Hospitality (2026-06-28 Sunday 13th)

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[13th Sunday, Year A: • 2 Kings 4:8-11, 14-16a • Romans 6:3-4, 8-11 • Matthew 10:37-42  ]

Hospitality Begins by Making Room for Christ

1. Preparing a Room for the Lord

Our first reading introduces us to a woman from the town of Shunem. Whenever the prophet Elisha passed through her town, she welcomed him into her home. Eventually she said to her husband,

"Let us prepare a little room for him."

Notice what she includes.

A bed.

A table.

A chair.

A lamp.

Everything needed for someone to feel at home.

She was not simply furnishing a guest room.

She was making room for God's servant.

She understood that welcoming God's prophet meant welcoming God's presence.

That beautiful image becomes the thread that runs through all of today's readings.

How do we make room for God?

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2. The Gift Is Small—The Love Is Great

Jesus answers that question in today's Gospel.

"Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the One who sent me."

Then He gives one of the simplest examples imaginable.

"Whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple... will surely not lose his reward."

We sometimes miss how ordinary that image would have sounded.

In the ancient world, "cold water" simply meant ordinary water. It wasn't refrigerated or luxurious. Jesus intentionally chooses the simplest act of kindness.

God does not first measure the size of the gift.

He measures the love with which it is given.

Hospitality begins with simple acts of love.

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3. Preparing the Heart Before Preparing the House

But today's Gospel quietly asks another question.

If we prepare rooms for guests...

do we prepare our hearts for Christ?

Whenever important visitors come to our homes, we usually prepare.

We clean the house.

We straighten the furniture.

We wash the dishes.

We put things back where they belong.

Not because our guests demand perfection.

But because they matter to us.

Every Mass is also an encounter with Christ.

More than that.

At every Mass He gives Himself to us in the Holy Eucharist.

If we prepare our homes for visitors, shouldn't we prepare our souls for Him?

That is one of the beautiful purposes of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Confession is not primarily about looking backward.

It is about preparing for an encounter.

It is about making room.

Making room by letting go of resentment.

Making room by confessing pride.

Making room by surrendering selfishness.

Making room by receiving God's mercy.

Confession does not simply erase sin.

It enlarges the heart.

It makes room for Christ.

---

4. Learning Faith in Everyday Life

Many years ago, while I was in the seminary, one of my classmates shared something with me that I have never forgotten.

He had to have a very difficult conversation with someone.

Before he went, he stopped to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Not because he believed he was at fault.

He simply said,

"I wanted to have a clean heart."

I had never heard anyone say that before.

I didn't learn that lesson in a theology classroom.

I didn't learn it from a homily.

I learned it by watching another Christian quietly live his faith.

One of the beautiful things about the Church is that we don't learn only from priests and teachers.

We also learn from one another.

Our example often teaches more than our words.

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5. Baptism Changes the Way We Welcome Others

St. Paul reminds us today that through Baptism we have died with Christ and risen with Him.

We are called to walk in newness of life.

That new life changes everything.

Even the reason why we welcome other people changes.

The world often practices hospitality because it hopes to receive something in return.

A better reputation.

More business.

Future favors.

Good reviews.

Christians welcome others for a different reason.

We welcome because Christ first welcomed us.

We forgive because Christ first forgave us.

We love because Christ first loved us.

Hospitality is no longer a strategy.

It becomes charity.

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6. A Lesson from the World Cup

Perhaps we can see a small reflection of that this summer.

Because of the FIFA World Cup, thousands of visitors have traveled throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Some of the most widely shared videos haven't even come from the soccer matches themselves.

They have shown fans in the streets.

Scottish supporters wearing kilts, playing bagpipes, singing, and dancing through the streets of Boston.

Local residents joining them.

Even police officers smiling and dancing with them.

People enjoy those videos because they reveal something that almost everyone desires.

People long to feel welcomed.

Hospitality speaks a universal language.

But today's Gospel asks an even deeper question.

Not simply,

"How do we welcome one another?"

But,

"How do we welcome Christ?"

---

7. Humility Makes Room

C. S. Lewis once wrote,

"Humility is not thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less."

That insight fits today's Gospel perfectly.

A proud heart has very little room for anyone else.

A humble heart always has room.

Room for God.

Room for family.

Room for strangers.

Room for those who are lonely.

Room for those who have hurt us.

Room even to pray for our enemies.

Humility transforms hospitality into charity.

Without humility, hospitality easily becomes self-promotion.

With humility, it becomes an act of love.

---

8. Christ Is Knocking

The woman of Shunem prepared a room with a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp.

We prepare our hearts through repentance.

We prepare our souls through Confession.

We prepare ourselves to receive Christ in Holy Communion.

Then the Book of Revelation gives us one of the most beautiful images in all of Scripture.

Jesus says,

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." (Revelation 3:20)

Isn't that remarkable?

Jesus does not force the door open.

He knocks.

Love always knocks.

Love waits to be welcomed.

God fills the heart that makes room for Him.

May we open that door through repentance.

May we welcome Him with humility.

May we receive Him with joy in the Holy Eucharist.

And may His Kingdom come, His will be done, beginning first in our own hearts.

Fear Not (2026-06-21, 12th Sunday, Father's Day)

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[12th Sunday, Year A,  Readings: Jeremiah 20:10 – 20: 13  __ Psalm 69 __ Romans 5:12-15 __ +Matthew 10:26-33 ___   ]

Father's Day "Do Not Be Afraid"

[1] THE FEAR OF HUMAN OPINION

Father's Day brings many different memories and perspectives to different people.

Some remember their fathers with gratitude. Others remember them with sadness, disappointment, or loss. Some fathers wonder whether they have done enough. Others miss fathers who have died.

The readings today invite us to look beyond our earthly experience of fatherhood and to remember something deeper: the fatherhood of God.

In the Gospel, Jesus repeats a message several times:

"Do not be afraid."

Fear is one of the strongest forces in our lives. We worry about what others think. We worry about our future. We worry about our families, our children, and our grandchildren.

Many years ago, when I left my career to enter the seminary, an old friend thought I was making a terrible mistake. He was shocked. He strongly opposed the idea and told me so in front of several other people.

I still remember that conversation.

Not because it changed my decision. It didn't.

But I cared what he thought.

Part of the reason was that I respected him. He was successful in his career, and we often give extra weight to certain opinions not only because of what is said, but because of who is saying it.

Many of us know that feeling.

That is exactly the situation Jeremiah faces in today's first reading. He hears people whispering against him. They are waiting for him to fail.

Yet Jeremiah refuses to let fear have the final word.

[2] WHAT GOD SEES THAT WE DO NOT

Jeremiah says:

"The Lord is with me."

That is the turning point.

The question is not whether opposition exists in our lives. The question is whether we can find God amid that opposition.

Years after that conversation, my friend became seriously ill with a heart condition. He nearly died and underwent major heart surgery.

Later, he sent me a text message from the hospital. In the midst of everything he had gone through, he wrote:

"I guess my Catholic faith runs deep."

That simple sentence stayed with me.

It reminded me that faith can remain alive beneath the surface even when we cannot see it.

God sees the heart.

That is exactly what Jeremiah discovered. While others judged him from the outside, God knew what was happening within.

[3] THE RELATIONSHIP LASTED LONGER THAN THE REMARK

One thing that never happened was this: my friend never came back to me and said, "You know, Jim, I was wrong. It was a good idea that you became a priest."

Life rarely ties itself up so neatly.

He never formally retracted what he had said.

But he never repeated it either.

Then years later I discovered something I had never known.

In a small-world connection, I learned that this same friend was the first cousin of one of my classmates in the seminary.

They both came from the same part of Ireland. I knew that much. But I had never put the pieces together.

It was one of those moments that made me smile.

It did not change the past, but it reminded me how connected we really are.

For years, I remembered the criticism.

But God remembered the person.

And perhaps that is how God wants us to see one another.

