今天是常年期第十九周星期一。教會在今天慶祝聖老楞佐執事殉道的慶日。最近出版的羅馬彌撒經書告訴我們：聖老楞佐（+ 258年）是聖西斯篤二世（St Sixtus II）的七位執事之一，于瓦勒良（Valerian）迫害期間殉道。在他被捕後，當局命令他交出教會的財富，但他指向一群窮人，說道：“這些就是教會真正的寶藏。”據傳統記載，他被置於鐵柵架上烤死。
今天是常年期第十九周星期一。教会在今天庆祝圣老楞佐执事殉道的庆日。最近出版的罗马弥撒经书告诉我们：圣老楞佐（+ 258年）是圣西斯笃二世（St Sixtus II）的七位执事之一，于瓦勒良（Valerian）迫害期间殉道。在他被捕后，当局命令他交出教会的财富，但他指向一群穷人，说道：“这些就是教会真正的宝藏。”据传统记载，他被置于铁栅架上烤死。
August 10, 2026 Feast of Saint Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr Gospel: John 12:24–26
Today is Monday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time. Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, Deacon. The recently published Roman Missal tells us: St. Lawrence († 258) was one of the seven deacons of Pope St. Sixtus II who were killed during the persecution of the Emperor Valerian. On his arrest, he was ordered to hand over the riches of the Church, but he pointed to a crowd of poor people, saying, “These are the true treasures of the Church.” According to tradition, he was roasted to death on a gridiron.
The Scripture passage from the Gospel of John today tells us about the relationship between Christians and the world. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections. In fact, this is Jesus’ final address to the crowds before His Passion.
In this discourse, we see Jesus using an example from nature to illustrate the relationship between Christians and the world. (Cf. John 12:24) We know that in many countries, the number of believers in Christianity accounts for only a small portion of the total population. Even Catholics make up only a small part of all Christian believers. Thus, we can understand the relationship between the grain of wheat and the world that Jesus spoke of.
The grain of wheat that Jesus speaks of refers to Himself. He was to sacrifice Himself, be crucified, and destroy death through His holy death on the Cross. When He died on the Cross, He was like a grain of wheat dying to this passing world. After His Resurrection, He conquered death and restored vitality to a world that had lost its life due to the disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve.
Today, a fracture has appeared within our Church. Some brothers and sisters in the Lord, in matters of faith and in every aspect of their lives, are in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter. They receive the sacraments from pastors who are in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter, and they live according to their teachings. Like Saint Lawrence the Deacon, they often proclaim the Word of God to the world with the fervor of martyrdom, and bear witness to the Word of God through concrete actions. Other brothers and sisters in the Lord, although they, like us, have received the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are not in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter. They choose to follow and be in communion with those pastors who are not in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter, and they receive illicit sacraments from them.
I would like to take this feast day to exhort those brothers and sisters in the Lord who follow pastors not in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter: be guided by the Holy Spirit. Do not follow those shepherds who cannot lead you into the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus spoke of. The kingdom they preach to you is entirely a kingdom understood according to the logic of this world. You should follow those pastors who are in communion with the Successor of the Apostle St. Peter. They are faithful to the Word of God and preach to you the Kingdom of Jesus—that realm composed of a God who loves man and men who are loved by God. If you follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit and live according to His inspirations, you will surely be able, just as we are, to be filled with trust in God and longing for the Kingdom that Jesus spoke of. Then, at the end of this life, you will desire to join with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Lawrence the Deacon, all the saints in Heaven, and all the holy angels to praise God, proclaim His mercy, and serve Him forever.
On this feast of the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence the Deacon, let us join with Saint Lawrence the Deacon in offering this prayer to God:
O God, giver of that ardour of love for you by which Saint Lawrence was outstandingly faithful in service and glorious in martyrdom, grant that we may love what he loved and put into practice what he taught. 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.
August 9, 2026 Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Gospel: Mt 14:22-33
Today is the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The passage taken from the Holy Gospel of Saint Matthew presents to us the narrative of Jesus walking on the water. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections.
First of all, Matthew tells us: Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side of the sea. It was then that He dismissed the crowds. Afterward, He went up the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone. (Cf. Mt 14:22-23)
We see a Jesus who is completely different from usual. He did not choose to go with the disciples but went up the mountain to pray. When evening came, He was there alone. What was He doing there? He was with His Heavenly Father.
Subsequently, Saint Matthew shows us the boat battered by the waves and sailing against the wind. (Cf. Mt 14:24-27) We know that the boat is a symbol of the Church, and the sea is the dwelling place of the devil, because it constantly devours life. A boat battered by the waves and sailing against the wind is exactly what the pilgrim Church experiences. When the Church encounters adversity, any change will fill her with fear. Those brothers and sisters who have left Jesus, their souls are filled with all kinds of fears, which causes them to look at God, who suddenly appears in their lives, according to the logic of this world. This will cause them, just like the disciples in the Gospel passage, to regard God who suddenly appears as a ghost.
