696 - 1787)

As a boy, Alphonsus, the eldest of a family of seven children, annually made a retreat with his father. He obtained a doctorate in law at 16 but gave up his highly successful practice at 27, seeking God’s will in prayer and works of charity. Ordained priest in 1726, he founded the Redemptorists [Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer] in 1732 and travelled about Naples (Italy), gaining numerous conversions through his “Mission” apostolate, emphasizing that “the most perfect charity consists in being zealous about our neighbour’s spiritual good.”

After 1752 he devoted himself so zealously and effectively to writing as to become known as the “Prince of Moral Theologians”, his remarkable devotion to Our Lady and the Blessed Sacrament spurring him to compose such significant dogmatic and ascetical works as The Glories of Mary, The Way of Salvation and The True Spouse of Christ to name but a few. Alphonsus particularly favoured short, affective petitions and acts of love, emphasizing that “he who prays is saved; he who does not pray is damned.”

Weakened by severe austerities Alphonsus fell victim to a severe attack of gout and rheumatic fever which left him partially paralysed to the day of his death. It was only at 79, however, did the Pope agree to relieve him of his episcopal duties.

The first and only professional “Moral Theologian” to have been canonized [1839], Saint Alphonsus, the patron of Confessors and of Moral theologians, was declared Doctor of the Church in 1871.

Reflection: “Whoever desires the fruit must go to the tree; whoever desires Jesus must go to Mary: and whoever finds Mary will most certainly find Jesus” (Saint Alphonsus de Liguori).

Daily Readings

July 31, 2025, Thursday

Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest

Reading 1

Exodus 40:16–21, 34–38

In those days: Moses did according to all that the Lord commanded him. In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected. Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars. And he spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent over it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He took the testimony and put it into the ark, and put the poles on the ark and set the mercy seat above on the ark. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle and set up the veil of the screen, and screened the ark of the testimony, as the Lord had commanded Moses. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 84:3, 4, 5–6a, and 8a, 11

Response: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.

My soul is longing and yearning

for the courts of the Lord.

My heart and my flesh cry out

to the living God.

Response: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.

Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself

in which she sets her young, at your altars,

O Lord of hosts, my king and my God.

Response: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.

Blessed are they who dwell in your house,

forever singing your praise.

Blessed the people whose strength is in you,

they walk with ever-growing strength.

Response: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.

One day within your courts

is better than a thousand elsewhere.

The threshold of the house of God

I prefer to the dwellings of the wicked.

Response: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts.

Alleluia

See Acts 16:14b

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Open our hearts, O Lord, that we may pay attention to the words of your Son..

Gospel

Matthew 13:47–53

At that time: Jesus said to the crowds, “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. “Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there.

Reflection

We commemorate today Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus. His motto was the Magis, ‘For the greater Glory of God.’ Life is meant to aim at the higher realities that take us to new horizons. Jesus in today’s gospel forms a platform from which we can look at life and live for the greater glory of God. He compares the kingdom of God with a dragnet which attracts all kinds of sea species. Through this parable, he points out the fact that there will be a final judgment for all of us. Therefore, we must look at our lives seriously. We need to take responsibility for our actions. Our present life will lay the foundation for the life to come.

Saint Ignatius de Loyola Confessor (1491-1556)

Baptized Inigo, Ignatius was the last of the 11 children of parents of noble descent in northern Spain. During a long convalescence following a serious injury sustained in the siege of Pamplona, he read the life of Christ and a book of Saints’ lives which made him realize the hollowness and futility of his own. “If the Saints could do this, why not I?” he asked himself.

After his recovery he spent a year in solitude at Manresa, searching for God’s will, and then made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He was already 33 when he took up the study of Latin among the schoolboys of Barcelona, and later devoted 11 years to philosophy and theology, at various Universities. At Paris, when doing his Master’s [1535], he was able to attract six young men to his life of mortification, poverty and spiritual exercises, among them Saints Peter Faber and Francis Xavier.

The “Jesuits”, as they came to be popularly called, grew rapidly in number and fervor and were soon conspicuous in all the towns of Italy, caring for the poor and the sick, preaching in the streets, explaining Catholic truths in simple, direct language, and encouraging the frequent reception of the sacraments. At Ignatius’ death the 16 year-old Society already counted about 1,000 members and over 100 houses.

Ignatius, an implacable foe of Protestantism, died in 1556, was beatified in 1609, canonized in 1622 and declared Patron of Spiritual Exercises and Retreats in 1922.

Reflection: “The more desperate, things seem, the more we must hope in God. When man’s aid fails, God’s is close at hand” (Saint Ignatius de Loyola).

Daily Readings

July 30, 2025

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Exodus 34:29–35

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. Afterwards all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. Whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 99:5, 6, 7, 9 

Response: You are holy, O Lord our God.

Exalt the Lord our God;

bow down before his footstool.

Holy is he!

Response: You are holy, O Lord our God.

Among his priests were Aaron and Moses;

among those who invoked his name was Samuel.

They cried out to the Lord and he answered.

Response: You are holy, O Lord our God.

To them he spoke in the pillar of cloud.

They obeyed his decrees and the statutes

which he had given them.

Response: You are holy, O Lord our God.

Exalt the Lord our God;

bow down before his holy mountain,

for the Lord our God is holy.

Response: You are holy, O Lord our God.

Alleluia

John 15:15b

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

I have called you friends, says the Lord; for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

Gospel

Matthew 13:44–46

At that time: Jesus said to the crowds, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

Reflection

Jesus continues to explain the truths of the kingdom of God by using life-changing parables. He compares the kingdom of God with the precious pearl and the treasure in the field. The parable of the treasure in the field teaches us that the kingdom of God is our right and it comes with a great price. The parable of the precious pearl teaches us that we need to set right our priorities in life. We are inheritors of the kingdom of God. How worthy are we to stake claim to it? Let us seek what is everlasting and thus cherish eternal life.

Saint Peter Chrysologus Bishop Confessor, Doctor of the Church (c.380-450)

In the 5th century, the capital of the Holy Roman Empire in the West was Ravenna, not Rome. And one of the most distinguished archbishops the See of Ravenna had was Saint Peter Chrysologus whose flair for preaching, a firm determination and fierce loyalty to the Church not only in terms of its teaching but its authority as well, stood him in good stead in the face of rampant pagan abuses, including the monophysitism of Eutyches.

A native of Imola, Italy and a product of its education, Peter became bishop when he was only a deacon. He shepherded Ravenna with rare zeal, urging his flock to partake of the Eucharist more frequently. Speaking against the riotous New Year celebrations, he coined his now famous quote: “He who amuses himself with Satan cannot rejoice with Christ!”

His writings and sermons, some 176 of which are extant [as is the mosaic covered cathedral he erected in Ravenna], contain no great originality of thought, yet are sound in doctrine and full of moral applications for daily living. His attitude towards learning gave substance to his exhortations and changed those who heard him, and, in time, he came to be called “Chrysologus”, i.e., “Golden Worded”.

Saint Peter Chrysologus died on 2 December 450, the authenticity of content in his sermons earning  him the title of Doctor of the Church in 1729.

Reflection: “Clothe yourself with the garment of sanctity, gird yourself with the cincture of chastity; let Christ be the covering of your head; let the Cross of Christ be the protection for your face; instil in your breast the sacrament of divine wisdom, let the odour of your prayers always ascend upon high” (Saint Peter Chrysologus).

Daily Readings

July 29, 2025

Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus

Reading I

1 John 4:7-16

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 34:2–3, 6–7, 8–9, 14–15, 16–17, 18–19

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

I will bless the Lord at all times;

praise of him is always in my mouth.

In the Lord my soul shall make its boast;

the humble shall hear and be glad.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

Look toward him and be radiant;

let your faces not be abashed.

This lowly one called; the Lord heard,

and rescued him from all his distress.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

The angel of the Lord is encamped

around those who fear him, to rescue them.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

Blessed the man who seeks refuge in him.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

Guard your tongue from evil,

and your lips from speaking deceit.

Turn aside from evil and do good.

Seek after peace, and pursue it.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

The Lord turns his eyes to the just,

and his ears are open to their cry.

The Lord turns his face against the wicked

to destroy their remembrance from the earth.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

When the just cry out, the Lord hears,

and rescues them in all their distress.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;

those whose spirit is crushed he will save.

Response: Look toward him and be radiant.

Alleluia

John 8:12

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.
 

Gospel

John 11:19–27

At that time: Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

Reflection

he three friends of Jesus, namely, Martha, her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus reveal their beautiful human characteristics: Lazarus becomes the instrument of strengthening the faith of Martha. As Jesus resuscitates him, Martha’s faith is deepened. Martha expresses her faith statement thus: “Yes Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the son of God, who is coming into the world.” Mary becomes the epitome of discipleship because she chose the right place to remain seated at the feet of Jesus and listen to him. Let us imbibe and imitate the fine qualities of these three friends of Jesus. The more we understand the role of these three people the better will our lives be.     

Saint Martha of Bethany Virgin (- c.84)

Among Jesus’ closest friends, at whose home he delighted in being a guest were the two Bethany sisters, Martha and Mary, and their brother Lazarus. John says, “Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus” (11:5) - it was with them that he spent the last few days before the Passion. The Church today honours Martha.

Martha, presumably the eldest, was ever “busy about much serving”, anxious as ever about her guest’s comfort. She has thus become the prototype of the activist Christian who seeks cooperation even in terms of hospitality, that oldest of Christian virtues, while Mary has come to be regarded as the symbol of the contemplative life. Yet, Martha was obviously also a woman of deep faith with unbounded trust in the Lord’s divine power— “If you had been here, Lord, my brother would not have died! But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask of him” (Jn 11:21-22).

It was to Martha that Jesus declared: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die”—words uttered at every Christian burial. Her counter-declaration, however, is a classic example of a thriving faith: “Yes Lord! I do believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who was to come into the world” (Jn 11:25-27).

Reflection: “The essential is certainly that, in the world as it is, the Lord’s disciples should be channels of God’s salvific action, by being ceaselessly purified, enlightened and comforted by frequently approaching the God of tenderness and pity” (Pope Saint John Paul II).

Daily Readings

July 28, 2025

Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 401

Reading 1

Exodus 32:15-24, 30-34

In those days: Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides; on the front and on the back they were written. The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.” But he said, “It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear.” And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses’ anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. He took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the people of Israel drink it. And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought such a great sin upon them?” And Aaron said, “Let not the anger of my lord burn hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil. For they said to me, ‘Make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ So I said to them, ‘Let any who have gold take it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.” The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold. But now, if you will forgive their sin – but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” But the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book. But now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 106:19–20, 21–22, 23

Response: O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.

They fashioned a calf at Horeb,

and worshiped an image of metal;

they exchanged their glory

for the image of a bull that eats grass. 

Response: O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.

They forgot the God who was their saviour,

who had done such great things in Egypt,

such wonders in the land of Ham, such marvels at the Red Sea. 

Response: O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.

For this he said he would destroy them,

but Moses, the man he had chosen,

stood in the breach before him,

to turn back his anger from destruction. 

Response: O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

Gospel

Matthew 13:31–35

At that time: Jesus put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.” All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.

Reflection

Shared from Daily Liturgy

Jul 28, Mon

The purpose of teaching with the help of parables is to explain the eternal truths through the visible realities. Parables or stories point to something which we may not be able to grasp with our limited knowledge. It therefore unfolds the mystery of life by showing concrete, day-to-day examples. The parables of the ‘mustard seed’ and the ‘leaven’ teach us that the kingdom of God will grow taller and wider gradually. It will grow taller because it aims upward and it will widen because it caters to the needs of everyone without discriminating based on caste, class, colour and creed. We must realize that we are the characters appearing in the parables and it is through us that the kingdom of God will grow taller and wider.

Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception Virgin (1910–1946)

As a child, Alphonsa, baptized Anna, was so fascinated by the life of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux that she set herself the twin-objective of becoming a “nun” and a “saint” through prayer and penance. Resolved never to marry, Anna planned to disfigure herself by putting her foot into a big fire so as to foil the marriage plans an aunt who had brought her up since the untimely death of her mother had for her. But she accidentally slipped and fell right into the fire! Her recovery from the resultant burns was followed by due assent from her aunt to fulfil her dream!

Anna joined the Clarist Convent in Bharananganam as a postulant in 1928, taking the name Alphonsa, received the habit in the year 1930, entered the “novitiate” in 1935, and took her vows in 1936. Illness and misunderstandings dogging her life and formation, her virtues of steadfastness, concern and patience stood her in good stead. When her superiors suggested that she should pray for permanent relief from her ailments, she answered: “I am ready to suffer not only this but anything. ….. Let the Lord do with me as he wills, trampling over, wounding or piercing me, a humble sacrificial offering for the sake of … priests and religious who are growing less fervent in their spiritual life.”

Alphonsa died just three weeks before her 36th birthday [1946] and was canonized in 2008.

Reflection: “By your most cruel death give me lively faith, a firm hope and perfect charity, so that I may love you with all my heart and all my soul and all my strength.” (Saint Clare)

Daily Readings

July 27, 2025

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis (18:20-32)

In those days the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the LORD, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find fortyfive there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the LORD. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the LORD be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (138)

Response: On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

I thank you, LORD, with all my heart; you have heard the words of my mouth. In the presence of the angels I praise you. I bow down towards your holy temple.

Response: On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

I give thanks to your name for your merciful love and your faithfulness. You have exalted your name over all. On the day I called, you answered me; you increased the strength of my soul.

Response: On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

The LORD is high, yet he looks on the lowly, and the haughty he knows from afar. You give me life though I walk amid affliction; you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes.

Response: On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

With your right hand you save me; the LORD will accomplish this for me. O LORD, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.

Response: On the day I called, you answered me, O Lord.

Reading 2

Colossians (2:12-14)

Brethren, “Having been buried with Christ in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by cancelling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

ACCLAMATION

Alleluia. Alleluia.

(See Rom 8:15bc)

You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” Alleluia.

GOSPEL

Luke (11:1-13)

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.” And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Reflection

Abraham is a person who is privy to God’s secrets and one who prays for his people. Abraham prays not just for his own people but also for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. God willingly hears the pleas of Abraham but the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah are unpardonable and Abraham realizes it. Here we have the lesson that sin invites punishment and yet praying for remission is the only way. In the Second Reading Paul compares the pagan past of the Colossians with their present state. They were once separated from God on account of their sins. But now because of the death of Christ God has made them alive in Christ. He has graciously forgiven their sins and therefore the cause of spiritual death has been done away with. After having taught his disciples how to pray and having given them what we call the Lord’s prayer, Jesus goes on to tell the parable the persistent friend. The parable’s background is that in the first-century Palestine, food was not as readily available as it is today. There were no evening shops, and bread was baked each day to meet the day’s needs. The host in this parable faces a real problem: he has a late-night visitor and he has no food to offer him. The man has the chance of going to a neighbour who might have the bread but is probably asleep. If the host calls on the neighbour, then the neighbour would be under obligation to respond for that was the accepted custom those days. The risk involved in such a case was that by waking the master of the house one would wake everyone else because the ancient house was basically a one-room affair. When he arrives at the door of the neighbour, he notes that the door remains closed; the family has retired for the evening. Besides, the children are asleep with him in bed. Getting up will wake the children – a great inconvenience! The hesitation that the neibhbour expresses is not so much a lack of ability to provide the food but an unwillingness to do so because of the chaos it would cause. The man takes courage and wakes up the neighbour at mid-night. He is willing to go to any lengths and to suffer even great rebuke to get the bread so that he can be a good host. The point here is that just as the host at midnight responds to the request, so too will God grant the genuine requests of his children speedily. If an irritated person responds to boldness, so you can be bold with the Gracious One. If a person responds the way we find in the parable, surely a gracious God will respond to those who have the nerve to make their requests.

In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus teaches about the fundamental attitudes the disciple must have in prayer: a concern for God’s character and honour and the desire to see him overcome evil in His kingdom. Perhaps the most ignored feature of the prayer is that it is a community prayer, not an individual one. Provision, forgiveness, and protection are asked for the community. The lesson of the Lord’s Prayer is that we pray not just for the individual’s needs, but also for the needs of the community.

St Innocent I Pope Confessor ( - 417)

Elected three days after the death of Pope Anastasius (27 December 401), this energetic and gifted Pope ruled the Church for 16 years. Innocent obtained from Emperor Honorius a drastic decree against the Manichaeans, Montanists and Priscillianists. While he was unsuccessfully trying to arrange peace terms at Ravenna between the Western Roman Emperor and Alaric the Goth, the latter captured and sacked Rome in 410.

St Innocent did much to strengthen ecclesiastical discipline, decreed that Roman customs should be the general norm, and that “all ecclesiastical matters throughout the world are, by divine right, to be referred to the Holy See”. His zeal for the welfare of the Church embraced both the West and the East, but he was unable to get St John Chrysostom reinstated at Constantinople because the Eastern Emperor favoured the usurper Theophilus. St Innocent’s death on 12 March 417 was mourned deeply by the entire Church.

Reflection: “I command you to preach the message, to insist upon proclaiming it, whether the time is right or not; to convince, reproach, and encourage, as you teach with all patience” (2 Timothy 4:2).

Daily Readings

July 26, 2025

Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reading I

Exodus 24:3–8

In those days: Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do.” And Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He rose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.” And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 50:1–2, 5–6, 14–15

Response: Give your praise as a sacrifice to God.

The God of gods, the Lord,

has spoken and summoned the earth,

from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Sion, the perfection of beauty,

God is shining forth.

Response: Give your praise as a sacrifice to God.

“Gather my holy ones to me,

who made covenant with me by sacrifice.”

The heavens proclaim his justice,

for he, God, is the judge.

Response: Give your praise as a sacrifice to God.

Give your praise as a sacrifice to God,

and fulfil your vows to the Most High.

Then call on me in the day of distress.

I will deliver you

and you shall honour me.

Response: Give your praise as a sacrifice to God.

Alleluia

James 1:21bc

Receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Matthew 13:24–30

At that time: Jesus put another parable before the crowds, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ‘Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’

Reflection

In the parable of the sower in today’s gospel, the land owner, in his prudence, allows the weeds to grow along with the wheat until the harvest. The reason for this is that in the process of removing the weeds from the ground, the wheat also might inadvertently get uprooted. This understanding of the landowner teaches that God does not want an innocent person to be punished. God is patient and forgiving. But God’s patience cannot and should not be taken as a chance to go on committing more mistakes. Time and opportunities are given to us to correct our faults and failings. If these God-given opportunities are used for our improvement and growth, the influence of evil (weeds) will gradually be eliminated and we will grow and produce good fruits for the kingdom of God.  

Saints Anne and Joachim, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1st century)

The Proto-Gospel of James, dating back to the middle of the second century, names Mary’s parents as Anna—or Hannah which means “grace”—and Joachim, denoting “Yahweh saves”, and declares that their daughter was born in answer to fervent prayer after a long childless marriage.

Anne and Joachim came from among a people who rose from the faith of Abraham, of a people formed by Moses, which Exodus describes as thirsting to know God’s face. Anne is glorious among the saints because it was in her that the Immaculate Conception per se took place, whereby she became the mother of the Mother of God, and in effect the “grandmother” of the Messiah. Saint John Damasus says: “For she who was to be born had to be a first-born daughter, since she would be the mother of the first-born of all creation, ‘in whom all things are held together’.”

The feasts of Saint Anne and of Saint Joachim were each quite ancient in the Eastern church (4th century) but came to be observed universally in the 15th or 16th century. In fact, 26 July was initially observed as Saint Anne’s feast day only, until it came to be celebrated as the feast of Saints Anne and Joachim and thus observed as Parents’ Day in recent times, reminding parents and grandparents of their responsibility to keep up the practice of traditional human values.

Reflection: “Dear Christians, young and old, the essential is certainly that, in the world as it is, the Lord’s disciples should be channels of God’s salvific action, by being ceaselessly purified, enlightened and comforted by frequently approaching the God of tenderness and piety” (Pope Saint John Paul II).

Daily Readings

July 25, 2025

Feast of Saint James, Apostle

Reading 1

2 Corinthians 4:7–15

Brethren: We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke”, we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 126:1–2ab, 2cd–3, 4–5, 6

Response: Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

When the Lord brought back the exiles of Sion,

we thought we were dreaming.

Then was our mouth filled with laughter;

on our tongues, songs of joy.

Response: Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

Then the nations themselves said, “What great deeds

the Lord worked for them!”

What great deeds the Lord worked for us!

Indeed, we were glad.

Response: Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

Bring back our exiles, O Lord,

as streams in the south.

Those who are sowing in tears

will sing when they reap.

Response: Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

They go out, they go out, full of tears,

bearing seed for the sowing;

they come back, they come back with a song,

bearing their sheaves.

Response: Those who are sowing in tears will sing when they reap.

Alleluia

See John 15:16

I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, says the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 20:20–28

At that time: The mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to Jesus with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the chalice that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my chalice, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Reflection

oday we celebrate the feast of Saint James the apostle. In the Gospel, we see that for James and his brother John, greatness meant occupying worldly power and position. That is why they, through their mother, approached Jesus for places at his right and left in his kingdom. They did not hide their ambition. Other disciples too looked forward to a similar share of power. This is the worldly way of achieving greatness. Jesus has a different idea of true greatness: “The greatest among you must be the servant of all.” A generous and willing heart that serves others is the sign of true greatness. Jesus’ life is an example of such greatness achieved through humble service. Paul teaches us in his Letter to the Philippians: “The attitude you should have is the one that Christ Jesus had, who, though being divine in nature, did not claim equality with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant….” (Phil 2:5-8).

Saint James the Greater Apostle and Martyr (- c. 63)

James and his younger brother, John the Evangelist, were the sons of Zebedee, a prosperous fisherman of Galilee. Their mother, Salomé, was believed to have been a sister of the Blessed Virgin, in which case the two brothers, the “Sons of Thunder”, would have been first cousins of our Lord. They assisted their father in his fishing and were in partnership with Simon Peter and his brother Andrew. These four young men seem to have enjoyed pride of place among the Apostles, even as Peter, James and John (often taken to symbolize faith, hope and charity), were the ones privileged to witness our Lord raising to life the daughter of Jairus, his Transfiguration, and finally his agony at Gethsemane.

Saint James the Greater was the first Apostle to be martyred. Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great who had massacred the Holy Innocents, was trying all ways to appease the Jews, and in 43 AD had James arrested and. as one of the leading men in the rapidly growing Church, beheaded.

Another tradition since the 9th century claims that James preached in Spain and that his body was brought to Compostela in the north-western corner of the Iberian Peninsula where his shrine became in medieval times one of the greatest pilgrimage centres of Christendom. Though the very fact of his visiting Spain remains disputed, he continues to be revered as the Patron Saint of Spain and Chile, of druggists, pilgrims and potters, besides being invoked in times of war and against rheumatism.

Reflection: “If I love Jesus, I ought to resemble him. If I love Jesus, I ought to love what he loves, what he prefers to all else: humility” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard).

Daily Readings

July 24, 2025

Thursday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Exodus 19:1–2, 9–11, 16–20b

On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain. And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you for ever.” When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

Responsorial Psalm

Daniel 3:52, 53, 55, 54, 56

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Blessed are you, O Lord, God of our ancestors,

and to be praised and highly exalted forever;

and blessed is your glorious, holy name

and to be highly praised and highly exalted forever.

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Blessed are you in the shrine of your holy glory

and to be extolled and highly glorified forever.

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Blessed are you upon the throne of your kingdom

and to be extolled and highly exalted forever. 

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Blessed are you, who sits upon cherubim and looks upon the deeps,

and to be praised and highly exalted forever. 

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven

and to be sung and glorified forever. 

Response: You are to be praised and highly exalted forever!

Alleluia

See Matthew 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have revealed to little children the mysteries of the kingdom.

Gospel

Matthew 13:10–17

At that time: The disciples came and said to Jesus, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: ‘You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.’ For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.” But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

Reflection

We can identify three reasons why Jesus spoke in parables with his disciples. 1) He taught them the eternal truths that needed explanation through parables because the everlasting truths are not simple to understand. 2) The stories or parables serve as effective tools to get the attention of the audience. Jesus often taught in the open field and on the banks of the lakes and therefore had to capture the attention of the people through parables. 3) The parables were effective means for the listeners to analyse and examine their conscience. People do not like to receive advice all the time, but they like stories that appeal to them. Let us understand the deeper meaning of the parables used by Jesus and live the way He wants us to lead our lives.

Saint Francis Solano Confessor (1549-1610)

Born to Matteo, then Mayor of the Andalusian town of Montilla, Spain and head of the Supreme Court, and his wife Anna, both of whom were known for their piety and virtue, Francis received his a Jesuit education before entering the Friars Minor at 20 and was ordained priest at 27. His boundless compassion for the sick and the sinner was amply demonstrated during an outbreak of the plague in Granada, Spain, when he gave himself over entirely to nursing the stricken people.

While on a mission to South America in 1589, he was shipwrecked south of Panama, before eventually reaching Lima, Peru. For the next twenty years, he successfully evangelized in Peru, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay at the cost of much personal sacrifice.

Francis’ zeal for making Christ known and loved by all expressed itself in a life of faith, piety, prayer and care, apart from speedily mastering the numerous difficult dialects of South America, winning the people’s interest and goodwill by playing for them on his violin and snapping his fingers to imitate the Castanets. His ministrations to the ailing were adequately backed by knowledgeable medical lore. Unfortunately, the numerous writings and musical compositions (carols, songs and dances in honour of the Christ Child and the Blessed Virgin) of this “Wonderworker of the New World”, which were sent to Rome in support of the process of his beatification, have since been lost.

Beatified in 1675, Francis was canonized in 1726.

Reflection: “We cannot honour God by expecting great things from Him. Confidence is the virtue that gives him the greatest honour” (Saint Claude).

Daily Readings

July 23, 2025

Wednesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Exodus 16:1–5, 9–15

The people of Israel set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked towards the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. And the Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’” In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 78:18–19, 23–24, 25–26, 27–28

Response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

In their heart they put God to the test

by demanding the food they craved.

They spoke against God and said:

“Can God spread a table in the wilderness?” 

Response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

Yet he commanded the clouds above,

and opened the gates of heaven.

He rained down manna to eat,

and gave them bread from heaven. 

Response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

Man ate the bread of angels.

He sent them abundance of food;

the east wind he stirred up in the heavens,

the south wind he directed by his might. 

Response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

He rained flesh upon them like dust,

winged fowl like the sands of the sea.

He let it fall in the midst of their camp,

and all around their tents. 

Response: The Lord gave them bread from heaven.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower; all who come to him will live forever.

Gospel

Matthew 13:1–9

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”

Reflection

“A sower went out to sow.” The seeds the farmer sows in various types of soil are of the same quality, but the yield is of varying measures. Even if the seed is of the best quality, the yield would depend on the quality and the surroundings of the soil. Every farmer knows that only fertile soil with enough moisture and sunshine yields abundant crops. God sows His word in human hearts. The presence of the evil one and his temptations are a reality that can snatch away the seed of goodness from us. There is also the possibility of a poor, shallow and uninspiring heart that does not help the Word of God to grow and produce fruit. Again, the worldly forces of wealth and all its allurements can make it impossible to focus on God’s Word and thus cause it to disappear in favour of worldly attractions. A heart that is clean and free of all external influences and distractions receives the Word of God and produces abundant fruits. How disposed am I to the Word of God and its growth and fruitfulness in my life?

Saint Bridget of Sweden Widow (1303-1373)

Bridget (or Brigitta), brought up by an aunt after the untimely demise of her devout parents, lived her life to the full first as a married woman and then as a religious. Married when barely 13 she lost her husband, Ulf Gudmarsson, in 1344, after 28 years of a happy marriage that bore them four sons and four daughters, of whom, Catherine of Sweden is a saint.

Her penitential exercises and prophetic visions constantly on the rise since the early age of seven, the Passion of Christ marked the centre of her faith that expressed itself in charity. In response to one of her numerous “revelations”, Bridget founded the double Order of the Holy Redeemer (for men and women, with separate enclosures for each) at Vadstena in 1346, with generous endowments from the king. There were, in imitation of Christ’s 72 disciples (12 Apostles and Saint Paul), 4 Deacons, 8 Lay Brothers, and in a nearby convent 60 Nuns, who by their prayers were to sustain the preaching apostolate of the priests. In keeping with what her name denotes, viz. courage and strength, she did not fear to reprove the king himself, besides princes, priests and popes, for dereliction of duty and morals.

During her Holy Land pilgrimage in 1372, she was blessed with four months of near continuous visions of the Lord’s life and Passion. These began with the young maiden Mary in her parents’ home, while in the humble cave at Bethlehem she witnessed Our Lady kneeling enthralled before her newborn Infant and exclaiming: “Be welcome, my Lord and my Son!”

Bridget was canonized in 1391.

Reflection: “The world would have peace if men of politics would only follow the Gospels” (Saint Bridget).

Daily Readings

July 22, 2025

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene

Reading 1

Song of Solomon 3:1–4ab (Or: 2 Corinthians 5:14–17)

The bride responds: On my bed by night I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him, but found him not. I will rise now and go about the city, in the streets and in the squares; I will seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but found him not. The watchmen found me as they went about in the city. “Have you seen him whom my soul loves?” Scarcely had I passed them when I found him whom my soul loves.

OR

2 Corinthians 5:14-17

Brothers and sisters:
The love of Christ impels us,
once we have come to the conviction that one died for all;
therefore, all have died.
He indeed died for all,
so that those who live might no longer live for themselves
but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh;
even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh,
yet now we know him so no longer.
So whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 63:2, 3–4, 5–6, 8–9

Response: For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord, my God.

O God, you are my God; at dawn I seek you;

for you my soul is thirsting.

For you my flesh is pining,

like a dry, weary land without water. 

Response: For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord, my God.

I have come before you in the sanctuary,

to behold your strength and your glory.

Your loving mercy is better than life;

my lips will speak your praise. 

Response: For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord, my God.

I will bless you all my life;

in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be filled as with a banquet;

with joyful lips, my mouth shall praise you.

Response: For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord, my God.

For you have been my strength;

in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.

My soul clings fast to you;

your right hand upholds me. 

Response: For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord, my God.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Tell us, Mary, what did you see on the way?
I saw the glory of the risen Christ, I saw his empty tomb.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

John 20:1–2, 11–18

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Having said this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord” – and that he had said these things to her.

Reflection

The feast of Mary Magdalene invites us to be messengers of the good news of Jesus. She was privileged to proclaim to the apostles that she had seen the Risen Jesus. She went to the tomb where Jesus was laid and there she encountered him. She rushed to the apostles and announced to them the Good News of the resurrection. All of Mary’s activities reveal her great love for the Lord, a love that led her to the tomb of Jesus even in the dark hours of the night. As she was rewarded with the first appearance of Jesus after his resurrection, the risen Lord called her by name. She recognised him as the same Jesus who was crucified but was now risen and alive. She was given the mandate to be the first to announce his resurrection. Like Mary, those who love the Lord recognize him, and then he calls them by name and sends them out with the Good News of his loving and redeeming presence.