Not simply as a source of anxiety or disappointment, but as a person whom God continues to love and guide.

The relationship lasted longer than the remark.

[4] WHAT A FATHER SEES

That insight helps us understand Father's Day.

A good father sees more than a moment.

He sees more than a mistake made by a child.

He sees more than an argumentative reaction from a son or daughter.

He sees the person.

Perhaps that is what God was teaching me through this friendship.

For years, I remembered a reaction.

God remembered the person.

God the Father sees each of us not merely by our worst moment, but by the person we can become through His grace.

Christian fatherhood is about more than providing things.

A father helps his children grow in faith and character.

St. Joseph remains a beautiful model. He says nothing in the Gospels, yet faithfully protects and provides for the Holy Family.

[5] INVESTING IN RELATIONSHIPS BEFORE YOU NEED THEM

That lesson applies to all of us.

Presence matters.

Relationships matter.

If you own a home and have a little extra money, it is often wise to put something extra toward the mortgage. It may not seem significant at the time, but years later the benefit becomes clear.

The same principle applies to relationships.

When you have a little extra time, invest it.

Invest it in your marriage.

Invest it in your children.

Invest it in your family.

Have the conversation.

Share the meal.

Pray together.

Build trust before it is needed.

And parents, thank you for bringing your children to church.

We are blessed by your children.

Now I know that for parents with young children, coming to church can sometimes feel like work. In fact, some Sundays it feels like a lot of work.

But we do not come here simply for another task to complete.

We come here for worship, renewal, and rest in God.

The investment may seem small today, but over the years it bears tremendous fruit.

[6] THE FATHER WHO NEVER STOPS CALLING US

Ultimately, this is what God the Father does for us.

He remains faithful even when we are fearful.

Jesus says:

"Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's knowledge."

Then He adds:

"Even all the hairs of your head are counted."

Jesus is telling us that God notices what others overlook.

He sees every sacrifice, every prayer, and every burden carried quietly.

That is why an old Gospel hymn can say:

"His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me."

Because He knows us, values us, and cares for us.

So today, whether Father's Day brings gratitude, grief, joy, or regret, Jesus gives us the same message:

"Do not be afraid."

Your heavenly Father knows you.

Your heavenly Father sees you.

Your heavenly Father loves you.

Your heavenly Father values you.

The Father who created you never stops calling you back to Himself.

Commitment (2026-06-14, __ 11th Sunday)

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[11th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings:  Exodus 19:2-6a, Psalm 100, Romans 5:6-11, Matthew 9:36—10:8.]

1. Sheep Without a Shepherd

When Jesus sees the crowds in today's Gospel, He doesn't look past them. He sees them.

St. Matthew tells us that His heart was moved with pity because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.

Who are the shepherds in our lives today?

We're not living in sheep fields, but there are many voices competing for our attention. Advertisers, social media, entertainment, politicians, and even sports all invite us to follow them. Many of those voices want something from us. They want our attention, our loyalty, our money, or our time.

Jesus is different.

Jesus does not come to exploit us.

He comes first to give Himself to us.

He sees our wounds, our struggles, and our sins.

And then He says:

"The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few."

The problem is not that there is no work to do.

The problem is that too few disciples are willing to enter the harvest.

2. A Lesson From a Coach

With the World Cup beginning and other sporting events filling the headlines, many people are thinking about sports.

Sports can teach us valuable lessons if we pay attention.

When I was in college, I volunteered as a sports writer for our student newspaper. Eventually I was assigned to cover the men's basketball team.

The coach was one of the most successful coaches in Division III basketball.

One day he challenged me in a way I never forgot.

He said, "Jim, your articles matter. What you write and what you say affect whether people come to the games."

I had never thought about it that way.

I thought I was simply writing articles.

But he wasn't merely giving me instructions.

He was trying to form me.

That's why he sent me to observe a veteran reporter named Arthur.

After a victory, Arthur asked the coach a question that has stayed with me ever since:

"Is there a danger of complacency when a team is on a long winning streak?"