The dialogue between Peter and Jesus presented to us by Matthew in this Gospel passage (Cf. Mt 14:28-33) allows us to see our own reflection in Peter. We too want to verify whether God’s word is true according to our own ideas. At the beginning, we too, like Peter, are willing to try to go toward God; but when we encounter some setbacks or some uncertain factors, we shrink back. Yet Jesus is still there; He is always ready to support us. Only if we truly welcome Him and choose to walk with Him can we find peace and joy.
I think: some fellow believers might ask: If this is so, then why does God allow us to go through such setbacks and uncertainties? To these fellow believers, I would say: God wishes us to go through these in order to strengthen our faith, cultivate our longing for Him, and thereby give rise to charity. Just as Saint Paul the Apostle teaches: Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Cf. Rom 5:2-5) Only in this way can we feel His presence.
Almighty ever-living God, whom, taught by the Holy Spirit, we dare to call our Father, bring, we pray, to perfection in our hearts the spirit of adoption as your sons and daughters, that we may merit to enter into the inheritance which you have promised. 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
Today is Saturday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time. The Church celebrates the Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest today. The most recently published Roman Missal introduces this saint as follows: Dominic (c.1170-1221) was born at Caleruega (Spain) and initially joined the Canons Regular of Osma. In 1206 he was sent to Languedoc (France) to help combat the Catharist or Albigensian heresy. While based in Toulouse, he founded the Order of Preachers (Dominicans) to assist in this work; the Order was approved by the Holy See in 1216 and has had a huge impact on the life of the Church.
Today’s passage from the Gospel of Matthew presents to us a narrative of a father who repeatedly asked Jesus’ disciples to drive the demon out of his son. When they failed, he turned to Jesus for help. I would like to take this opportunity to offer some reflections.
In our daily lives, we often encounter those who endure various kinds of suffering, as well as their loved ones who stay by their side. Often, like the father in the Gospel, they travel everywhere to seek medical help for their loved ones, exhausting every possible means to free them from their afflictions. In our Church, there is also such a group of people who constantly pray to God for those who long to be healed. Frequently, like the father in the Gospel, they kneel before Jesus, imploring His mercy. They think that as long as they ask, God will grant their request. But the reality is quite the opposite. Their prayers and their efforts do not bring comfort to those who suffer, nor do they rescue them from their plight; instead, they sink them deeper into it. The reason for this is that we often pray to God according to our own ideas. For in our eyes, God ought to bestow upon us all kinds of graces we desire from Him. If He does not grant them, then He is a false god. We might even think: for those who endure various sufferings, I have already done my utmost; the reason they undergo such pain may be that their sins are truly grave, and God is thereby tormenting and punishing them.
Today, let us follow in the footsteps of Saint Dominic, bringing those who urgently need healing and are in desperate need of God’s salvation to Jesus. Let us help them, just like us, to be filled with trust in Jesus Christ, so that Jesus may manifest His mighty power in them, enabling them to live no longer in misery, but in the grace of God.
May Saint Dominic come to the help of your Church by his merits and teaching, O Lord, and may he, who was an outstanding preacher of your truth, be a devoted intercessor on our behalf. 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.
今天是常年期第十八周星期五。教會在今天慶祝聖嘉耶當司鐸（Saint Cajetan, Priest），教宗聖西斯篤二世及同伴(Saint Sixtus II, Pope, and Companions, Martyrs) 的自由紀念敬禮日。在蘇格蘭，今天以自由紀念十字聖瑪利亞（Saint Mary of the Cross, Virgin）
最近出版的羅馬彌撒經書是這樣介紹這些聖人的：
聖嘉耶當（Saint Cajetan）（1480-1547）司鐸生於義大利維琴察。為了于1516年晉鐸，他放棄了自己原本極為出色的法律事業。他與同伴共同創立了戴蒂尼會或稱神職界修會（Ordo Clericorum Regularium vulgo Theatinorum），該會在推動聖職界改革方面貢獻卓著。他對拯救人靈懷有極大的熱忱，因而被稱為”靈魂的獵手”。
十字聖瑪利亞（Saint Mary of the Cross, Virgin）原名瑪麗·麥基洛普(Mary MacKillop) ，於1842年1月15日在墨爾本出生，父母都是蘇格蘭人。她前往南澳當家庭教師，期間結識了朱利安·坦尼森-伍茲神父，並在佩諾拉開辦了一所天主教小學。隨著教育和牧靈工作的展開，她創立了聖若瑟聖心女修會（又稱”若瑟芬會”）。儘管在教會內部遭遇反對，甚至面臨絕罰，她的使命仍迅速拓展——修女們常常資源匱乏，卻在最偏遠的地區堅持服務。1909年8月8日，她在悉尼安息主懷。2010年10月17日，本篤十六世教宗將她冊封為聖人，成為澳大利亞第一位聖人。
教宗聖西斯篤二世及同伴(Saint Sixtus II, Pope, and Companions, Martyrs) （卒於258年）在瓦勒良皇帝的迫害期間受難。事實上，聖西斯篤前一年不得不被秘密祝聖為羅馬主教，並在舉行感恩祭時被捕。他幾乎當場在加里斯都墓穴被斬首。根據傳統，他的七位執事中六位也在同一天被殺，第七位（聖老楞佐）則在幾天後殉道。聖西斯篤被列入羅馬正典（Roman Canon）。
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