St Mary Magdalene Penitent (c.84)

The Gospels all accord Mary Magdalene a unique place among Jesus’ followers. Her surname probably owes its origin to her birthplace, a town called Magdala near Tiberias on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. According to the ancient and very plausible tradition in the Latin Church, Mary the sinner is synonymous with Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus and with Mary Magdalene. This “Mary who is called Magdalene” was freed from seven devils (the seven deadly sins) by our Lord; “the sinner” lovingly anointed his feet; and according to St John she was “Mary of Bethany” (and thus the sister of Martha), who “sat at the Lord’s feet” and listened spellbound to his every word. The Eastern Church, however, venerates three distinct persons named Mary.

The Lord’s most ardent and loving follower, Mary Magdalene stood with his beloved mother at the foot of the Cross, witnessed his burial and was the first to see both the empty tomb and the risen “Rabboni” on Easter morning. Indeed, it was she who was sent by Him with the good news to the other disciples, a commission that earned her the title “Apostle to the Apostles” in the early Church.

 Catholics revere Mary Magdalene as a pattern of the contemplative life and even of conversion. She probably died at Ephesus, but a French legend tells of Mary, Martha and Lazarus coming to southern France and converting the Provence district.

Reflection: “When you commit any sin, repent of it at once and resolve to amend. If it is a grievous sin, confess it as soon as possible” (St Alphonsus Liguori).

Daily Readings

July 21, 2025

Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Exodus 14:5–18

In those days: When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed towards the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon. When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gained glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”

Responsorial Psalm

Exodus 15:1b–2, 3–4, 5–6

Response: I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously.

I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;

the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.

The Lord is my strength and my song,

and he has become my salvation;

this is my God, and I will praise him,

my father’s God, and I will exalt him.  

Response: I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously.

The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name.

Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea,

and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.  

Response: I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously.

The floods covered them;

they went down into the depths like a stone.

Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,

your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy.  

Response: I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 12:38–42

At that time: Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great sea creature, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

Reflection

People sought a sign from Jesus to establish his credentials as a preacher and miracle worker. The Pharisees asked for a sign not for the sake of believing in him but to test and trap him. Jesus comments on their double standards, pointing out that only an evil and adulterous generation asks for signs. They are not truthful to themselves. Jesus points out how people had genuinely repented at the preaching of Jonah and listened to Solomon’s wisdom. If they could repent and change their lives, those asking for signs from Jesus also ought to change at the preaching of Jesus because he is greater than Jonah and Solomon. Today’s gospel, therefore, is an invitation to all of us to listen to Jesus our Saviour and change our lives.

Saint Lawrence of Brindisi   

Giulio Cesare de Rossi showed clear evidence of a religious vocation and his future oratorical prowess at an early age. At 16 he joined the Capuchins as Brother Lawrence and, while still a Deacon, preached the Lenten sermons with such fervour, his style carefully adapted to the spiritual needs of his listeners, his obvious sanctity capturing their hearts that he found himself subsequently called to preach in most of the large cities in Italy. A competent linguist, it was most specifically because of his excellent knowledge of Hebrew that Pope Clement VIII called him to Rome to instruct the Jewish populace, among whom he made many converts.

Elected Superior General of the Capuchins in 1602, he declined re-election three years later. At the behest of Emperor Rudolf, Lawrence obtained from the German princes much needed help to oppose the formidable Turks. Animated by a supreme confidence that fired the enthusiasm of his contingent of 18,000 soldiers, he rode into battle heading it with a Crucifix raised high in his hand, putting the Turkish army of 80,000 at Stuhlweissenburg to flight!

Lawrence’s achievements in the Post-Tridentine restoration of Catholicism earned him, in the words of Pope Benedict XV, “a truly distinguished place among the most outstanding men ever raised by Divine Providence to assist the Church in time of distress.”

Lawrence died exactly 60 years after his birth when on a mission to Philip III of Spain on behalf of the people of Naples. He was beatified in 1783, canonized in 1881 and declared Doctor of the Universal Church in 1959.

Reflection: “Brethren, labour the more, that by good works you may make sure of your calling and election” (2 Peter 1:10).

Daily Readings

July 20, 2025

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:1-10a

In those days the LORD appeared to Abram by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and said, “O LORD, if I have found favour in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on – since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three measures of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate. They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 15:2-3, 3-4, 5

Response: O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

Whoever walks without fault; who does what is just, and speaks the truth from his heart. Whoever does not slander with his tongue.

Response: O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

Who does no wrong to a neighbour, who casts no slur on a friend, who looks with scorn on the wicked, but honours those who fear the LORD.

Response: O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

Who lends no money at interest, and accepts no bribes against the innocent. Such a one shall never be shaken.

Response: O Lord, who may abide in your tent?

Reading 2

Colossians 1:24-28

Brethren, now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

Alleluia

Cf. Luke 8:15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

Gospel

Luke 10:38-42

At that time Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Reflection

In today’s First Reading as Abraham is resting in his tent he sees three men coming to him. Abraham’s concern for his guests is a model of oriental hospitality. Abraham asks the angelic messengers if he could serve them a meal to which their answer is “yes”. Having partaken in a grand meal, the guests make enquiries about Sarah and announce the birth of a son long awaited by them. But Abraham is not convinced and wonders if at the age of one hundred years he would still be able to father a child. But God reiterates his promise and says that Sarah will indeed bear a son and he is to be called Isaac. Sarah eventually gives birth to the son of the promise.

In the Second Reading Paul writes about his suffering. What does Paul mean by saying that in his body he completes what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ? On the face of it, Paul seems to say that Christ’s suffering is insufficient and so Paul is completing it. But this goes against the basic NT teaching that Christ has accomplished the reconciliation between God and humankind through his suffering and has not left anything incomplete. Hence, the correct understanding points to the need of suffering required for the growth of the Church. This reminds us that we too will have to undergo suffering.

The gospel of today tells the story of Martha and Mary. After the story of the good Samaritan, the Lucan travel account calls the reader’s attention to Jesus’ progress on his journey towards Jerusalem by relating a visit in a certain village to Martha and Mary ( Lk 10:38-42). In the preceding episode there was a contrast between the Samaritan and the Jewish priest and Levite; in this one the contrast is seen between the reactions of Martha, the perfect host, and Mary, the perfect disciple.

Mary is sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to his teaching like a true disciple. While Martha is too worried about the cares of this world, Mary continually listens to Jesus. We see that only Martha is slaving away. She alone is preparing the meal for Jesus and the others. Mary is relaxing at the Master’s feet, doing nothing—at least according to Martha, who turns to Jesus to enlist the teacher’s help in getting help for her “ministry” as a reference to food preparation. Martha is irritated at her sister’s behaviour and demands that Jesus speak to Mary so that she might help. She is confident that if Jesus speaks to Mary he can convince her sister to help. The narrator indicates that her agitation is misguided and her perspective is improper. She is too busy for him, even though she is doing a good thing. Jesus intends to correct her misconception. Jesus commends Mary’s decision. She has chosen the one thing that really counts: to sit and reflect on Jesus’ teaching and the Kingdom of God. She has chosen the good portion. Response to God’s Word is the most important for a disciple. Mary has done the right thing. Martha should slow down and relax. The disciple should never be too busy to sit at Jesus’ feet. The disciple who reflects on Jesus’ teaching is the ideal disciple.

Source: The Sunday Liturgy

Saints Elias and Flavian (Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Antioch respectively)

An Arab by birth, Elias was an anchorite in Egypt who fled to Palestine in 457, before the Monophysite persecution of Timothy the Cat, the patriarch of Alexandria. Given shelter by Euthymus in his Laura of Shael, he founded a community at Jericho. Appointed patriarch of Jerusalem in 494, he met Flavian, a Syrian heiromonk who was also a delegate to the imperial court at Constantinople and succeeded him to the See of Antioch in 498.

Elias suffered much for his adherence to the Council of Chalcedon. He entered into communion with Euphemius and Macedonius, the Constantinopolitan patriarchs, and refused to communicate with the Monophysite patriarch of Antioch and Alexandria. He submitted a profession of faith to Emperor Anastasius I; but the Emperor interpreted it as anathema to the reality of the two natures in Christ. Elias protested against this interpretation and sent another profession of faith based on Chalcedon. He was summoned to condemn the doctrine of Chalcedon in 511 at the Synod of Sidon, but he won over the majority of the Bishops and sent a delegation under Saint Sebas to Jerusalem to defend his position.

Both Elias and Flavian were orthodox at heart and they were eventually driven from their Sees for their refusal to cooperate with the imperial support of Monophysitism. Flavian died in exile at Petra in Arabia and Elias at Aila and are named together in the Roman Martyrology.

Reflection: “The more we conquer ourselves the more he gives us of his grace; and if today we have had power to overcome our difficulty, tomorrow and the day after we shall be able to surmount others that are much greater and more distressing” (Saint Vincent De Paul).

Daily Readings

July 19, 2025

Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Exodus 12:37–42

In those days: The people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. A mixed multitude also went up with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds. And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was four hundred thirty years. At the end of four hundred thirty years, on that very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. It was a night of watching by the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the Lord by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 136:1 & 23–24, 10–15 

Response: For his mercy endures forever.

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

for his mercy endures forever.

He remembered us in our distress,

for his mercy endures forever.

And he snatched us away from our foes,

for his mercy endures forever.

Response: For his mercy endures forever.

The firstborn of the Egyptians he smote,

for his mercy endures forever.

He brought Israel out from their midst,

for his mercy endures forever;

with mighty hand and outstretched arm,

for his mercy endures forever.

Response: For his mercy endures forever.

The Red Sea he divided in two,

for his mercy endures forever;

he made Israel pass through the midst,

for his mercy endures forever;

he flung Pharaoh and his force in the Red Sea,

for his mercy endures forever.

Response: For his mercy endures forever.

Alleluia

2 Corinthians 5:19

In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

Gospel

Matthew 12:14–21

At that time: The Pharisees went out and conspired against Jesus, how to destroy him. Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all and ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel or cry aloud, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets; a bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory; and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”

Reflection

We encounter two kinds of people in today’s gospel: The Pharisees, who were plotting to get Jesus out of their lives, and a large crowd of people who followed Jesus and whom he had healed. The first group promotes conspiracy, hatred, destruction, death and annihilation of the innocent and the killing of Truth because they could not withstand the presence of the Truth, that is, Jesus. The second group follows Jesus with open hearts and Jesus gives them new life and hope. They accept and live by the Truth. What would we choose if we were offered life and death, truth and falsehood, destruction and promotion of life?

Sts. Justa and Rufina, Virgins & Martyrs (A.D. - 287)

Sts Justa and Rufina were two Christian women at Seville in Spain who maintained themselves by selling earthenware. But they refused to sell vessels for the use of heathen ceremonies so as not to concur in idolatrous superstitions. Infuriated, the heathens broke up their stock-in-trade. Justa and Rufina retaliated by overthrowing the image of a false goddess, whereupon, they were impeached before the Governor.

The Prefect commanded them to renounce their Faith and offer sacrifice to the very goddess whose image they had overthrown. They politely declined, but boldly confessed Christ as their Lord. As a result, the Prefect ordered that they be stretched on the rack and their sides torn with hooks. An idol was placed near the rack with incense that if they should offer sacrifice they should be released, but their fidelity could not be shaken. Consequently, Justa died on the rack while Rufina was strangled to death and their bodies burnt.

The two saints are greatly venerated in Spain and their names doubtless represent historical martyrs in that place.

Reflection: “Take away the fuel and you take away the flame” (St Ulric).

Daily Readings

July 18, 2025

Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Exodus 11:10–12:14

In those days: Moses and Aaron did many wonders before Pharaoh, and the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbour shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations, as a statute for ever, you shall keep it as a feast.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 116:12–13, 15–16bc, 17–18

Response: The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the name of the Lord.

How can I repay the Lord

for all his goodness to me?

The cup of salvation I will raise;

I will call on the name of the Lord.

Response: The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the name of the Lord.

How precious in the eyes of the Lord

is the death of his faithful.

Your servant am I, the son of your handmaid;

you have loosened my bonds.

Response: The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the name of the Lord.

A thanksgiving sacrifice I make;

I will call on the name of the Lord.

My vows to the Lord I will fulfill

before all his people.  

Response: The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the name of the Lord.

Alleluia

John 10:27

My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; and I know them, and they follow me.

Gospel

Matthew 12:1–8

At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck ears of corn and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

Reflection

In today’s gospel we see Jesus and his disciples doing something that was forbidden to do on Sabbath. The hungry disciples of Jesus picked up corn from the field and ate. The religious leaders found fault with their simple action and accused them of breaking the law of the Sabbath. Jesus, understanding the agony of hunger very well, shows why it is more important to satisfy human needs than to be faithful to the rituals and regulations of the Sabbath. If a law stipulates the denial of food to a hungry person, we should do away with that law. Is our worship today helping us to become more sensitive and humane towards the hungry and the needy?

St Frederick Bishop and Martyr (-838)

When young, St Frederick was trained in piety and sacred learning among the clergy of the Church of Utrecht, Holland. After he was ordained priest, he was given the charge of instructing the converts by Bishop Ricfried. About the year 825, he was chosen to succeed Ricfried to the See of Utrecht. The new Bishop at once began to establish order everywhere, and sent St Odulf and other zealous labourers into the Northern parts to dispel the paganism that still flourished there.

According to tradition Frederick became involved in the difficulties between the sons of the Emperor, Louis the Debonair, and their father and step-mother. He also fell out of favour with the Empress, whom he had taken the opportunity to admonish, though charitably, to turn to a life of morality.

The inhabitants of Walcheren were barbarous and most averse to the Gospel. So, he took upon himself the duty of teaching and evangelizing them. According to tradition, on 18 July 838, after he had celebrated Mass and was about to make his thanksgiving, he was stabbed by two assassins. He died saying with the Psalmist, “I will praise the Lord in the land of the living”.

Reflection: “Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory, which overcomes the world, our faith” (1 John 5:4).

Alexius, the only son of his parents, and who was educated in Rome, learnt from the charitable example of his parents that the riches given away to the poor remain with us forever, and that alms-deeds are a treasure transferred to heaven, with the interest of an immense reward. While yet a child he was intent on the relief of all whom he saw in distress, and thought himself obliged to those who received his charity and regarded them as his benefactors.

Fearing lest the distraction of earthly honour separate or distance him from what is more noble or godly, Alexius, by divine inspiration, decided to renounce the world. On his wedding night, with his bride’s consent, he secretly left Rome, and giving away to the poor in the far East all that he had with him, spent several years at the gate of Our Lady’s church in that city, living on alms, until an image of Mary spoke and revealed his holiness to the people as “the man of God”. Thereupon he fled back home; but his father, failing to recognize him, received him as a beggar and employed him, allotting a corner under the staircase where he lived for seventeen years, unknown, bearing patiently the demeaning attitude of his own father, spouse and slaves.

Eventually, when death ended this cruel martyrdom, they learned, albeit late, the truth from some of his own writings, even as God testified to his servant’s sanctity by way of many miracles.

Reflection: “Pride is an illusion, a lie and a theft. And since it is a truth of faith that we are nothing, he who esteems himself and thinks that he is someone is a seducer who deceives himself” (Saint John Eudes).

Daily Readings

July 16, 2025

Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Exodus 3:1–6, 9–12

In those days: Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, “And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 6–7 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all within me, his holy name.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord does just deeds,

gives full justice to all who are oppressed.

He made known his ways to Moses,

and his deeds to the children of Israel. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

See Matthew 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have revealed to little children the mysteries of the kingdom.

Gospel

Matthew 11:25–27

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

Reflection

In today’s gospel, Jesus thanks the heavenly Father because the message of God’s kingdom was revealed to the little ones – the simple, humble, ignorant and sinful – instead of the wise, learned religious leaders and the ruling class. The so-called wise and learned are too proud to hear, to understand and to accept the new teaching that Jesus came to reveal. The simple, humble, ignorant and sinful ones (little ones) in their humility are open to his message and respond to it by changing the way they live. Jesus, knowing that all this success came from his heavenly Father, acknowledges that everything has been entrusted to him by his Father. How humble are we to listen, to understand and to accept God’s message? How thankful are we for the precious gift of faith?

Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Marie Madeleine Postel, Foundress (1756-1846)

According to tradition, Simon Stock, the aged general of the Carmelite Order, had appealed to Our Lady for her protection over his oppressed congregation. In response, on this day in 1251 she appeared to him at Cambridge, England, and presented to him the brown scapular, which became the prototype of all the others. Mary assured him that all who were duly invested with it and wore it faithfully with filial love and confidence in her power and goodness, would experience the effects of her powerful intercession, and obtain the grace of final perseverance and her motherly protection at death.

The Carmelite Order claims at least a moral descent from Elias and the ancient hermits on Mount Carmel in Palestine. In the 13th century its members had to flee to Europe to avoid being massacred by the Saracens, and under the generalship of Simon, the monks changed from a solitary to a community life, and some of the ancient, stringent rules of fasting and silence were relaxed. Since the great reform instituted by St Teresa of Avila and St John of the Cross in the 16th century there exists one branch of Calced Carmelites who follow the mitigated rule of Pope Eugene IV, and one of Discalced Carmelites who still adhere to the strict, primitive rule promulgated by St Albert of Jerusalem in 1206.

Reflection: “Oh how long since would the world have been destroyed, had not Mary sustained it by her powerful intercession” (St Fulgentius)

Daily Readings

July 15, 2025

Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Reading 1

Exodus 2:1–15a

In those days: A man from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a Levite woman. The woman conceived and bore a son, and when she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank. And his sister stood at a distance, to know what would be done to him. Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?” And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So the girl went and called the child’s mother. And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.” One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When he went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion? He answered, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known. When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh, and stayed in the land of Midian. 

 Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 69:3, 14, 30–31, 33–34  

Response: You who are poor, seek God and your heart will revive.

I have sunk into the mud of the deep, 

where there is no foothold. 

I have entered the waters of the deep, 

where the flood overwhelms me. 

Response: You who are poor, seek God and your heart will revive.

But I pray to you, O Lord, 

for a time of your favour. 

In your great mercy, answer me, O God, 

with your salvation that never fails. 

Response: You who are poor, seek God and your heart will revive.

As for me in my poverty and pain, 

let your salvation, O God, raise me up. 

Then I will praise God’s name with a song; 

I will glorify him with thanksgiving. 

Response: You who are poor, seek God and your heart will revive.

The poor when they see it will be glad, 

and God-seeking hearts will revive; 

for the Lord listens to the needy, 

and does not spurn his own in their chains. 

Response: You who are poor, seek God and your heart will revive.

Alleluia alleluia alleluia 

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel 

Matthew 11:20–24

At that time: Jesus began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”

Reflection 

Jesus comes down heavily on the people of the three cities that have not heeded his preaching. People of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum were the immediate and privileged beneficiaries of Jesus’ ministry. He brought the Good News of the kingdom to the poor, the sinners, the outcasts and the rejected. He healed the sick, liberated those afflicted by evil powers, and raised the dead to new life as he announced the kingdom of peace and joy. Yet they ignored or rejected his message and were not ready to change their ways. That is why Jesus denounced those three towns. Those of us who are gifted with faith in Jesus and filled with his own life have a greater responsibility to respond to him more than others. The teaching of Jesus calls us to the conversion of mind and heart. How open are we to his message? How willing are we to change?

Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Doctor of the Church (c.1218-1274)

At the age of four, Giovanni was cured of a grave illness through the intercession of Saint Francis d’Assisi. He was named “Bonaventure” — a name which variably means “good venture”, “good attempt” or “happy arrival” — when, in c 1243, he entered the Order of Friars Minor founded by Francis d’Assisi. In 1257 he received his doctorate and earlier, the same year, though hardly 39, he was elected Minister General, an office he held through 16 difficult years. He prudently endeavoured to curb the extremists, both among the Spirituals (or Observants), who insisted on the literal observance of Saint Francis’ original rule, and the Conventuals (or Relaxati), who favoured certain mitigations and relaxations.

In 1263 Bonaventure ordered that a bell be rung and the Hail Mary recited at nightfall in each monastery in honour of the Annunciation which was popularly believed to have taken place at that hour — a pious practice that the Angelus seems to have taken its origin from. In 1273, he reluctantly became Cardinal Bishop of Albano, and when the emissaries of the Pope, Gregory X, arrived at his monastery near Florence, they found him washing dishes and were told to hang the Cardinal’s hat on a nearby tree until he had finished! 

Saint Bonaventure always attached the utmost importance to ‘preaching’ and seized every opportunity, be it with his friars, the clergy, the common people, Popes or Kings, to expound the Word of God, in which too he attained great fame.

Canonized in 1482, he was declared a doctor of the church in 1588.

Reflection: “The best perfection of a religious man is to do common things in a perfect manner” (St Bonaventure).

Daily Readings

July 14, 2025

Memorial of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin

Reading 1

Exodus 1:8–14, 22

At that time: There arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if, war breaks out they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store-cities Pithom and Raamses. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves. Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that is born to the Hebrews, you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live”.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 124:1–3, 4–6, 7–8  

Response: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

“If the Lord had not been on our side,”

let Israel say –

“If the Lord had not been on our side

when people rose against us,

then would they have swallowed us alive

when their anger was kindled.

Response: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

Then would the waters have engulfed us,

the torrent gone over us;

over our head would have swept

the raging waters.”

Blest be the Lord who did not give us

a prey to their teeth.

Response: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

Our life, like a bird, has escaped

from the snare of the fowler.

Indeed, the snare has been broken,

and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,

who made heaven and earth.

Response: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

Alleluia

Matthew 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Gospel

Matthew 10:34–11:1

At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” When Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.

Reflection

The cost of discipleship is explained by Jesus in today’s gospel. To be a disciple, first of all, one ought to accept and acknowledge Christ as Lord and Master. Partial knowledge of Christ will not suffice in order to be a follower of Christ. Secondly, one ought to carry the daily crosses of life and follow Jesus all the time. Carrying the cross would mean looking at suffering as Jesus looked at it – as occasions for grace, growth, life and redemption. Thirdly, one ought to be willing to give up even one’s very life for the cause of Christ. This is the ultimate and lasting sign of one’s love for Christ.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha

St Kateri Tekakwitha is the first Native American to be recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church. She was born in 1656, in the Mohawk village of Ossernenon. Her mother was an Algonquin, who was captured by the Mohawks and who took a Mohawk chief for her husband.

She contracted smallpox as a four-year-old child which scarred her skin. The scars were a source of humiliation in her youth. She was commonly seen wearing a blanket to hide her face. Worse, her entire family died during the outbreak. Kateri Tekakwitha was subsequently raised by her uncle, who was the chief of a Mohawk clan.

At age 19, Kateri Tekakwitha converted to Catholicism, taking a vow of chastity and pledging to marry only Jesus Christ. Her decision was very unpopular with her adoptive parents and their neighbours. Some of her neighbours started rumours of sorcery. To avoid persecution, she travelled to a Christian native community south of Montreal.

Kateri was very devout and was known for her steadfast devotion. She was also very sickly. Her practices of self-mortification and denial may not have helped her health. Sadly, just five years after her conversion to Catholicism, she became ill and passed away at age 24, on April 17, 1680.

Her name, Kateri, is the Mohawk form of Catherine, which she took from St. Catherine of Siena.

St. Kateri Tekakwitha was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on Oct. 21, 2012. She is the patroness of ecology and the environment, people in exile and Native Americans.

Daily Readings

July 13, 2025

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Deuteronomy (30:10-14)

Moses spoke to the people, saying, when you obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 69:14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 37

Response: You who are poor, seek God, and your hearts will revive.

But I pray to you, O LORD, for a time of your favour. In your great mercy, answer me, O God, with your salvation that never fails. LORD, answer, for your mercy is kind; in your great compassion, turn towards me.

Response: You who are poor, seek God, and your hearts will revive.

As for me in my poverty and pain, let your salvation, O God, raise me up. Then I will praise God’s name with a song; I will glorify him with thanksgiving.

Response: You who are poor, seek God, and your hearts will revive.

The poor when they see it will be glad, and God-seeking hearts will revive; for the LORD listens to the needy, and does not spurn his own in their chains.

Response: You who are poor, seek God, and your hearts will revive.

For God will bring salvation to Sion, and rebuild the cities of Judah, The children of his servants shall inherit it; those who love his name shall dwell there.

Response: You who are poor, seek God, and your hearts will revive.

Reading 2

Colossians (1:15-20)

Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. The Word of the Lord.

Alleluia

Cf. John 6:63c, 68c

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Your words, Lord, are spirit and life; you have the words of eternal life. Alleluia. (

Gospel

Luke 10:25-37

At that time a lawyer stood up to put Jesus to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.

Reflection

In the First Reading, Moses exhorts the people to observe the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. Moses then assures the people that faithfulness to God is not beyond their reach. The imaginary journeys up to heaven or across the sea to seek the truth reflect the feeling of many ancient people that the meaning of life was a dark mystery which had to be brought back from the gods. On the contrary, the biblical teaching is that the truth about life and death, good and evil, is contained in the words which God has spoken to his people through Moses. Therefore, there is no excuse for failure to respond.

The Second Reading is a hymn that sings the glories of Christ. The main subject of the hymn is Christ’s role in creation. The author reiterates that all things, including angels, are created in Christ who is pre-existent. It also proclaims the heart of Christian faith: that Christ’s suffering and death are central to the salvation of the universe.

The parable of the Good Samaritan is about a traveller who is stripped of his clothing, beaten and left half dead alongside the road. The robbery left the man in a serious state, for not only was he robbed, stripped, and beaten, he was also “left for dead”. A priest and a Levite appear on the scene. When the priest sees the man, he passes on the other side of the road though he could have helped the man for the priest has completed his service in the Temple and is returning home, but he doesn’t. Likewise, also the Levite. They do not help the wounded man. Finally, a Samaritan passes that way. Samaritans and Jews generally despise each other, but the Samaritan helps the injured man. Jesus tells this parable in response to the question from a lawyer, “And who is my neighbour?”

In the Jewish culture, contact with a dead body is understood to be defiling. Priests are particularly enjoined to avoid uncleanness. The priest and the Levite may therefore have assumed that the fallen traveller is dead and avoid him to keep themselves ritually clean. But the fact is that both of them are going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, which means their ministry has been completed, and so the rule of defilement does not apply in this case.

What lesson do we learn from this parable? The outgrowth of the love for God is a response to our fellow humans. We are to be a neighbour to those who are part of our lives. Neighbourliness is not found in a racial bond, nationality, colour, gender, proximity, or by living in a certain neighbourhood. We become a neighbour by responding sensitively to the need of others. Such is the example of the Samaritan, who not only soothes the beaten man’s wounds, but also takes him to a place of shelter, cares for him and makes sure his needs are met. The Samaritan cares for a person he has never seen before. Without asking questions, he serves a cup of mercy to a person half-dead. By reviving life, he shows love. If we seek to restrict those we serve, we need to hear the lesson Jesus teaches the lawyer. The issue is not who we may or may not serve, but serving where need exists. We are not to seek to limit who our neighbours might be. Rather, we are to be a neighbours to those whose needs we can meet. At the end, Jesus invites his interlocutor to go and do as the Samaritan has done.

(Source: The Sunday Liturgy)

Blessed Carlos Manuel Rodriguez Santiago, Apostle of the Liturgy (1918-1963)

Carlos Manuel Rodriguez experienced a terrible loss at the tender age of 6—the family home and a small attached store were gutted in a fire. Left with hardly any means of sustenance whatsoever, the young family had no option but to move in with Carlos’ maternal grandparents. Providence thus brought the youngster under the strong influence of his deeply devout grandmother, an influence that, coupled with Carlos’ reception of Jesus for the first time in Holy Communion, would infuse him with a life-long love for the Eucharist. As an Altar server, he began to experience the riches of the faith through the sacred liturgy of the Church.

Early on in high school, he experienced the first symptoms of what would later be diagnosed as “ulcerative colitis”, a severe gastro-intestinal disorder that caused him much suffering, even hindering his pursuit of a university degree. Nevertheless, a voracious reader, he retained both his commitment to Christ and the Church, and to his interests which ranged from art to philosophy, and from science to religion.

Using articles on liturgical subjects, which he himself translated and edited, Carlos began publishing Liturgy and Christian Culture, organized a Liturgy Circle and formed the Te Deum Laudamus Choir besides organizing Christian Life Days for students. Carlos was wont to say, “Vivimos para esa noche!” i.e., “We live for the night of the Resurrection!”

In 1963 he was diagnosed with advanced terminal rectal cancer and soon passed on to his eternal reward, aged barely 45 and was beatified in 2001.

Reflection: “The centre of Liturgical life is the Mass, from which flow the seven Channels of grace, the sacraments. The liturgy is the life of the Spirit of Christ” (Blessed James Alberione).

Daily Readings

July 12, 2025

Saturday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Genesis 49:29–33; 50:15–26a

In those days: Jacob commanded his sons and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying place. There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah – the field and the cave that is in it were bought from the Hittites.” When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people. When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil that we did to him.” So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this command before he died: ‘Say to Joseph, “Please forgive the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.” ’And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. His brothers also came and fell down before him and said, “Behold, we are your servants.” But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. So Joseph remained in Egypt, he and his father’s house. Joseph lived for one hundred ten years. And Joseph saw Ephraim’s children of the third generation. The children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were counted as Joseph’s own. And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.” So Joseph died, being one hundred ten years old.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 105:1–2, 3–4, 6–7  

Response: You who are poor seek God, and your hearts will revive.

Give thanks to the Lord; proclaim his name. 

Make known his deeds among the peoples. 

O sing to him, sing his praise; 

tell all his wonderful works! 

Response: You who are poor seek God, and your hearts will revive.

Glory in his holy name; 

let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice. 

Turn to the Lord and his strength; 

constantly seek his face. 

Response: You who are poor seek God, and your hearts will revive.

O children of Abraham, his servant, 

O descendants of the Jacob he chose, 

he, the Lord, is our God; 

his judgments are in all the earth. 

Response: You who are poor seek God, and your hearts will revive.

Alleluia

1 Peter 4:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

Gospel

Matthew 10:24–33

At that time: Jesus said to his apostles, “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Reflection 

Jesus continues to instruct his disciples as to the inevitable difficulties and hardships they will have to face during their missionary journey. They will go through suffering and persecution in their ministry like their Master because a disciple is not above the teacher. However, they have to keep foremost in their minds that those who persecute them will have power only over their mortal bodies and not over their souls. Jesus is with them in moments of pain, suffering and persecution and therefore they should never give up hope in the Lord. Our life does not end in the tomb. It travels beyond the tomb for which we need to keep burning the lamp of hope. Let us burn the lamp of hope with the oil of love and remove all kinds of fears from our hearts.

Saint John Gualbert Abbot Confessor (985-1073)

Hailing from a noble family, John Gualbert felt it incumbent upon himself, in accordance with the custom of his age, to avenge the murder of a near relative. On Good Friday 1013, he happened to meet the unarmed assassin in a narrow lane and was about to run him through with his sword when the latter threw himself at his feet, and with arms outstretched cross-like, begged for forgiveness and commended his soul to God. John thereupon forgave and embraced him, and when, a little later, he stopped to implore God’s pardon for his own sins in the Benedictine church of San Miniato, the large Crucifix bowed its head in approval of his act of mercy. Overcome, he asked to join the monks at San Miniato.

Four years later, together with a group of stricter monks, John went to Camaldoli to protest against the simonistic election of Abbot Herbert. There he lived for 21 years until in 1038 he founded at Vallombrosa a new monastery for those who, like himself, wished to lead a life of extraordinary austerity and penance. Here the law of silence was perpetual.

The Vallombrosan Congregation grew rapidly after the founder’s death, when some of its extreme austerities were modified and by the end of the 12th century it counted some 60 Houses, all in Italy. Saint John Gualbert died in 1073 and was canonized in 1193.

Reflection: “The interior man prefers the care of himself to all other cares; and he who diligently attends to himself is easily silent with regard to others” (Imitation of Christ, Bk II,5,2).

Daily Readings

July 11, 2025

Memorial of Saint Benedict, Abbot

Reading 1

Genesis 46:1–7, 28–30

In those days: Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation. I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again, and Joseph’s hand shall close your eyes.” Then Jacob set out from Beersheba. The sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry him. They also took their livestock and their goods, which they had gained in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, his sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters. All his offspring he brought with him into Egypt. He had sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to show the way before him in Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen. Then Joseph prepared his chariot and went up to meet Israel his father in Goshen. He presented himself to him and fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while. Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 37:3–4, 18–19, 27–28, 39–40 

Response: From the Lord comes the salvation of the just.

Trust in the Lord and do good; 

then you will dwell in the land and safely pasture. 

Find your delight in the Lord, 

who grants your heart’s desire.

Response: From the Lord comes the salvation of the just.

The Lord takes note of the days of the blameless; 

their heritage will last forever. 

They shall not be put to shame in evil days; 

in time of famine they shall have their fill. 

Response: From the Lord comes the salvation of the just.

Then turn away from evil and do good, 

and you may abide forever; 

for indeed, the Lord loves justice, 

and will never forsake his faithful.

Response: From the Lord comes the salvation of the just.

But from the Lord comes the salvation of the just, 

their stronghold in time of distress. 

The Lord helps them and rescues them, 

rescues and saves them from the wicked: 

because they take refuge in him. 

Response: From the Lord comes the salvation of the just.

Alleluia

John 16:13a, 14:26d

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

Gospel

Matthew 10:16–23

At the time: Jesus said to his disciples, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to ear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak, or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

Reflection 

As Jesus sends out his disciples on a mission, he points to the inevitability of the opposition they will have to face. The disciples of Jesus are sent out like “sheep among wolves”, clearly implying that while carrying out their missionary activities they will be encountering difficult situations with narrow-minded and hard-hearted people. At times, the disciples might think that they are weak, lacking as they do, the resources needed to counter such situations and people. Secondly, Jesus cautions the disciples that their activities will be strictly monitored by the powerful leaders of the place, both secular and religious, and that they would need to stand firmly against the opposition unleashed by them. Thirdly, the disciples will be displaced by those who dislike them. In all these situations, Jesus assures the disciples that God’s protective hands will always guide them. 

Saint Benedict of Nursia, Abbot, Confessor (c.480 - c.547).

Born of noble parents in Nursia in Italy, Benedict spent his youth in Rome, but the dissolute lives of his fellow students and the state of the country, then under the Arian Theodoric the Goth, prompted him at age 16 to seek salvation as a lone hermit in a hidden cave. In time, maturing rapidly in mind and character, his sanctity, miracles, and his gift of directing souls attracted numerous earnest disciples whom he organized into 12 monasteries, each comprising 12 monks, with its own superior.

Accepting a donation of land on Monte Cassino, he established the great abbey which became the motherhouse of the Benedictine Order for the reclamation and regeneration of Christian Europe, an accomplishment that was to earn him the title “Father of Europe” from Pope Pius XII, and “Patron Saint of all Europe” in 1964 from Pope Paul VI.

His monks vested manual labour with a new dignity, adding to it prayer, the “Opus Dei”, the humble acknowledgement of God’s presence throughout the day by brief public acts of faith, praise and adoration. Their vows comprised poverty, chastity, obedience and the stable attachment to one monastery for life. In contrast to the later Franciscan idea of poverty, the Benedictine monastery was to be not only self-supporting, but in a position to succour the poor, the sick, the afflicted and give shelter to the stranger.

By their teaching, studying and copying of manuscripts, the Benedictines preserved the Greek and the Roman classics through the Dark Ages. Though not a priest himself, Benedict’s Order has given the Church no less than 24 popes, 4,600 bishops and over 5,000 saints! 

Reflection: “Ora et labora”—“Pray and work” (Saint Benedict).

Daily Readings

July 10, 2025

Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 44:18–21, 23b–29; 45:1–5

In those days: Judah went up to Joseph and said, “Oh, my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not your anger burn against your servant, for you are like Pharaoh himself. My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’ And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother’s children, and his father loves him.’ Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him. Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall not see my face again.’ “When we went back to your servant, my father, we told him the words of my lord. And when our father said, ‘Go again, buy us a little food’, we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother goes with us, then we will go down. For we cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’ Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. One left me, and I said, “Surely he has been torn to pieces,” and I have never seen him since. If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my grey hairs in evil to Sheol.’ Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence. So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 105:16–17, 18–19, 20–21

Response: Remember the wonders the Lord has done.

But he called down a famine on the land;

he broke their staff of bread.

He had sent a man ahead of them,

Joseph, sold as a slave. 

Response: Remember the wonders the Lord has done.

His feet were weighed down in chains,

his neck was bound with iron,

until what he said came to pass,

and the word of the Lord

proved him true. 

Response: Remember the wonders the Lord has done.

Then the king sent orders

and released him;

the ruler of the peoples set him free.

He made him master of his house

and ruler of all his possessions.

Response: Remember the wonders the Lord has done.

Alleluia

Mark 1:15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.

Gospel

Matthew 10:7–15

At that time: Jesus said to his apostles, “Proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the labourer deserves his food. And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. As you enter the house, greet it. And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.

Reflection

As part of his instructions to the Apostles, Jesus told them, “You received without paying; give without pay.” We could look at life from two points of view: ‘taking from others’ and ‘giving away to others’. Taking from others would mean that we want to satisfy our selfish ambitions by extracting that which belongs to others. Giving away to others would mean that we think and act keeping the well-being of others as our foremost priority. Jesus is inviting us to move from extracting from others to giving to others. Jesus’ own life was an example of giving until there was nothing left to give; he gave even his very life, his body and blood. Two ways by which we can be ‘givers’ are reaching out to the sick and the needy with our healing and comforting presence, and fighting against the evil powers present in the society. Let us share our life with others and make it meaningful and joyful.

Seven Martyrs (Brothers) and Saint Felicity, their Mother (- c.165)

The martyrdom of these illustrious mother-and-sons saints took place in Rome, under the Emperor Antoninus. It was by the public and edifying example of the saintly lady, Felicity and her whole family that many idol worshippers were moved to embrace the new Faith, renouncing all false gods. This provoked the heathen priests and they complained to the Emperor about the boldness with which Felicity publicly practised the Christian religion, emphasizing that, in order to appease the so-called immortal gods, who were considered the guardians and protectors of the empire, it was necessary to compel this lady and her children to offer sacrifice to them.

Publius, as Prefect of Rome, having had the mother and her sons hauled before him, said: “Take pity on your children, Felicity! They are in the bloom of youth, and may aspire to the greatest honours and preferments.” Felicity answered, “Your pity is really impiety, and the compassion to which you exhort me would make me the cruellest of mothers!” She then exhorted her children to “look towards heaven, where Jesus Christ with his saints awaits you. Be faithful in his love, and fight courageously for your souls!”

Publius, exasperated at this behaviour, had her cruelly buffeted; then, calling the children to him one by one, unsuccessfully tried with artful speech, mingling promises with threats, to induce them to adore the gods. He next had them scourged, and finally laid the whole process before the Emperor who had the sons judged by different judges who condemned them to various forms of death before having the mother beheaded four months later.

Reflection: “Life passes so quickly that we ought to think more of how to die than how to live” (Saint Teresa of Avila).

Daily Readings

July 9, 2025

Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 41:55–57; 42:5–7a, 17–24a

In those days: When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do.” So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth. Thus the sons of Israel came to buy among the others who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. Now Joseph was governor over the land. He was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground. Joseph saw his brothers and recognised them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them. And he put them all together in custody for three days. On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: if you are honest men, let one of your brothers remain confined where you are in custody, and let the rest go and carry grain for the famine of your households, and bring your youngest brother to me. So your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. Then they said to one another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” And Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now there comes a reckoning for his blood.” They did not know that Joseph understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. Then he turned away from them and wept.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 33:2–3,10–11,18–19

Response: May your merciful love be upon us, as we hope in you, O Lord.

Give thanks to the Lord upon the harp;

with a ten-stringed lute sing him songs.

O sing him a song that is new;

play skillfully, with shouts of joy.

Response: May your merciful love be upon us, as we hope in you, O Lord.

The Lord frustrates the designs of the nations;

he defeats the plans of the peoples.

The designs of the Lord stand forever,

the plans of his heart from age to age.

Response: May your merciful love be upon us, as we hope in you, O Lord.

Yes, the Lord’s eyes are on those who fear him,

who hope in his merciful love,

to rescue their souls from death,

to keep them alive in famine.

Response: May your merciful love be upon us, as we hope in you, O Lord.

Alleluia

Mark 1:15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.

Gospel

Matthew 10:1–7

At that time: Jesus called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

Reflection

Jesus in today’s gospel, chooses the twelve apostles and sends them out on a mission. He first of all empowers the apostles by giving them the authority to announce the Good News and to cast demons. In this way, he enhances their human resourcefulness with divine power. Secondly, he pragmatically sharpens the goals of the apostles by telling them whom they should approach first in announcing the Good News. Like the Apostles, we too are endowed with the mission of proclaiming the Good News and empowered by His Spirit to work for the kingdom of God as envisioned by Jesus. Are we ready to collaborate with Jesus in his mission?

St Nicholas Pieck and Companions (Gorkum Martyrs) (-c.1572)

Of the 19 priests and religious who were hanged on account of the Faith by Calvinists in Gorkum, Holland, the martyrology indicates that 12 were hanged specifically because of their belief in the Eucharist and the primacy of the Pope. They are: Nicholas Pieck, Jerome Weerden, Leonard Vechel, Nicholas Janssen, Godfrey van Duynen, John van Oosterwyk, John van Hoornaer, Adrian van Hilvarenbeck, James Lacops, Andrew Wontera, Antony van Willehad (90 years old) and Nicasius van Heeze.

While James Lacops was hanged from a ladder, the rest were hanged from the beams. After their death, their bodies were cast into 2 ditches where they lay till 1616 when, during a truce between Spain and the United Provinces, they were translated to the Franciscan church in Brussels, Belgium. They were canonized on 29 June 1867 by Pope Pius IX.

Reflection: “Let us contend with all earnestness, knowing that we are all called to combat. Let us run in the straight road the race that is incorruptible” (St Clement).

Daily Readings

July 8, 2025

Tuesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading I

Genesis 32:22–32

In those days: Jacob arose at night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He took them and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had. And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the name of the place Penuel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. Therefore to this day the people of Israel do not eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip on the sinew of the thigh.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 17:1b, 2-3, 6-7ab, 8b and 15

Response: In justice I shall behold your face.

O Lord, hear a cause that is just;

pay heed to my cry.

Turn your ear to my prayer:

no deceit is on my lips.

Response: In justice I shall behold your face.

From you may my justice come forth.

Your eyes discern what is upright.

Search my heart and visit me by night.

Test me by fire, and you will find

no wrong in me.

Response: In justice I shall behold your face.

To you I call; for you will surely

heed me, O God.

Turn your ear to me; hear my words.

Display your merciful love.

By your right hand you deliver from their foes

those who put their trust in you.

Response: In justice I shall behold your face.

Guard me as the apple of your eye.

Hide me in the shadow of your wings

As for me, in justice I shall behold your face;

when I awake I shall be filled

with the vision of your presence.

Response: In justice I shall behold your face.

Alleluia

John 10:14

I am the good shepherd, says the Lord; I know my own and my own know me.

Gospel

Matthew 9:32–38

At that time: A demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to Jesus. And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marvelled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.” And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.”

Reflection

Jesus heals a dumb man of his infirmity and the man begins to speak. By healing him of his brokenness, Jesus gives us an example of how we need to reach out to the broken-hearted. We encounter many broken-hearted persons in society. Brokenness involves many aspects of life: illness, old age, inability to make decisions, memory loss, hunger, unemployment, lack of understanding in the family, break-up of relationships, inequality, loneliness, burden of work, etc. By reaching out to the stranger, the lonely, the hungry, the homeless, and the ignorant, we love God by loving the person in need. We imitate God who is merciful to all – good and bad, poor and rich, healthy and sick. Let us be merciful as God is merciful.   

Sts. Hesperius and Zoe, Martyrs (-135)

St Hesperius and his wife St Zoe were slaves of a rich Roman named Catalus, who lived during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian at Attalia, a town of Pamphylia in Asia Minor (Turkey). Though born Christian, they were negligent in their practice of the Faith. However, they took great care to ensure that their two sons, Cyriacus and Theodulus, led a noble life of Christian virtue.

Put to shame for their religious indifference by the example of their children, they refused to accept food offered to the gods, which their master sent them on the occasion of the birth of his son. Thereupon they were arrested and, when put to trial, made a bold confession of their faith and refused to venerate the Master’s gods. As a result, their sons were first subjected to torture in their presence, in the hope that the parents would yield to the pressures and thus renounce their faith. But neither of the two would renounce Christ. Infuriated, Catulus had them roasted to death in a furnace.

Justinian built a church in Constantinople dedicated to St Zoe — presumably to contain her remains — but some of the relics of both these martyrs appear to have been translated to Clermont, where they are still venerated.

Reflection: “O! What happiness to grow up in the bosom of a truly Christian family. It requires care, a great deal of care, conscientiously to fulfil the obligations of father and mother. The parents are a mirror to their children; and the children constantly look into this mirror. What a consolation it is for you if you can say: I am the father/mother of a pious child pleasing to God and man” (St John Baptist Marie Vianney).

Daily Readings

July 7, 2025

Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 28:10–22a

In those days: Jacob left Beersheba and went towards Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 91:1-2, 3-4, 14-15ab

Response: O my God, I trust in you.

He who dwells in the shelter

of the Most High,

and abides in the shade of the Almighty,

says to the Lord, “My refuge,

my stronghold, my God in whom I trust!”

Response: O my God, I trust in you.

He will free you from the snare

of the fowler,

from the destructive plague;

he will conceal you with his pinions,

and under his wings you will find refuge.

Response: O my God, I trust in you.

Since he clings to me in love,

I will free him,

protect him, for he knows my name.

When he calls on me, I will answer him;

I will be with him in distress.

Response: O my God, I trust in you.

Alleluia

See 2 Timothy 1:10

Our Savior Christ Jesus abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

Gospel

Matthew 9:18–26

At that time: While Jesus was speaking, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, "My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” And Jesus rose and followed him, with his disciples. And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. And the report of this went through all that district.

Reflection

Jesus raises a girl to new life and heals a woman of her prolonged infirmity. In both incidents, we notice the faith of the people involved. The official, fully aware that his daughter had died, approaches Jesus with great trust in his power: “...come and lay your hands on her, and she will live.” This faith is extraordinary. The woman, suffering from her infirmity for twelve long years, touches the hem of Jesus’ garment, knowing that his power to heal her could come out even through his garment! Both are rewarded richly and given what they longed for in faith. In both instances, we also notice the great compassion of the Lord. He knew their plight and extended his healing touch to both. Faith is a precondition for any miracle. If we ask with genuine faith, God grants our genuine needs, for He is a God of genuine compassion and love.

Saint Pantaenus, Confessor (- 216)

This learned and Apostolic Father who flourished in the 2nd century, hailed from Sicily (Italy). Pagan by birth and a Stoic Philosopher by profession, St Pantaenus’ esteem for virtue led him into an acquaintance with the Christians, and being charmed with the innocence and sanctity of their conversation, he opened his eyes to the truth and committed his life to it.

He studied the Holy Scriptures under the disciples of the apostles, and his thirst after sacred learning brought him to Alexandria, in Egypt, where the disciples of St Mark had instituted a celebrated school of Christian doctrine. Pantaenus sought not to display his talents in that reputed mart of literature and commerce; but his great progress in sacred learning having been discovered he was drawn out of the obscurity of his humility and placed at the helm of affairs some time before the year 179, whence he further raised the status of the well-known Christian school above all other schools of philosophy. As Clement of Alexandria wrote about him, he, “the true Sicilian Bee, gathering the flowers of the prophetic and apostolic meadow, engendered in the soul of his hearers an unfading element of knowledge.”

The Indians (i.e., probably people from South Arabia) who traded at Alexandria entreated him to pay their country a visit, whereupon he forsook his school and went to preach the Gospel to the Eastern nations, where he found some seeds of the Faith already sown. In fact, he brought back with him to Alexandria a book of the Gospel of Saint Matthew in Hebrew, which Saint Bartholomew had carried there.

Reflection: “Have a care that none lead you astray by a false philosophy” (Saint Paul).

Daily Readings

July 6, 2025

Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Isaiah (66:10-14c)

“Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her; that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breast; that you may drink deeply with delight from her glorious abundance.” For thus says the LORD: “Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; and you shall nurse, you shall be carried upon her hip, and bounced upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice; your bones shall flourish like the grass; and the hand of the LORD shall be known to his servants.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20

Response: Cry out with joy to God, all the earth. Or Alleluia.

Cry out with joy to God, all the earth; O sing to the glory of his name. O render him glorious praise. Say to God, “How awesome your deeds!

Response: Cry out with joy to God, all the earth. Or Alleluia.

“Before you all the earth shall bow down, shall sing to you, sing to your name!” Come and see the works of God: awesome his deeds among the children of men.

Response: Cry out with joy to God, all the earth. Or Alleluia.

He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. Let our joy, then, be in him; he rules forever by his might.

Response: Cry out with joy to God, all the earth. Or Alleluia.

Come and hear, all who fear God; I will tell what he did for my soul. Blest be God, who did not reject my prayer, nor withhold from me his merciful love.

Response: Cry out with joy to God, all the earth. Or Alleluia.

Reading 2

Galatians (6:14-18)

Brethren, far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God. From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.

Alleluia

Colossians 3:15a, 16a

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.  

Gospel

Luke (10:1-12, 17-20)

At that time the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the labourer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Reflection

The First Reading of today comes with the message that God comforts His people as a mother comforts her child. Here the prophet brings into focus the motherhood of God. Not many prophets have spoken about the motherhood of God; but Isaiah has some beautiful words on this theme. Our experience shows that when it comes to nursing and suckling a child, there is none compared to its mother. God who is the Supreme Being cannot be holding only the male characteristics and ignore the other half of humanity.

Compared to the First Reading which is full of hope and tenderness the passage from Galatians is full of animosity and confrontation. When Paul preached to the Galatians they have warmly and affectionately received his message. But soon the news of a sudden and drastic change in attitude towards him and his gospel reaches Paul. He realizes clearly that this teaching will neutralize the truth of Christ’s all-sufficiency for salvation and destroy the message of justification by faith. By means of this letter Paul seeks to save his converts from this fatal mixing of law and grace.

In the gospel, Jesus instructs his disciples not to carry a purse, bag, or sandals. But some money and a bag to keep the essentials are necessary for a traveler. But the missionaries are asked to take neither of them. Leaving behind what was indispensable for the journey implies a total dependence on God, who knows how to offer help and protection to the Given the urgency, the disciples are to travel light and press on to their goal. The urgency of the task is illustrated in Jesus’ command to salute no one on the way because they are not to be distracted. Jesus also explains what the disciples are to do when they enter a town: they are to seek out a place to stay with a greeting of peace or Shalom. It reflects ‘peace’ and ‘wellbeing.’ The disciple represents the presence of God’s gracious offer. If one is a “child of peace”, that is, a child of the kingdom who responds to the disciples’ offer of peace with reception and hospitality, then God fulfils the promise and resides there. If the greeting is refused, then the benefit is lost.

Further, they are to stay in one house and accept whatever is provided for them. When a town is responsive, the disciples are to receive food graciously. They simply are to eat what is set before them. Given the power to heal, the disciples are to heal those who receive them, as a tangible example of God’s blessing coming on those who respond. The disciples heal and declare the kingdom’s nearness. Jesus closes his instruction with a solemn word of judgement for the city that rejects his disciples. On judgement day, Sodom, the most despicable of ancient Gentile cities and a symbol of unrighteousness, will fare better than the city that rejects the kingdom message. The passage assumes God’s universal sovereign authority and the centrality of the kingdom message for humankind. –ones who have made themselves poor for the sake of the kingdom.

(Source: The Sunday Liturgy)

St Maria Goretti, Virgin, Martyr (1890 -1902)

Called the Saint Agnes of the 20th century, this modern day Martyr of purity couldn’t attend school but received a thorough grounding in Christian virtue from her devout though illiterate mother, Assunta, who, among other things, taught her the Church’s catechism from memory.

When Maria was 9, her family moved to Nettuno near Rome for reasons of employment and 10 when her father died. At 11, she made her long-desired First Communion after having gone through a  spiritual preparation that left a profound impression on her. A model of obedience, modesty and purity, she had an innate horror of offending Jesus by any sin. Going to confession involved a 7-mile walk each way, which Maria counted as nothing when it concerned a spiritual obligation.

In 1902, an evil-minded young farm-hand, furious at his repeated seductive advances her having been resolutely rejected, stabbed her brutally. Maria died a resigned and holy death after having pardoned her assailant and prayed for his conversion. He, along with Maria’s aged and partly paralysed mother, had the unique privilege of attending her canonization in 1950, an event which attracted such enormous Holy Year crowds, that even Saint Peter’s basilica, huge as it is, could not contain them and the ceremony had, for the first time in history, to be held in the open square in front.

Reflection: “The message which emerges from the story of Maria Goretti is one concerning personal dignity at the simple human level, which must be defended against every ruse and every violence, and it is one which also concerns consecration of one’s energies, including physical energies, to the Lord and to the Church, in radical obedience to God’s law” (Pope Saint John Paul II).

Daily Readings

July 5, 2025

Saturday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 27:1–5, 15–29

When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son”. And he answered, “Here I am.” He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.” Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the Lord your God granted me success.” Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” And he did not recognise him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands. So he blessed him. He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” Then he said, “Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed! May God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 135:1b–2, 3–4, 5–6

Response: Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.

Praise the name of the Lord;

praise him, servants of the Lord,

who stand in the house of the Lord,

in the courts of the house of our God.

Response: Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.

Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.

Sing a Psalm to his name, for this is our delight.

For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,

and Israel as his treasured possession.

Response: Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.

For I know that the Lord is great,

that our Lord is high above all gods.

The Lord does whatever he wills,

in heaven, and on earth,

in the seas, and in all the depths.

Response: Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good.

Alleluia

John 10:27

My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; and I know them, and they follow me.

Gospel

Matthew 9:14–17

At that time: The disciples of John came to Jesus, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made. Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”

Reflection

Jesus presents situational ethics in today’s gospel. Answering the question of the disciples of John the Baptist on fasting, Jesus suggests that any moral decision-making is contextual or dependent on a given set of circumstances. For the Jews of the time of Jesus, prayer, fasting and almsgiving were the three most important religious practices. Even as fasting has its benefits, Jesus goes a step further. If fasting is a means to unite oneself to God, why fast when God Himself, in the person of Jesus, is in their midst? The presence of God is the greatest gift a person can enjoy. It calls for celebration and rejoicing, not fasting and mourning. Jesus is that bridegroom, the cause of our joy. Christianity is a religion of joy, not gloom and doom because God is present to every Christian!

St Anthony Mary Zaccaria, Confessor (1502 -1539)

Widowed at the early age of 18, Antonietta Pescaroli instilled into her only child Anthony since infancy, the virtue of practical Christian charity by having him distribute all her alms for her. Anthony studied and practised medicine for some time before becoming a secular Priest at the early age of twenty-six—from a healer of bodies to a healer of souls!—and was barely 37 when he died. But into those 11 years he crowded an amazing record of charity among the poor and the sick. He laboured zealously at overcoming the deplorable conditions into which northern Italy had fallen through the frequent wars fought on its soil and the resulting famine and plague. In 1530, Anthony founded the Congregation of Clerks Regular of Saint Paul “to regenerate and revive the love of divine worship and a truly Christian way of life by means of the sacraments”, literally earning himself the moniker, “Apostle of Milan”. He’d go through the streets, Crucifix in hand, preaching on Our Lord’s Passion and death and on the need for repentance and for performing penance for one’s sins. The Congregation of nuns, The Angelicals of St Paul, which he founded, greatly aided him in raising the moral standard and strict observance in certain communities of nuns. Twenty-seven years after his death, his body was found to be incorrupt. He was canonized in 1897.

Reflection: “We should love and feel compassion for those who oppose us, rather than abhor and despise them, since they harm themselves and do us good, and adorn us with crowns of everlasting glory, while they incite God’s anger against themselves” (St Anthony Mary Zaccaria).

Daily Readings

July 4, 2025

Friday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 23:1–4, 19; 24:1–8, 62–67

Sarah lived for one hundred twenty-seven years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh, that I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” Abraham said to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’, he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there.” Now Isaac had returned from Beer-lahai-roi and was dwelling in the Negeb. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field towards evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from the camel and said to the servant, “Who is that man, walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother and took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 106:1b–2, 3–4ab, 4c–5

Response: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

for his mercy endures forever.

Who can tell the Lord’s mighty deeds,

or recount in full his praise?

Response: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Blessed are they who observe what is just,

who at all times do what is right.

O Lord, remember me

with the favour you show to your people.

Response: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Visit me with your saving power,

that I may see the riches of your chosen ones,

and may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,

boasting in the glory of your heritage.

Response: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Alleluia

Matthew 11:28

Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, says the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 9:9–13

At that time: As Jesus passed on, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Reflection

The call of Mathew, the tax collector, in today’s gospel, helps us understand the consolation of a new way of life offered by Jesus. Mathew collected taxes from merchants, travellers, farmers, etc for the Roman colonial power. He probably did not lead a peaceful life because of the anger of the people and the burden of his stressful job. It is in this context that Jesus’ call,  “follow me”, needs to be seen. The immediate response of Mathew was that “he rose and followed him”. This reaction of Matthew reveals how desperately he was looking for the consolation of a new life offered by Jesus. He celebrates his call by inviting his neighbours and friends to a table fellowship. God, in His goodness, offers us new life and consolation all the time. Let us, like Matthew, accept the call of Jesus and enter into the consolation of new life.

St Elizabeth of Portugal Queen (1271 -1336)

Named after her great-aunt, Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Elizabeth (in Spanish: Isabella) was brought up in a spirit of strict piety and self-denial. She was married at 12 to King Denis (Diniz) of Portugal, who came to be called the Re Laurador (the “Worker-King”) because of his hard work in selfless service of the country, though his immoral life left the court of Lisbon thoroughly dissolute and corrupt.

Elizabeth, nevertheless, silently kept up her regular religious practices that included fasting, penance and the daily recitation of the entire Divine Office. A true model of a virtuous wife, Queen and mother, her extraordinary kindness and forbearance enswured a complete reform in the King’s life in the fortieth year of their marriage. After the king’s demise in 1335, the Queen-widow became a Franciscan tertiary in a convent of Poor Clares where she devoted herself to the care of the poor and the sick.

Elizabeth, whose name in Greek means “God has sworn”, was a sworn “Peace-Maker”. When in 1323 her son Alfonso rebelled and took up arms against his own father because he was outraged by the favours being bestowed on his illegitimate brothers, it was she who succeeded in bringing about a reconciliation. Later on, she even travelled from her convent to Spain where her son, now Alfonso IV, was at war with his son-in-law, King Alfonso XI of Castile, for having neglected and maltreated his daughter Maria. She ensured a peaceful settlement but soon after succumbed to a fever brought on by overexertion and was canonized in 1625.

Reflection: “Mary, Mother of grace, Mother of mercy, defend us from the wicked enemy, and receive us at the hour of our death” (St Elizabeth of Portugal).

Daily Readings

July 03, 2025, Thursday

Feast of Saint Thomas, Apostle

Reading 1

Acts of the Apostles 10:24–35

In those days: Peter and brothers from Joppa entered Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshipped him. But Peter lifted him up, saying, “Stand up; I too am a man.” And as he talked with him, he went in and found many persons gathered. And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without objection. I ask then why you sent for me.” And Cornelius said, “Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house at the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing and said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.’ So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.” So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 42:2–3; 43:3, 4

*Response: My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.

Like the deer that yearns for running streams,

so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

My soul is thirsting for God, the living God;

when can I enter and appear before the face of God? 

Response: My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.

O send forth your light and your truth; they will guide me on.

They will bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. 

Response: My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.

And I will come to the altar of God, to God, my joy and gladness.

To you will I give thanks on the harp, O God, my God. 

Response: My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.

Reading 2

1 Peter 1:3–9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Have you believed, Thomas because you have seen me? says the Lord; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed..

Gospel

John 20:24–29

Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Reflection

Saint Thomas is venerated as the Apostle of India. He is hailed as the bridge between Jesus and India because he was instrumental in bringing the Christian faith to this land 2000 years ago. The life of Thomas teaches us many lessons: First, his name Thomas (Twin) indicates twin characteristics - the courage to “go and die” with Jesus (Jn 11:16) and at the same time doubting and refusing to believe that Jesus was risen when the other disciples told him that they had seen the Lord. Secondly, Saint John’s gospel presents Thomas as a questioning person. He asks Jesus, “Lord where are you going” (Jn 14:5). It is good to take our questions to Jesus our Master. Questions lead to answers that clarify our doubts and ignorance. Thirdly, his life teaches that being part of a community is necessary. Thomas was not there when Jesus appeared to his disciples (Jn 20:24). Being part of the community, formed in Jesus’ name, helps us to withstand all kinds of doubts and obstacles that come our way in following Jesus. Lastly, Thomas proves that a personal experience of Jesus is necessary to proclaim his gospel.

St Thomas, Apostle and Martyr (1st century)

St Thomas, whose Aramaic name te’ômâ, translated “Didymos” in Greek, means the “twin”, was an unlearned simple fisherman from Galilee. He was called by Jesus to be one of his 12 Apostles. A glimpse of Thomas’ great love for his master is evident at the time when he was ready to accompany Jesus to the house where Lazarus had just died, though the other Apostles feared being stoned by the Jews in Judaea —“Let us also go; that we may die with him!” (Lk 11:16) It was his declaration at the Last Supper: “Lord we do not know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” (Jn 14:5) that drew the assertion from Jesus: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” (Jn 14:6). He is called the “Doubting Thomas” for his refusal to believe in Jesus’ Resurrection when told of it by the other Apostles. Present with them at Jesus’ second apparition, Thomas made that timeless act of faith: “My Lord and my God!” (Jn 20:28).

Theomas’ missionary activities are said to have been, among other places, chiefly in India where he is believed to have landed in 52 AD. In fact, he is to Kerala what Saint Francis Xavier is to Goa!  Thomas is believed to have met his death by the spear at Mylapore (now San Thome) in Madras, where the miraculous cross of St Thomas is now venerated.

St Thomas was declared the Apostle of India by Pope Paul VI in 1972.

Reflection: “By this doubting of Thomas we are more confirmed in our belief than by the faith of the other apostles” (St Gregory the Great).

Daily Readings

July 2, 2025

Wednesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 21:5, 8–20

Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, laughing. So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.” And the thing was very displeasing to Abraham on account of his son. But God said to Abraham, “Be not displeased because of the boy and because of your slave woman. Whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through Isaac shall your offspring be named. And I will make a nation of the son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring.” So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she put the child under one of the bushes. Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot, for she said, “Let me not look on the death of the child.” And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept. And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 34:7–8, 10–11, 12–13

Response: The lowly one called, and the Lord heard him.

This lowly one called; the Lord heard,

and rescued him from all his distress.

The angel of the Lord is encamped

around those who fear him, to rescue them.

Response: The lowly one called, and the Lord heard him.

Fear the Lord, you his holy ones.

They lack nothing, those who fear him.

The rich suffer want and go hungry,

but those who seek the Lord lack no blessing.

Response: The lowly one called, and the Lord heard him.

Come, children, and hear me,

that I may teach you the fear of the Lord.

Who is it that desires life and longs to see prosperous days?

Response: The lowly one called, and the Lord heard him.

Alleluia

James 1:18

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

Gospel

Matthew 8:28–34

At that time: When Jesus came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them. And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters. The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.

Reflection

Jesus casts out demons from two persons. The villagers begged Jesus to leave the place because they were worried about their assets while ignoring the invaluable freedom from demoniac possession now being enjoyed by those two men. Here we see two sets of values working parallel to each other: 1) Values of Jesus characterized by the dignity of human life, freedom and joy and 2) Values of this world, characterized by attachments to and enslavement of worldly possessions, demons of greed, consumerism, selfishness, indifference to human suffering, denial of dignity, and a culture of death. Are we on the side of the values of Jesus?

Sts. Processus and Martinian, Martyrs (c. -100 -)

Though about their life nothing much is known, the veneration in which these two martyrs were held by the Christians of Rome goes beyond the 4th century. However, according to Roman Martyrology, they were

warders of the Mametine prison and were converted along with 40 others by the teachings and miracles of two prisoners, Sts Peter and Paul. The warders offered the apostles their liberty. It is said that a sudden flow of water miraculously sprang up in the prison thus enabling Peter to baptize them. Paulinus, the officer in charge, tried to persuade both Processus and Martinian to denounce Christianity. Finding them firm in their resolve to persevere in their new faith they were subjected to cruel torture. They boldly declined to offer incense on the altar of Jupiter, and all through their suffering their only utterance was “Blessed be the name of the Lord!” until they were finally slain by the sword. They were buried by a woman called Lucina, on her own property.

In the 4th century a Basilica was built over their tomb, where, in the course of time many miracles and healings took place drawing great crowds. At the beginning of the 9th century St Pascal I had their

relics transferred to St Peter’s where an altar was built in their honour.

Reflection: “Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow. The same eternal Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day of your life. He will either shield you from

suffering, or he will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace, then, and put aside all anxious thoughts” (St Francis de Sales).

Daily Readings

July 1, 2025

Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 19:15–29

In those days: The angels urged Lot, saying, “Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the punishment of the city.” But he lingered. So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. And as they brought them out, one said, “Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.” And Lot said to them, “Oh, no, my lords. Behold, your servant has found favour in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life. But I cannot escape to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die. Behold, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one. Let me escape there – is it not a little one? – and my life will be saved!” He said to him, “Behold, I grant you this favour also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken. Escape there quickly, for I can do nothing till you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulphur and fire from the Lord out of heaven. And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord. And he looked down towards Sodom and Gomorrah and towards all the land of the valley, and he looked and, behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace. So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 26:2–3, 9–10, 11–12

Response: O Lord, your mercy is before my eyes.

Examine me, Lord, and try me.

O test my heart and my mind.

Your mercy is before my eyes,

and I walk according to your truth.

Response: O Lord, your mercy is before my eyes.

Do not sweep away my soul with sinners,

nor my life with those who shed blood,

in whose hands are evil plots,

whose right hands are filled with a bribe.

Response: O Lord, your mercy is before my eyes.

As for me, I have walked in my integrity.

Redeem me and have mercy on me.

My foot stands on level ground:

I will bless the Lord in the assembly.

Response: O Lord, your mercy is before my eyes.

Alleluia

Psalm 130:5

I long for the Lord, in his word I hope.

Gospel

Matthew 8:23–27

At that time: When Jesus got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marvelled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

Reflection

The gospel of today presents one of the mighty deeds performed by Jesus. He manifests his authority over the wind and the sea. The disciples are frightened seeing the raging sea. Figuratively, the stormy sea denotes the persecutions, sufferings and struggles endured by the first Christian community, and the boat represents the Church community. For the disciples who lack faith in the presence of Jesus, he is ‘sleeping’. The irony of this episode is that the disciples are not convinced of the power of Jesus who is right in their midst. They focus on the problem of the rough sea instead of placing their faith and trust in the one who has power over the sea and the wind. They fail to take the important journey from doubt to faith and from death to life. What have we focussed our attention on – Jesus or the storm?

Saints Junipero Serra and Gall, Bishop (c.486-c.553)

Saint Junipero Serra

Born on Spain’s island of Mallorca, Serra entered the Franciscan Order taking the name of Saint Francis’ childlike companion, Brother Juniper. Until he was 35, he spent most of his time in the classroom—first as a student of theology and then as a professor. He also became famous for his preaching. Suddenly he gave it all up and followed the yearning that had begun years before when he heard about the missionary work of Saint Francis Solano in South America. Junipero’s desire was to convert native peoples in the New World.

Arriving by ship at Vera Cruz, Mexico, he and a companion walked the 250 miles to Mexico City. On the way Junipero’s left leg became infected by an insect bite and would remain a cross—sometimes life-threatening—for the rest of his life. For 18 years, he worked in central Mexico and in the Baja Peninsula. He became president of the missions there.

Because the Native Americans were living a nonhuman life from the Spanish point of view, the friars were made their legal guardians. The Native Americans were kept at the mission after baptism lest they be corrupted in their former haunts—a move that has brought cries of “injustice” from some moderns.

Junipero’s missionary life was a long battle with cold and hunger, with unsympathetic military commanders and even with danger of death from non-Christian native peoples. Through it all his unquenchable zeal was fed by prayer each night, often from midnight till dawn. He baptized over 6,000 people and confirmed 5,000. His travels would have circled the globe. He brought the Native Americans not only the gift of faith but also a decent standard of living. He won their love, as witnessed especially by their grief at his death. He is buried at Mission San Carlo Borromeo, Carmel, and was beatified in 1988. Pope Francis canonized him in Washington, D.C., on September 23, 2015.

St Gall Bishop (c.486-c.553)

The son of a rich father and of a mother who was descended from the family of Vettius Agapatius, a Roman who suffered at Lyons for the faith, Gall resolved to consecrate himself to God and withdrew to the monastery of Cournon, where he earnestly prayed to be admitted there amongst the monks. The Abbot refused until he should have obtained the consent of his parents, which he readily did and thus renounced the world to embrace a life of religious poverty.

Here his eminent virtues distinguished him in a manner that soon attracted the attention of Bishop Quinctain who promoted him to Holy Orders. When the bishop died, in 527, Gall was appointed successor and, in his new position, became known for his humility, charity and zeal, and above all for his patience in putting up with all injuries. Being once brutally hit on the head, he showed no anger or resentment towards his assailant but by his meekness disarmed the savage of his rage.

At another time, a Priest named Evodius insulted him, but the saint, making the least reply, went out to visit the churches of the city. Evodius was so touched by Gall’s meekness that he prostrated himself at his feet in the middle of the street, seeking pardon. From then on they both lived on terms of the most cordial friendship. During the last few years of his life Gall gave himself up for the upbringing of his nephew, who went on to distinguish himself as St Gregory of Tours.

Reflection: “Meekness is a virtue rarer than chastity; it is also more excellent than chastity and all the other moral virtues, for it is the complement of charity, the greatest of the theological virtues” (St Thomas Aquinas).

*****

Daily Readings

June 30, 2025

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:16–33

The men set out from Oaks of Mamre, and they looked down towards Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 8–9, 10–11

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, 

his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger forever. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 8:18–22

At that time: When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Reflection 

Today’s gospel explains the cost of discipleship. Jesus does not advertise his brand of leadership by performing populist gimmicks or promising wealth and prosperity to those who wish to follow him. In human terms, following Jesus and his ideals in life would be equal to taking a huge risk. He is an itinerant preacher with no place to lay his head. Those who choose to follow him should expect no worldly comforts and personal gains. But the one who takes the risk of following him should never look back at what has been left behind. Following him should be immediate, total and radical. His followers should not be in two minds and two loyalties. No material object or personal relationship should outweigh one’s discipleship of the Lord.  But such a person will be blessed by God with hundredfold joy in this world and eternal life in the next. Am I willing to follow Christ, who is poor, shunned and rejected?

First Martyrs of the Church at Rome (64 - 314)

In the early years of the Church, persecutions kept breaking out like rash across the vast Roman Empire. But given the present situation, we hardly give those terrible persecutions so much as a thought. One of the first major persecutions began under Nero in the year 64 A.D. and was followed by one under Domitian in 95 A.D. In 107 A.D., Trajan tested the faith, hope and love of the first Christians with another terrible ordeal by fire, prison and the sword. In 135 A.D., Hadrian followed his example and Marcus Aurelius followed suit in 180 A.D. In 222 A.D., Septimus Severus did his best to shake the constancy of the early Christians, followed by Decius in 250 A.D. and Valerian in 257 A.D., the last attempt being that of Diocletian in 303 A.D.

The Church today offers us this Commemoration of the First Martyrs to help us always bear in mind that the blood of martyrs is first and foremost the seed of faith; secondly, to have us prove, as they did, that our faith is a living, vibrant reality; and thirdly, consider the possibility of someday being called upon to bear witness as they did—to our faith and our hope, to our love for God and for our fellowmen, as so many of our contemporaries here in India itself and elsewhere have done.

Reflection: “To die for the truth is not to die merely for one’s faith, or one’s country, it is to die for the world. The blood of martyrs is shed in confirmation of the noblest claim — the claim to feed upon immortal truth, to walk with God, and be divinely free” (Cowper).

Daily Readings

June 30, 2025

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:16–33

The men set out from Oaks of Mamre, and they looked down towards Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 8–9, 10–11

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, 

his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger forever. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 8:18–22

At that time: When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Reflection 

Today’s gospel explains the cost of discipleship. Jesus does not advertise his brand of leadership by performing populist gimmicks or promising wealth and prosperity to those who wish to follow him. In human terms, following Jesus and his ideals in life would be equal to taking a huge risk. He is an itinerant preacher with no place to lay his head. Those who choose to follow him should expect no worldly comforts and personal gains. But the one who takes the risk of following him should never look back at what has been left behind. Following him should be immediate, total and radical. His followers should not be in two minds and two loyalties. No material object or personal relationship should outweigh one’s discipleship of the Lord.  But such a person will be blessed by God with hundredfold joy in this world and eternal life in the next. Am I willing to follow Christ, who is poor, shunned and rejected?

First Martyrs of the Church at Rome (64 - 314)

In the early years of the Church, persecutions kept breaking out like rash across the vast Roman Empire. But given the present situation, we hardly give those terrible persecutions so much as a thought. One of the first major persecutions began under Nero in the year 64 A.D. and was followed by one under Domitian in 95 A.D. In 107 A.D., Trajan tested the faith, hope and love of the first Christians with another terrible ordeal by fire, prison and the sword. In 135 A.D., Hadrian followed his example and Marcus Aurelius followed suit in 180 A.D. In 222 A.D., Septimus Severus did his best to shake the constancy of the early Christians, followed by Decius in 250 A.D. and Valerian in 257 A.D., the last attempt being that of Diocletian in 303 A.D.

The Church today offers us this Commemoration of the First Martyrs to help us always bear in mind that the blood of martyrs is first and foremost the seed of faith; secondly, to have us prove, as they did, that our faith is a living, vibrant reality; and thirdly, consider the possibility of someday being called upon to bear witness as they did—to our faith and our hope, to our love for God and for our fellowmen, as so many of our contemporaries here in India itself and elsewhere have done.

Reflection: “To die for the truth is not to die merely for one’s faith, or one’s country, it is to die for the world. The blood of martyrs is shed in confirmation of the noblest claim — the claim to feed upon immortal truth, to walk with God, and be divinely free” (Cowper).

Daily Readings

June 30, 2025

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:16–33

The men set out from Oaks of Mamre, and they looked down towards Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 8–9, 10–11

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, 

his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger forever. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 8:18–22

At that time: When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Reflection 

Today’s gospel explains the cost of discipleship. Jesus does not advertise his brand of leadership by performing populist gimmicks or promising wealth and prosperity to those who wish to follow him. In human terms, following Jesus and his ideals in life would be equal to taking a huge risk. He is an itinerant preacher with no place to lay his head. Those who choose to follow him should expect no worldly comforts and personal gains. But the one who takes the risk of following him should never look back at what has been left behind. Following him should be immediate, total and radical. His followers should not be in two minds and two loyalties. No material object or personal relationship should outweigh one’s discipleship of the Lord.  But such a person will be blessed by God with hundredfold joy in this world and eternal life in the next. Am I willing to follow Christ, who is poor, shunned and rejected?

First Martyrs of the Church at Rome (64 - 314)

In the early years of the Church, persecutions kept breaking out like rash across the vast Roman Empire. But given the present situation, we hardly give those terrible persecutions so much as a thought. One of the first major persecutions began under Nero in the year 64 A.D. and was followed by one under Domitian in 95 A.D. In 107 A.D., Trajan tested the faith, hope and love of the first Christians with another terrible ordeal by fire, prison and the sword. In 135 A.D., Hadrian followed his example and Marcus Aurelius followed suit in 180 A.D. In 222 A.D., Septimus Severus did his best to shake the constancy of the early Christians, followed by Decius in 250 A.D. and Valerian in 257 A.D., the last attempt being that of Diocletian in 303 A.D.

The Church today offers us this Commemoration of the First Martyrs to help us always bear in mind that the blood of martyrs is first and foremost the seed of faith; secondly, to have us prove, as they did, that our faith is a living, vibrant reality; and thirdly, consider the possibility of someday being called upon to bear witness as they did—to our faith and our hope, to our love for God and for our fellowmen, as so many of our contemporaries here in India itself and elsewhere have done.

Reflection: “To die for the truth is not to die merely for one’s faith, or one’s country, it is to die for the world. The blood of martyrs is shed in confirmation of the noblest claim — the claim to feed upon immortal truth, to walk with God, and be divinely free” (Cowper).

Daily Readings

June 30, 2025

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:16–33

The men set out from Oaks of Mamre, and they looked down towards Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 8–9, 10–11

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, 

his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger forever. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 8:18–22

At that time: When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Reflection 

Today’s gospel explains the cost of discipleship. Jesus does not advertise his brand of leadership by performing populist gimmicks or promising wealth and prosperity to those who wish to follow him. In human terms, following Jesus and his ideals in life would be equal to taking a huge risk. He is an itinerant preacher with no place to lay his head. Those who choose to follow him should expect no worldly comforts and personal gains. But the one who takes the risk of following him should never look back at what has been left behind. Following him should be immediate, total and radical. His followers should not be in two minds and two loyalties. No material object or personal relationship should outweigh one’s discipleship of the Lord.  But such a person will be blessed by God with hundredfold joy in this world and eternal life in the next. Am I willing to follow Christ, who is poor, shunned and rejected?

First Martyrs of the Church at Rome (64 - 314)

In the early years of the Church, persecutions kept breaking out like rash across the vast Roman Empire. But given the present situation, we hardly give those terrible persecutions so much as a thought. One of the first major persecutions began under Nero in the year 64 A.D. and was followed by one under Domitian in 95 A.D. In 107 A.D., Trajan tested the faith, hope and love of the first Christians with another terrible ordeal by fire, prison and the sword. In 135 A.D., Hadrian followed his example and Marcus Aurelius followed suit in 180 A.D. In 222 A.D., Septimus Severus did his best to shake the constancy of the early Christians, followed by Decius in 250 A.D. and Valerian in 257 A.D., the last attempt being that of Diocletian in 303 A.D.

The Church today offers us this Commemoration of the First Martyrs to help us always bear in mind that the blood of martyrs is first and foremost the seed of faith; secondly, to have us prove, as they did, that our faith is a living, vibrant reality; and thirdly, consider the possibility of someday being called upon to bear witness as they did—to our faith and our hope, to our love for God and for our fellowmen, as so many of our contemporaries here in India itself and elsewhere have done.

Reflection: “To die for the truth is not to die merely for one’s faith, or one’s country, it is to die for the world. The blood of martyrs is shed in confirmation of the noblest claim — the claim to feed upon immortal truth, to walk with God, and be divinely free” (Cowper).

Daily Readings

June 30, 2025

Monday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1

Genesis 18:16–33

The men set out from Oaks of Mamre, and they looked down towards Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went towards Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 103:1–2, 3–4, 8–9, 10–11

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, 

his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger forever. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. 

Response: The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Alleluia

Psalm 95:8

Today, harden not your hearts, but listen to the voice of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 8:18–22

At that time: When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Reflection 

Today’s gospel explains the cost of discipleship. Jesus does not advertise his brand of leadership by performing populist gimmicks or promising wealth and prosperity to those who wish to follow him. In human terms, following Jesus and his ideals in life would be equal to taking a huge risk. He is an itinerant preacher with no place to lay his head. Those who choose to follow him should expect no worldly comforts and personal gains. But the one who takes the risk of following him should never look back at what has been left behind. Following him should be immediate, total and radical. His followers should not be in two minds and two loyalties. No material object or personal relationship should outweigh one’s discipleship of the Lord.  But such a person will be blessed by God with hundredfold joy in this world and eternal life in the next. Am I willing to follow Christ, who is poor, shunned and rejected?

First Martyrs of the Church at Rome (64 - 314)

In the early years of the Church, persecutions kept breaking out like rash across the vast Roman Empire. But given the present situation, we hardly give those terrible persecutions so much as a thought. One of the first major persecutions began under Nero in the year 64 A.D. and was followed by one under Domitian in 95 A.D. In 107 A.D., Trajan tested the faith, hope and love of the first Christians with another terrible ordeal by fire, prison and the sword. In 135 A.D., Hadrian followed his example and Marcus Aurelius followed suit in 180 A.D. In 222 A.D., Septimus Severus did his best to shake the constancy of the early Christians, followed by Decius in 250 A.D. and Valerian in 257 A.D., the last attempt being that of Diocletian in 303 A.D.

The Church today offers us this Commemoration of the First Martyrs to help us always bear in mind that the blood of martyrs is first and foremost the seed of faith; secondly, to have us prove, as they did, that our faith is a living, vibrant reality; and thirdly, consider the possibility of someday being called upon to bear witness as they did—to our faith and our hope, to our love for God and for our fellowmen, as so many of our contemporaries here in India itself and elsewhere have done.

Reflection: “To die for the truth is not to die merely for one’s faith, or one’s country, it is to die for the world. The blood of martyrs is shed in confirmation of the noblest claim — the claim to feed upon immort

al truth, to walk with God, and be divinely free” (Cowper).

Daily Reading

June 29, 2025

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

Reading 1

Acts of the Apostles (12:1-11)

In those days: Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James the brother of John with the sword, and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak round you and follow me.” And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him. When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM (34)

Response: From all my terrors, the Lord set me free.

I will bless the Lord at all times; praise of him is always in my mouth. In the Lord my soul shall make its boast; the humble shall hear and be glad.

Response: From all my terrors, the Lord set me free.

Glorify the Lord with me; together let us praise his name. I sought the Lord, and he answered me; from all my terrors he set me free.

Response: From all my terrors, the Lord set me free.

Look toward him and be radiant; let your faces not be abashed. This lowly one called; the Lord heard, and rescued him from all his distress.

Response: From all my terrors, the Lord set me free.

The angel of the Lord is encamped around those who fear him, to rescue them. Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed the man who seeks refuge in him.

Response: From all my terrors, the Lord set me free.

Reading 2

Second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy ( 4:6-8, 17-18)

 Beloved: I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

ACCLAMATION

Alleluia, alleluia!

You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. Alleluia! (Mt 16:18)

GOSPEL

Matthew (16:13-19)

All: Glory to you, O Lord. At that time: When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”  

Reflection

Today we celebrate the feast of two spiritual giants in the history of the Church, Peter and Paul. Peter, the head of the Apostles, is assigned the duty to preserve the unity of the Church; and Paul the Apostle of the Gentiles is the fierce defender of the faith. Both of these have contributed to the Church and the Christian faithful, and also in the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church, with its centre in Rome. Peter was a fisherman from Galilee. His world was the Sea of Galilee and the hilly countryside that surrounded it. Andrew his brothers led Peter to Christ. Jesus intended that Peter would be the rock-like foundation on which the Church would be built. Paul was from the university city of Tarsus, the capital city of the Roman province of Cilicia, on the South-east coast of what is today’s Turkey. He seems to have been highly educated. His family appears to have been well-to-do as his father was a Roman citizen. He was a zealous Pharisee, who declared himself blameless with regard to the keeping of the Jewish Law. Paul hated and persecuted Christians as heretics and even assisted at the stoning of Saint Stephen. On his way to Damascus, Syria, to arrest another group of the faithful, he was knocked to the ground, struck blind by a heavenly light, and given the message that in persecuting Christians, he was persecuting Christ himself. Jesus entrusted the leadership of the Church to Peter. He also gave him the keys of the kingdom and authority to bind and loose (Matthew 16:19). The Apostle Paul worked so assiduously, resolutely, with a sense of commitment and conviction, and uncompromisingly in spreading the good news. Both of them sacrificed their life in total service and finally laid down their lives for the sake of Christ as Peter was crucified and Paul beheaded. For all their differences, they had at least one thing in common. Both of these men found themselves at odds with the Lord. Peter denied Jesus publicly three times. Paul violently persecuted the followers of Jesus, and thereby persecuted Jesus himself. Yet, their resistance to the Lord did not prevent the Lord from working powerfully through them. Peter was chosen to be the leader of the twelve, the rock on which Jesus would build his Church. Paul was chosen to be the great apostle to the pagans. Today’s feast reminds us that the way the Lord works through us is unique to each one of us. The feast also reassures us that our many resistances to the Lord need not be a hindrance to the Lord working through us. Our failings do not define who we are. Paul would go on to say, ‘the Lord’s grace towards me has not been in vain’. The Lord’s grace towards us in our weakness and frailty need never be in vain if we continue to open ourselves to the workings of that grace, as Peter and Paul did. May the Lord, who is glorified through His Apostles, St Peter and St Paul, continue to bless us all and guide us, His Church, His faithful ones, so that in all our good works and endeavours, we will bring ever greater glory to Him, and bring many more people ever closer to salvation and grace in Him.

Source: The Sunday Liturgy

Saints Peter & Paul (Apostles, Martyrs) (d-c. 67)

On this day, the Church looks back to her origin and celebrates solemnly the memory of the two most important men in her life who moulded her in the early stages. Saints Peter and Paul, the two pillars of the Church, have left an indelible mark on her very foundation and character.

Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah” (Mt 16:17a) was a native of Bethsaida on the shore of Galilee. Married and settled at Capernaum, together with his brother Andrew he earned his living “fishing”, until the Lord called them from being fishermen to become “fishers of men” (Lk 5:9).

St Paul was, next to St John the Evangelist, probably the greatest religious genius known in Christianity. Belonging to the Diaspora and equally familiar with both Jewish and Greek culture, his unique experience of the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus was to prove to be the driving force that made him one of the most zealous, dynamic and courageous ambassadors of Christ ever! What emerges from his Epistles (numbering 7 to be precise) which have remained till date a wellspring of truth, testimony and teaching, is not a cold, hard character with a sharp intellect and unfailing willpower but a passionate lover and dedicated follower of Christ.

Both Peter and Paul were men of action, the work of each complementing that of the other. Both ardent lovers of Christ, each could rightly say: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Tim 4:7-8).

Reflection: “Both apostles share the same feast day, for these two were one; and even though they suffered on different days, they were as one. Peter went first, and Paul followed. And so we celebrate this day made holy for us by the apostles’ blood.” (St Augustine of Hippo).

Daily Readings

June 28, 2025

Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Memorial

Reading 1

Isaiah 61:9-11

The offspring [of my people] shall be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are an offspring the Lord has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations.

Responsorial Psalm

1 Samuel 2:1, 4–5, 6–7, 8abcd

Response: My heart exults in the Lord, my Saviour.

My heart exults in the Lord;

my horn is exalted in the Lord.

My mouth derides my enemies,

because I rejoice in your salvation.

Response: My heart exults in the Lord, my Saviour.

The bows of the mighty are broken,

but the feeble bind on strength.

Those who were full

have hired themselves out for bread,

but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger.

The barren has borne seven,

but she who has many children is forlorn.

Response: My heart exults in the Lord, my Saviour.

The Lord kills and brings to life;

he brings down to Sheol and raises up.

The Lord makes poor and makes rich;

he brings low and he exalts.

Response: My heart exults in the Lord, my Saviour.

He raises up the poor from the dust;

he lifts the needy from the ash heap

to make them sit with princes

and inherit a seat of honour.

Response: My heart exults in the Lord, my Saviour.

Alleluia

Blessed is the Virgin Mary, who kept the word of God, pondering it in her heart.

Gospel

Luke 2:41–51

The parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

Reflection

After the celebration of the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, today we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary, reminding us of the special link that Jesus our Lord has with His mother Mary. As we know and believe, Mary was conceived without original sin – she is the Immaculate Conception. To say that Mary’s heart is immaculate is to say that her intentions, her very personality and her character are pure. Her will and her entire inner life are set on God – her heart belongs to Him alone. Mary’s mind and heart were filled with the knowledge of God’s mercy, his mercy that endures from age to age, from generation to generation. Today, let us be thankful to God for the priceless gift of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to the world, to the Church and each of us. To many, the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a source of comfort in times of personal need and the needs of the Church and the world.

Immaculate Heart of Mary

Historically, devotion to the Heart of Mary grew up in parallel, but at a lesser intensity than that of devotion to the Heart of Jesus, only starting to become more prominent during the time of St John Eudes.

Saint John Eudes brought people to love Christ and the Virgin Mary by speaking tirelessly about their Heart, the sign of the love God shows for us and the communion to which we are called.

Nevertheless,  it was not until after the Apparitions at Rue du Bac concerning the “Miraculous Medal” made to Catherine Labouré in 1830, and the establishment of a society dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, at the Church of Our Lady of Victories in Paris in 1836, that this particular devotion became really well known.

Since then devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, has gradually grown more widespread in the Church, particularly since the apparitions at Fatima.

The main difference between the devotions to the hearts of Jesus and Mary is that the one concerned with Jesus emphasizes his divine heart as being full of love for mankind, but with this love for the most part being ignored or rejected, while devotion to Mary’s heart is essentially concerned with the love that her heart has for Jesus, for God.

Therefore, it is not an end in itself, so the love of her heart is meant to be a model for the way we should love God. The fact that her heart is immaculate, that is sinless, means that she is the only fully human person who is able to really love God in the way that he should be loved.

Honouring Mary's Immaculate Heart is really just another way of honouring Mary as the person who was chosen to be the Mother of God, recognizing her extraordinary holiness and the immense love she bestowed on Jesus as his mother, the person who was called to share in and co-operate in his redemptive sufferings.

The aim of the devotion is to unite humankind to God through Mary’s heart, and this process involves the ideas of consecration and reparation. A person is consecrated to Mary’s Immaculate Heart as a way of being completely devoted to God. This involves a total gift of self, something only ultimately possible with reference to God; but Mary is our intermediary in this process of consecration.

Because of the strong analogy between Jesus and Mary, the consecration to Mary’s Immaculate Heart is closely linked to the consecration to Jesus’ Sacred Heart, although it is subordinate and dependent on it. That is, although the act of consecration is ultimately addressed to God, it is an act that is made through Mary.

Daily Readings

June 27, 2025

Solemnity of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Reading 1

Ezekiel 34:11-16

Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land.  And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 23:1–3a, 3b–4, 5, 6

Response: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

The Lord is my shepherd;

there is nothing I shall want.

Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose.

Near restful waters he leads me;

he revives my soul.

Response: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

He guides me along the right path,

for the sake of his name.

Though I should walk in the valley of the shadow of death,

no evil would I fear, for you are with me.

Your crook and your staff will give me comfort.

Response: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

You have prepared a table before me in the sight of my foes.

My head you have anointed with oil;

my cup is overflowing.

Response: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell

for length of days unending.

Response: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Reading 2

Romans 5:5b-11

Brethren: God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person – though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die – but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Alleluia

Matthew 11:29ab

Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord; and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart.

Gospel

Luke 15:3-7

At that time: Jesus told the Pharisees and the scribes this parable; “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbours, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

Reflection

The heart is considered the seat of love. Out of his love for the people of Israel, “the Lord set his heart” on them and chose them, bringing them out of their slavery with a mighty hand. He loved them despite their unfaithfulness. Saint John teaches that God is love and “God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent His only Son into the world so that we might live through him” (1 Jn 4:9). The Heart of Jesus is the seat of this highest form of love, as Jesus abides in God and God abides in him, in the most perfect form. Honouring the Sacred Heart of Jesus is honouring God, who is love. Jesus reveals his tenderness, gentleness and sweetness of his heart in the shepherd who “leaves the ninety-nine in the wilderness and seeks out the lone one till he finds it” (Lk 15:4). We are invited to experience and imitate the qualities of Jesus’ heart: love, compassion, mercy, tenderness, gentleness and graciousness. Do I make an effort to reach out to others in love and compassion as God Himself did to us in love and compassion by sending His own Son for our salvation?

The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

The Sacred Heart of Jesus is a devotional with long and historic provenance within Christianity, and in modern times has been established as a Solemnity for the universal Church.

The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is a celebration that falls 19 days after Pentecost, on a Friday.

In 1856, Pope Pius IX established the Feast of the Sacred Heart as obligatory for the whole Church, to be celebrated on the Friday after Corpus Christi.

The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is much older. The beginnings of a devotion of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus are found in the fathers of the Church, including Origen, Saint Ambrose, Saint Jerome, Saint Augustine of Hippo, Saint Hippolytus of Rome, Saint Irenaeus, Saint Justin Martyr, and Saint Cyprian. In the 11th century this devotion found a renewal in the writings of Benedictine and Cistercian monasteries. This expression was given form by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in the 12th century in his famous poem/prayer “O Sacred Head Surrounded.”

In the 13th century, the Franciscan St. Bonaventure’s work “With You is the Source of Life” (which is the reading for the Divine Office on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart) began to point to the heart as the fountain from which God’s love poured into our lives.

At the end of the 13th century, St. Gertrude, on the feast of St. John the Evangelist, had a vision in which she was allowed to rest her head near the wound in the Saviour’s side. She heard the beating of the Divine Heart and asked John if, on the night of the Last Supper, he too had felt this beating heart, why then had he never spoken of the fact. John replied that this revelation had been reserved for subsequent ages when the world, having grown cold, would have need to rekindle its love.

From that time until the time of St. John Eudes the devotion continues to spread, primarily as a private devotion, but one that was increasingly wide-spread. The Franciscans continued the devotion within their fraternity and their churches, but other religious orders also prayed the devotion: the Jesuits, the Carmelites of Spain, and the Benedictines.