June 7 through June 13, 2026
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(June 7, 2026: Body and Blood of Christ)
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“Do this in memory of me.”
Eucharist - a word that literally means thanksgiving - is the central celebration of the Christian community. It speaks volumes of whom God is in our lives. It speaks volumes of whom we are called to be in the lives of one another.
Eucharist is the heart of our faith.
Eucharist celebrates the truth that God so loves us that God sent Jesus to be our redeemer. Eucharist celebrates the truth that God so loves us that God allowed Jesus’ body to be broken and Jesus’ blood to be poured out for us. Eucharist celebrates the truth that God loves us so much that the Spirit raised Jesus from the dead that we might share in the power and promise of eternal life.
The former Eucharistic Prayer III for Children said it this way: Jesus “brought us the good news of life to be lived with you forever in heaven. He showed us the way to that life here on earth; the way of love……He now brings us together to one table and asks us to do what he did.” The former Eucharistic Prayer II for Reconciliation told us that Jesus “has entrusted to us this pledge of his love”.
Eucharist celebrates the truth that we are called to do more than simply receive the body and blood of Christ. Eucharist celebrates the truth that we are – we must be – the body and blood of Christ for one another. Eucharist celebrates the truth that we are called to allow ourselves to be broken and poured out for others, to spend our lives in the pursuit of justice, peace, reconciliation, healing, freedom, life and love.
We are called to proclaim the death of the Lord in our willingness to be bread and wine for others. We are called to proclaim the death of the Lord - the power of the Lord - the promise of the Lord - in our willingness to lay down our lives, our talents and our efforts to continue the redeeming, saving work that Jesus began.
We demonstrate our Eucharistic dignity and Eucharistic destiny when we embrace Jesus’ command to “do this in memory” of him - not only by celebrating Eucharist on the first day of the week, but by being Eucharist for one another every day of the week by feeding, nourishing and forgiving one another.
Eucharist is not simply something that we receive. Eucharist is something that we must become. Eucharist is something to be shared with others. Eucharist, in short, is a way of life.
Especially today, let us be Eucharist for one another. Let us feed, nourish and forgive…in memory of him…in fellowship with one another.
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(June 8, 2026: Monday, Tenth Week of Ordinary Time)
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“Blessed are...”
In his commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, William Barclay wrote the following before delving into an examination of each individual Beatitude:
“Beatitudes are not pious hopes of what might be. They are not glowing – but nebulous – prophecies of some future bliss. Beatitudes are congratulations on what already is. The blessedness which belongs to the Christian is not a blessedness that is postponed to some future world of glory – it is a blessedness which exists here and now. Beatitude is not something into which the Christian will enter – beatitude is something into which the Christian has already entered.”
“While it is true that Beatitudes will find their fullness and consummation in the presence of God, Beatitudes are a present reality to be enjoyed here and now. The Beatitudes in effect say, ‘O, the bliss of being a Christian! O, the joy of following Christ! O, the sheer happiness of knowing Jesus Christ as Master, Savior and Lord!’ The very form of the Beatitudes themselves is a statement of joyous thrill and radiant gladness of th4 Christian life. In the face of the Beatitudes a gloom-encompassed Christianity is unthinkable.” (The Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1, p. 111)
The point that Barclay is making is that the Beatitudes are not an example of quid pro quo – that is, Jesus is not saying that if you do the good now you will get even better later. Living a life of Beatitude – as we see so clearly in the life of Jesus – is its own reward.
How can we be Beatitude – that is, how can we be a source of blessing – in the lives of others today and experience firsthand the happiness that comes with being faithful to who God calls us to be?
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(June 9, 2026: Tuesday, Tenth Week in Ordinary Time)
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"You are the salt of the earth.”
Today’s Gospel makes it crystal clear the kind of people that Jesus expected his disciples to be. Jesus challenged them to be “salt of the earth”.
In the time of Christ, salt was highly prized. Salt was indispensable as a preservative for food, especially meats, foul and fish. Obviously, salt was used as a seasoning. Salt added zest and tang to food, making it more palatable and enjoyable. Sometimes, new-born babies were rubbed with salt for what was believed to be medicinal purposes. Salt was even used to seal covenants of friendship (which were also called covenants of salt), inviolable and unbreakable covenants to be preserved for life.
Salt was as valuable as a person's life – in some cases, even more valuable than a person’s life. Soldiers were often paid for their work with bags of salt. In fact, the Latin word for salt is the root for the English word salary.
Ironic, isn’t it, that something so small is so powerful. Salt makes a huge difference even in very small quantities. A mere pinch has an effect out of all proportion to its weight. Yet, salt is inconspicuous, ordinary and often mixed with a variety of other common things. Take it away and you can tell immediately that it is missing. (Just ask anyone who has been on a salt-free diet.)
Like Jesus’ first disciples, we, too, must be salt of the earth. Jesus challenges us to preserve all that is good, loving and life-giving in life. Jesus commissions us to add zest to life with ingredients such as joy, laughter, enthusiasm, truth, peace, and justice. Jesus calls us to be a healing remedy for anxiety, alienation, marginalization and isolation. Jesus encourages us to immerse ourselves into the thick of things, to enrich and enliven the stew that is our lives. Jesus urges to use all of our God-given abilities, skills, time and talent for the benefit of others. In short, Jesus expects us to be worth our salt.
Jesus tells us, “You are the salt of the earth.” In our day and age, salt might be an everyday thing, but from Jesus’ perspective, being salt of the earth is everything. Just this day, how can we be salt of the earth in the lives of others?
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(June 10, 2026: Wednesday, Eleventh Week of Ordinary Time)
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“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets...”
Throughout the Gospels Jesus was repeatedly criticized by the Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes for not “doing it by the book”. That is, he was accused of abolishing the Law and the prophets by not living by the letter of the Law. In today’s Gospel Jesus responds to that charge by saying not only does He have no intention of abolishing the Law, but also he plans to go one step further – to fulfill the Law.
And how does Jesus fulfill the Law and the Prophets? He does so by being himself, that is, by performing the works of God in accordance with the will of God, and not by the whims of man – a life described by St. Paul as a life lived in “the Spirit”.
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“The Holy Spirit dwells in us if we are living members of Jesus Christ, who said to his disciples, ‘He who abides in me, and I in him bears much fruit.’ This is because one who abides in him partakes of his divine Spirit, who is the midst of a person’s heart as a living fountain springs up and flashes its waters into everlasting life...Thus, like a little grain of mustard seed, our works are in now ay comparable in greatness to the tree of glory they produce. Still they have the vigor and virtue to produce it because they proceed from the Holy Spirit. By a wondrous infusion of his grace into our hearts he makes our works become his and yet at the same time they remain our own, since we are members of a head of which he is the Spirit…” (TLG, Book XI, Chapter 7, pp. 211-212)
So, it turns out that the reason that Jesus did not abolish the Law – even the smallest parts of it – is that he embodied the Law, that is, the Law of the Spirit which supersedes (“fulfills”) the letter of the Law. While we, the followers of Jesus, may need to know how to do it “by the book”, the life of Jesus clearly suggests that there is something much more important than the letter of the law and that something is the law of the Spirit, which leads to life.
Today, how can we do our part in fulfilling Jesus’ law of love through our love for one another?
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(June 11, 2026: Barnabas, Apostle)
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“Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Scribes and Pharisees you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.”
In today’s Gospel Jesus raises the bar when it comes to considering just what it takes to “enter into the Kingdom of God. Jesus calls his disciples to a higher love! When it comes to judgment, it’s no longer enough for them to say, “Well, we never killed anybody.” Now, they must also be able to say, “We did not grow angry with somebody else; we did not hold another person in contempt; we didn’t hold a grudge against anybody!” In other words, Jesus calls his disciples to live a higher love!
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, Francis de Sales describes what this higher love – “devotion” – looks like:
“Inasmuch as divine love adorns the soul, it is called grace, which makes us pleasing to his Divine Majesty. Inasmuch as it strengthens us to do good, it is called charity. When it has reached a degree of perfection at which it not only makes us do what is good but also enables us to do what is good carefully, frequently and promptly, it is called devotion. Ostriches never fly; hens fly in a clumsy fashion near the ground and only once in a while, while eagles, doves and swallows fly aloft, swiftly and frequently. In like manner, sinners in no way fly up towards God but make their way here upon the earth and for the earth. Good people who have not yet attained devotion fly toward God by their good works but do so infrequently, slowly and awkwardly. Devout souls ascend to Him more frequently, promptly and with lofty heights.” (IDL, Part I, Chapter 1, p. 40)
Today, how might we rise to Jesus’ challenge to live a higher love? How might our souls “ascend to Him more frequently, promptly and with lofty heights” with our feet planted firmly on this earth?
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(June 12, 2026: Most Sacred Heart of Jesus)
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“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart.”
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote:
“God’s love is seated within the Savior’s heart as on a royal throne. He beholds through the cleft of his pierced side all the hearts of the children of men. His heart is the king of hearts, and he keeps his eyes fixed on our hearts. Just as those who peer through a lattice see clearly while they themselves are only half seen, so too, the divine love within that heart, or rather, that heart of divine love, always clearly sees our hearts.” (TLG, Book V, Chapter 11, p. 263)
In the person of the meek and humble Jesus, God makes room in his heart for all of humanity. In imitation of that divine, Sacred Heart, let us try our level best to make room in our hearts for all those people whom we encounter - just this day.
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(June 13, 2026: Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
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“He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.”
In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales observed the following about Mary, the Mother of Jesus:
“Just as the charity of this mother excels in perfection compared with all the saints in heaven, so also, she practiced it more excellently in this mortal life. For her there was no change or delay in her progress of love but by a perpetual advance she rose from love to love…Her love, like a true Solomon, reigned peaceably in her heart and performed all its acts at will. He virginity of heart and body was of greater dignity and more honorable than that of the angels. Hence her spirit was neither divide nor separated and was, as St. Paul says, ‘concerned about the things of the Lord and how she might please God.’ In fine, since maternal love is the most urgent, the most active and the most ardent of all forms of love, how much must it have worked in the heart of such a Mother and for the heart of such a Son?” (TLG, Book III, Chapter 8, p. 183)
The most urgent, active and ardent Immaculate Heart of Mary was completely and totally consumed about the things of the Lord and with serving God. To what extent can the same be said of our hearts this day?
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