It was a positive question.

But it was also a challenging question.

It made people think.

There was something else about that coach that stayed with me.

One Sunday morning I needed to reach him about an article. He had told me to call him at home.

I called.

No answer.

I knew where he was.

He was at church.

The team had played an important game the night before.

Yet Sunday morning still belonged to God.

He never preached a sermon to me.

He simply showed me by his example that sports matter, but they are not everything.

And in many ways, that is what Jesus is doing with His disciples.

He is not simply giving them orders.

He is forming them.

He is teaching them how to see people as He sees them.

And He is teaching them that what they do matters because the harvest is plentiful and the laborers are few.

3. Saved by Grace, Not by Success

St. Paul writes in today's second reading:

"While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Salvation does not begin with our success.

It begins with God's grace.

Christ did not wait for us to become holy before He loved us.

He died for us while we were still sinners.

That is why achievement does not save us.

Success does not save us.

Christ saves us.

In the first reading, God calls Israel His treasured possession.

Before He gives them a mission, He first makes them His people.

Before Christ sends us into the harvest, He first calls us to Himself.

4. The Church as Christ's Team

The Church is not simply a collection of isolated individuals.

It is a people.

A communion.

A family.

The virtues often learned on a good team can help us live as disciples:

Humility.

Perseverance.

Teachability.

Sacrifice.

Concern for others.

These virtues do not replace grace.

They help us cooperate with grace.

St. John Chrysostom once wrote that when the strong are joined to the weak, the strong support the weak and do not allow them to perish.

That is what a good team does.

And that is what the Church is supposed to do.

The strong support the weak.

The discouraged are encouraged.

The sinner is called back to mercy.

The lonely are welcomed into communion.

5. From Complacency to Commitment

And so we return to that question:

"Is there a danger of complacency?"

That question belongs not only to athletes.

It belongs to every disciple.

If things are going well, have I forgotten gratitude?

Have I recognized my blessings as gifts from God?

If things are difficult, have I surrendered to discouragement?

Have I avoided repentance?

Have I stopped trying to grow?

Because complacency leaves the harvest unworked.

It leaves virtues untested.

It leaves successes unacknowledged as gifts of God's grace.

But commitment does the opposite.

Commitment enters the harvest and goes to work.

Commitment tests and strengthens virtue.

Commitment recognizes success as a gift from God.

Commitment admits sin, seeks forgiveness, and begins again.

And that is what Christ asks of us today.

Not perfection.

Not flawless performance.

Commitment.

A commitment to prayer.

A commitment to repentance.

A commitment to charity.

A commitment to serving others.

For the harvest is plentiful, and Christ is still calling laborers today.

You are one of those laborers.

And the vineyard to which He sends you is not somewhere far away.

It is your home.

Your family.

Your workplace.

Your classroom.

Your neighborhood.

It is every place where God has planted you and every person whom God has entrusted to your care.

That is the vineyard to which Christ is calling you today.

Sacred Heart of Jesus (Consecration of USA)

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Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus / June 12, 2026

1. Not a Bargain, but a Covenant

In Harper Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the young girl Scout is about to begin first grade in school. The problem is that Scout already knows how to read. You wouldn't think this skill at literacy would be a problem, but we find out that it is.

In fact, Scout has been reading for years with the encouragement of her father, Atticus Finch.

On her first day of school, her teacher is surprised to discover that Scout can read not only the alphabet and her schoolbooks, but even newspaper articles and the stock market tables in the newspaper.

Instead of praising her, however, the teacher tells Scout that she should stop reading at home. She should only learn to read at school. No extra reading. No reading with her father. No reading newspapers at home.

Now that sounds strange to us. Most parents and teachers would be delighted to find a child who loves to read.

Scout certainly thinks it is strange.

She comes home discouraged and tells her father that she does not want to go back to school.

Atticus listens patiently and asks her whether she knows what a compromise is.

Eventually they arrive at an agreement. Scout will continue going to school, and Atticus promises that they will continue reading together at home every evening as they always have.

Scout thinks of it as a bargain.

But I would suggest it is more than a bargain.

A bargain says:

"I will do this if you do that."

A covenant says:

"I give myself to you."

What Atticus is really offering his daughter is not simply a deal. He is offering his support, his encouragement, and his love.

That distinction helps us understand today's Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

In our first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people that God chose Israel. Yet God did not choose them because they were the strongest nation, the richest nation, or the largest nation.

God chose them because He loved them.

God made a covenant with them.

God did not begin with a calculation.

God began with love.

And the same thing is true for us.

Sometimes we imagine that God loves us because we have earned His love. We think God loves us because we have been good enough, holy enough, or faithful enough.

But Scripture tells us something different.

God loves first.

God acts first.

God gives first.

And then He invites us to respond.

2. The Sacred Heart and the Love of Christ

Saint John gives us one of the most beautiful lines in all of Scripture:

"God is love."

That love became visible in Jesus Christ.

That is what the Sacred Heart devotion is about.

The Sacred Heart is not merely an image. It points to the heart of Christ, the heart that loved us unto death.

Jesus did not merely speak about love.

He lived it.

He suffered for it.

He died for it.

The Sacred Heart reminds us that mercy is not an idea. Mercy has a face. Mercy has a name. Mercy is Jesus Christ.

3. Consecrating Our Nation

This year the bishops of the United States have asked Catholics throughout our country to pray for a renewed consecration of our nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  (Click Here for Prayer of Consecration)

That consecration is not primarily political.

It is a prayer for mercy.

We pray for mercy in our country, for our country, and from our country.

We pray for our leaders, whether we voted for them or not.

We pray that they govern with wisdom, justice, and respect for human dignity.

And we pray that Christ renew not only our nation but also our own hearts.

Because every renewal of a nation begins with the renewal of a heart.

4. A Greater Invitation than the Statue of Liberty

Living here in the New York and New Jersey area, another image comes to mind.

One of the most recognizable symbols of our nation is the Statue of Liberty.

Many of us know the famous words written by Emma Lazarus:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

For generations these words represented hope, welcome, and the possibility of a new beginning.

For countless immigrants arriving in New York Harbor, seeing the Statue of Liberty meant that perhaps life could begin again.

But today the Gospel presents us with an invitation that is even greater.

Jesus says:

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest."

Notice what Jesus does not say.

He does not say:  "Come to me if you have everything figured out."

He does not say: "Come to me if you are already holy."

He does not say: "Come to me if you have never sinned."

Instead He says: "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened."

Jesus welcomes the tired.

Jesus welcomes sinners.

Jesus welcomes those carrying guilt.

Jesus welcomes those burdened by grief.

Jesus welcomes those who have wandered away.

Jesus welcomes those who want to begin again.

The Statue of Liberty became a symbol of political freedom.

The Sacred Heart points to something even greater.

The Statue of Liberty says:

"Give me your tired."

Jesus says:

"Come to me."

The Statue of Liberty offers the hope of a new homeland.

Jesus offers the hope of a new heart.

The Statue of Liberty offers liberty.

Jesus offers liberation from sin.

The Statue of Liberty stands beside a golden door.

Jesus opens the door of eternal life.

5. Come to Me

Many people today are carrying heavy burdens.

Some carry burdens of illness.

Some carry burdens of grief.

Some carry burdens of anxiety.

Some carry burdens of family struggles.

Some carry burdens of sin.

Jesus does not promise that every burden will disappear.

But He does promise His presence.

"Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart."

Notice those words:

"Humble of heart."

The Sacred Heart is not only an image for us to admire.

It is a heart for us to imitate.

Its humility.

Its mercy.

Its compassion.

Its love.

As we join Catholics throughout our country in this renewed consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, let us ask Christ to renew our hearts, renew our families, and renew our nation.

For the greatest freedom is not merely political freedom.

The greatest freedom is the freedom to be forgiven.

And so we hear once again the invitation of Jesus:

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest."

Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.