July 31, 2026 Saint Ignatius of Loyola (Memorial) Gospel: Matthew 13:54-58
Today is Friday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time. Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. The recently published Missal tells us: Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) was born into a noble family at Loyola. He was wounded at the battle of Pamplona (1521) and experienced a conversion during his convalescence. He went on to write the Spiritual Exercises, studied theology at Paris, and, with his companions, founded the Society of Jesus. The Jesuits have had a huge impact on the reform of the Church, the education of the young, and the preaching of the Gospel to every corner of the world.
Today’s passage from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew presents us with the narrative of Jesus being rejected in the synagogue of His hometown.
We all know that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. When Saint Joseph brought Him back from Egypt, He lived in Nazareth until the day of His public appearance (cf. Luke 2:51). The Jews in Nazareth were very familiar with Jesus and His family. Since Nazareth was a very remote place, the Jews there received the education of the rabbis. The world of God taught by those rabbis was one of a God of clear reward and punishment: He only favored those who offered sacrifice to Him and punished anyone who did not. When they heard Jesus’ teaching, they were astonished, but because they knew Jesus’ background, they began to shame Him because of His origins.
Often we are like those in the synagogue of Jesus’ hometown who listened to His teaching, judging the brothers and sisters who proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom to us based on our own human understanding. In our eyes, those brothers and sisters who proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom are, like us, created by God in His own image, and have no extraordinary qualities. We might even think that some of them are less knowledgeable than we are, and therefore we question in our hearts everything they proclaim to us. Like those in today’s Gospel who took offense at Him (cf. Matthew 13:57), we reject all that they proclaim to us and continue to live according to our own will.
However, the compassionate Father has fully revealed Himself to us through His beloved Son. For “No one has ever seen God; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has revealed Him” (John 1:18). He is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, upholding all things by His powerful word (Hebrews 1:3). In the fullness of His grace, through the Baptism we have received—washed once and for all in the blood and water flowing from His sacred side—we have been cleansed of original sin and united to Him, and through His glorious Resurrection, we have begun a new life in Him. After He was taken up into heaven, He sent His Holy Spirit to His pilgrim Church, so that together with all the brothers and sisters who have received the Baptism of Christ, died with Christ, and begun a new life in Him, we may receive the Holy Spirit who proceeds from Him and the Father. Through the Holy Spirit we have received, we share in the communion of saints, together with the heavenly saints, partaking in His eternal divine life.
O God, who raised up Saint Ignatius of Loyola in your Church to further the greater glory of your name, grant that by his help we may imitate him in fighting the good fight on earth and merit to receive with him a crown in heaven. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
July 30, 2026 Thursday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time St. Peter Chrysologus, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Optional Memorial) Gospel: Matthew 13:47-53
Today is Thursday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time. Today the Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Peter Chrysologus, Bishop and Confessor of the Faith, and Doctor of the Church.
The recently published Missal tells us: St. Peter Chrysologus (c. 380 – c. 450) was born in Imola, Italy, and was appointed Bishop of Ravenna in 433. He maintained close relations with the imperial family, and in a mosaic in Ravenna, he is depicted together with the imperial household. Empress Galla Placidia called him “Chrysologus” (Golden Worded). He is most remembered for his eloquent sermons and his struggles against heresy. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1729.
Today’s passage from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew continues Jesus’ teaching on the parables of the Kingdom of Heaven.
First, Jesus said to his disciples: “The Kingdom of God is like a net thrown into the sea, which gathers fish of every kind. When it is full, they haul it ashore and sit down to put the good into buckets, but the bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age: the angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth” (cf. Matthew 13:47-50).
If we understand Jesus’ saying about the Kingdom of God merely according to the literal meaning, we might regard this kingdom as a realm with boundaries, limitations, and a time limit. If that were the case, we would be gravely mistaken. For we know that the Kingdom of God is infinite; it belongs not only to the Jews, but equally to us Gentiles. As Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me… I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice” (cf. John 10:14-16).
Then, where is the Kingdom of God in the world we live in? I believe many brothers and sisters in the Lord would say: the Kingdom of God is in our hearts. However, this is not entirely accurate. In fact, when we are called to gather in the church in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, at that moment, the Kingdom of God appears among us. Within this Kingdom of God, some remain faithful to the Holy Word of God and accomplish all that God requires of them, just as Moses did in the First Reading today. Others, though initially faithful to the Holy Word and obedient to the holy will of God, become corrupted in spirit and body when seduced by worldly temptations and material luxuries, and defiled by the devil and his angels. When the day appointed by God arrives, those who are faithful to the Holy Word and are pleasing in the sight of God will be like the “good fish,” remaining in the “bucket,” clothed in the righteousness of the children of God; those who have been defiled by the devil and his angels will be like weeds, thrown out, and they will enter into eternal death, enduring perpetual punishment.
O God, who made the Bishop Saint Peter Chrysologus an outstanding preacher of your Incarnate Word, grant, through his intercession, that we may constantly ponder in our hearts the mysteries of your salvation and faithfully express them in what we do. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
July 29, 2026 Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus Memorial Gospel: John 11:19-27
Today is Wednesday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time. Today the Church celebrates the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus.
The recently published Missal tells us: Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus (1st century) were close friends of the Lord. Jesus often came to their home in Bethany. The Gospel according to John clearly states that Jesus loved them deeply. Martha provided hospitality for Jesus, while Mary listened attentively to His teachings—presenting us with the two dimensions of “action” and “contemplation” in discipleship. Lazarus was restored to life after four days in the tomb, and the chief priests even considered putting him to death, so great was the attention they were attracting. According to tradition, the three siblings went out to preach the Gospel after the Ascension of Jesus and are particularly associated with the southern region of France. Lazarus is claimed to have been both Bishop of Kition (Cyprus) and Bishop of Marseilles (France).
Here, I would like to make special mention of the Decree De Ss. Martha, Maria et Lazarro in Calendarium Romanum Generale describendis issued by the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on January 26, 2021 (Prot. N. 35/21). The Dicastery teaches us: In the home at Bethany, the Lord Jesus experienced family spirit and friendship with Martha, Mary and Lazarus, therefore the Gospel according to John indicates how Jesus loved them. Martha hospitably welcomed Him, Mary was devoted to listening to His words, and at Jesus’ command Lazarus immediately came forth from the tomb, freed from the shame of death. Latin ecclesiastical tradition could not definitively determine the identity of Mary—Mary Magdalene, to whom Jesus first appeared after His Resurrection; the sister of Martha, the Mary who had been forgiven many sins—so that on July 29, only Martha alone was inscribed in the Roman liturgical calendar. This uncertainty has been resolved by recent scholarship, as attested by the present Roman Martyrology, which also commemorates Mary and Lazarus on the same day. Furthermore, in certain particular calendars, all three siblings are commemorated together on the same day. Therefore, the Supreme Pontiff Francis, considering that they welcomed the Lord into their home, listened attentively to Him, and firmly believed that He is the Resurrection and the Life, thus providing an important witness to the Gospel, and adopting the proposal of this Dicastery, has decreed that July 29 in the Roman liturgical calendar shall be designated as the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus.
Today’s passage from the Holy Gospel according to John mentions Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Let us attempt some reflection.
We often face partings of life and death in our lives. In our view, when our loved ones are separated from us, we think that we have lost them forever and that they are no longer with us. Even we, like Martha (cf. John 11:24), believe that only on the last day of the world will our deceased relatives and friends be resurrected and reunited with us.
Through the Baptism we have received, we have been cleansed of original sin by the living water that flowed from the heart of Jesus—that is, what Jesus proclaimed in the Temple on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles: “Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink. As Scripture says: ‘Rivers of living water will flow from within him.'” (cf. John 7:37-39)—according to the riches of His mercy. Through the Baptism we have received, we are united to Christ, and our spirits are set free, as Paul says: “If Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness.” (Romans 8:10) When we received the Baptism of Christ, we already departed from the shadow cast over our souls by sin and death, because we now live in the light of the true Light that enlightens the world; thus we walk in daylight and will not stumble (John 11:9), for the Holy Spirit illumines and guides us. Once we return to evil and refuse to accept the illumination of the true Light that enlightens the world, we live in the darkness caused by sin, we walk in the night and will surely stumble (John 11:10), leading to eternal perdition.
As soon as Jesus arrived at Bethany, the Jews who were with Martha and her sister Mary came to Jesus together with Martha. They hoped that Jesus would raise Lazarus, who had been dead for four days, just as He had healed the man blind from birth who had lived in darkness for thirty-eight years on the Sabbath (cf. John 11:17-37). But in the dialogue between Jesus and Martha and Mary, Jesus told them plainly: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11:25-26) The meaning is: as long as we constantly cherish the desire for eternal happiness, receive the Baptism of Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, and live out each day well, even if our life ends in this present world, we still have the hope of obtaining eternal life.
Almighty ever-living God, whose Son was pleased to be welcomed in Saint Martha’s house as a guest, grant we pray, that through her intercession, serving Christ faithfully in our brothers and sisters, we may merit to be received by you in the hall of heaven Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever
全属于祢 
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