June 25, 2026
Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel: Matthew 7:21–29

Today is Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time. The passage from the Gospel of Saint Matthew continues to present to us the Lord’s Sermon on the Mount. Today’s Gospel brings us to its conclusion.

We often offer many different kinds of prayers to God. At the beginning of our prayers, we address Him as “Lord God,” “Almighty God,” or “Merciful God.” In our eyes, these prayers seem pleasing to God and in accord with His holy will; we think that by praying in this way, we secure and strengthen our relationship with Him. Yet such prayer is not necessarily acceptable to God. Too often, our petitions seek the things of this passing world rather than the righteousness of the Kingdom that God calls us to pursue.

Today, Jesus calls us to do the will of the Father. To know the Father’s will, we must ask for the light and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of truth” of whom Jesus spoke in His farewell discourse before His Passion (cf. John 16:13). We may feel familiar with Jesus Christ, but our understanding of the Holy Spirit is often less mature. Saint Paul teaches us that the Spirit intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words (cf. Romans 8:26). Pope Saint Paul VI, in his Apostolic Letter Credo of the People of God, instructs us: “The Holy Spirit is the soul of the Church; our faith rests upon Him, for He is the life of the Mystical Body of Christ” (Pope Saint Paul VI, Credo of the People of God, 6). He dwells perpetually within the Church. In the Eucharistic Liturgy, we frequently hear the priest pray: “Lord, we implore You, send forth Your Holy Spirit to sanctify these gifts, that they may become for us the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ” (cf. The Roman Missal, Catholic Truth Society, England, 25 June 2025, approved by the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, Prot. 1021/07/L, pp. 1036–1037).

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! If we contemplate all that happens to us with the eyes of faith, and if our hearts are attuned to the Heart of the Divine Word, we shall discern the presence of the Holy Spirit. For the Spirit ceaselessly reveals to us the hidden wisdom of God’s will and sustains our bond with Jesus Christ. When we cling faithfully to the Holy Spirit and allow His promptings to shape our prayers, then Jesus recognizes in our supplications His own voice. And the Father, who loves us, likewise recognizes in them the voice of His only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ—and through the intercession of the Spirit, grants us every grace we need. Then our faith will stand firm, like a house built upon rock—founded upon Christ Himself, the living Stone, and upon Peter, the Rock chosen by the Word of God—unshakable, even as the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church is unshakable.

Grant, O Lord, that we may always revere and love your holy name, for you never deprive of your guidance those you set firm on the foundation of your love. 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

©Totus Tuus 2026
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica