February 17, 2026
Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Gospel: Mk 8:14 – 21
Christians: The Leaven of the New Era

We often pay attention to what is happening around us. For example, when we are hungry, we will look for food because, in our view, food can satisfy our hunger. Another example is that when we are with others, we often follow the wishes of the majority rather than our own true inner thoughts when expressing our views on certain things.

In our spiritual lives, we often focus on external things. For instance, when we participate in the gatherings of God’s people, we often pursue splendid liturgies. We often pay attention to the priests who preach the gospel of the kingdom of heaven, and we often measure our zeal for God by the amount of Mass offerings. When we do so, we are no different from the disciples who were with Jesus today.

Today, Jesus asks the disciples who are with Him to be on guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of the Herodians, that is, to not become like the Pharisees and the Herodians who only pursue everything in this passing world. Instead, they should become people of the new world that He speaks of, live out the spirit of the gospel that Jesus preaches in this passing world, and bring about the early arrival of the new era that Jesus speaks of.

©Totus Tuus 2026
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica