May 12, 2026 Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter Optional Memorial of Saints Nereus and Achilleus, Martyrs Optional Memorial of Saint Pancras, Martyr Gospel: John 16:5–11
Today is Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter. The Church celebrates the Optional Memorials of three holy martyrs: Saints Nereus, Achilleus, and Pancras. In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus continues to speak to us about the Spirit of Truth.
Each of us has received this Spirit of Truth. When we first came to the Church to attend catechumenate classes, the Spirit of Truth proclaimed God’s truth to us through the voice of the Church. When we received the Sacraments of Initiation, He sealed our foreheads and souls with an indelible mark through the hands of the ordained ministers. When we participate in Holy Mass, He speaks to us through the pastors sent by the Son, who sends Him, and helps us to understand the Word of God. When we prepare for Confession, He enlightens us and assists us in making a worthy preparation, so that through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we may be restored to friendship with God and with the world. When we are ill, He strengthens us through the sacred ministers of the Church—built by the Son upon Saint Peter—who administer the Anointing of the Sick, granting us fortitude to endure suffering.
We know that the Spirit of Truth—the Holy Spirit—proceeds from the Father and the Son. He is Lord and Giver of Life, worshipped and glorified together with the Father and the Son. From the beginning of creation, He was present (cf. Gen 1). At the outset of Jesus’ public ministry, He descended upon Him in the form of a dove (cf. Matt 3:13–17). He led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil (cf. Matt 4:1–11). After Jesus’ Ascension, He appeared in the sound of a mighty wind and tongues of fire, filling the hearts of the Apostles gathered in the Upper Room, enabling them to speak in diverse tongues (cf. Acts 2:1–13). Thus, the Holy Spirit is fully engaged in the work of creation and the redemption of humanity.
Each of us has received the Holy Spirit in the Sacraments of Initiation. Once we have received Him, He dwells within our hearts, helping us in our weakness and interceding for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words (cf. Rom 8:26). Therefore, if we look with the eyes of faith and listen with the ears of faith, we will hear His sighs and perceive the gifts He works within us.
Let us pray that the three martyrs we commemorate today may intercede for us before God, that we may receive the Holy Spirit worthily and live in a manner befitting the spirit of God’s Word. Amen.
Saints Nereus, Achilleus, and Pancras, pray for us! Holy Spirit, I trust in You!
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