12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) - 25 June
25th June 2023
12th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) - 25 June
“Do not fear. Jesus is more powerful than all hell. At the invocation of His name every knee in heaven, on earth and in hell must bend before Jesus...this is a consolation for the good and terror for evil.” - St Padre Pio
A reflection on today's Gospel by the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J Sheen:
"At this point in His discourse to the Apostles, [Christ] made clear that since He came to die and not live, so they must be prepared to die and not live. If the world gave Him a Cross, then they must expect one; if the world would say He had a devil, they could expect to be called ‘devils.’
"‘A disciple is no better than his master, a servant than his lord; Enough that the disciple should fare like his master, the servant like his lord. If they have cried Beelzebub at the Master of the house they will do it much more readily to the men of his household’ (Matt 10:24, 25).
"But the power to do harm would never affect the souls of the Apostles. As His own Resurrection would be a proof of that, He now gave them anticipated assurance. The body can be injured without the consent of the soul, but the soul cannot be injured without its own consent. The only thing to be feared is losing, not human life, but the Divine life which is God.
"‘And there is no need to fear those who kill the body, but have no means of killing the soul; Fear him more, who has the power to ruin body and soul in hell’ (Matt 10:28).
"There would be a vindication for the wrong done them; and all the hidden things would be revealed. The mercy of God that watches over the sparrows and counts the hairs of our heads had them under a watchful eye and Providence. He warned them not to be ‘secret disciples,’ nor compromising, nor too ‘liberal’ in confessing His Divinity. Becoming bolder as He paraded the Cross before them, He turned to the analogy of the sword. He would be no peacemaker from the outside; neither would they. When they preached Him, they would evoke opposition and thus cause all the enemies of Goodness to unsheath their swords:
"‘And now, whoever acknowledges Me before men, I too will acknowledge him before My Father Who is in heaven; and whoever disowns Me before men, before My Father in heaven I too will disown him’ (Matt 10:32).
"‘Do not imagine I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have come to bring a sword, not peace’ (Matt 10:34).
"There are two kinds of swords: the swords that pierce outwardly and destroy, and the swords that pierce inwardly and mortify. What He meant was that His very coming would provoke swords on the part of His enemies. James heard these very words about a sword and later on would have them verified, when Herod would slay him with his sword, as he became the first Apostle to be martyred. Simone Weil paraphrased the words of Our Lord that He who takes the sword will perish by the sword, by saying that “he who takes a Cross will perish by the sword,” because the Cross will create opposition." (Life of Christ)
Food for thought
We will never be free of trials and temptations as long as our earthly life lasts. For Job has said: “Is not the life of men on earth a drudgery?” (Job 7:1). Therefore, we should always be on our guard against temptations, always praying that our enemy, the devil, who never sleeps but constantly looks for another soul to devour, will not catch us off guard.
No one in this world is so perfect or holy as not to have temptations sometimes. We can never be entirely free of them. When you are tempted, do not be discouraged. Rather, turn to God in fervent prayer. He, in His infinite goodness and compassion, will help you in all your needs.
Prayer for Persecuted Christians
Almighty, everlasting God, look with compassion and mercy on Your servants who are persecuted for their faith in You.
Grant them grace to carry their cross with patience in the name of Thy beloved Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Let the chalice pass from them if such be Thy holy Will: yet, in all things, may Thy Will be done.
Grant to those who persecute, light to see the truth, and grace of mercy and forgiveness, for they know not what they do.
Holy Mary, Mother of Jesus, Comfort of the Afflicted, help thy children in their time of bitter trial.
O Lord our God, by the sign of Thy Holy Cross deliver us from all enemies. Amen. 🙏💖💐
Prayer for Spiritual Protection
Protect us, Heavenly Father, under the shadow of Your wings. Keep us without sin. Safeguard our minds and hearts from every evil. Visit, we ask you, O Lord, our home, and repel from it all the snares of the enemy. Let Your holy angels dwell here to preserve us in peace; and may Your blessing be upon us for ever, through Christ our Lord. Amen. 🙏💖💐