Catholic Mass Readings and Reflection June 26, 2025
Thursday – 12th Week in Ordinary Time
26th June 2025 (Thursday)
Psalter: Week 4
Readings of the Day
First Reading: Genesis 16:1-12, 15-16
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her. The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.” The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel of the Lord also said to her, “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.” And the angel of the Lord said to her, “Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has listened to your affliction. He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.” And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
Psalm 106:1b-2, 3-4a, 4b-5 R. (1b)
R/. O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Gospel Acclamation
V/. Alleluia
R/. Alleluia
V/. If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, says the Lord; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel: Matthew 7:21-29
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
Daily Gospel Reflection
Thursday – 12th Week in Ordinary Time
Main Point: Mere words or shallow activities will not please God and bring His blessings. What really matters is to cease to do evil and be faithful to God
The word of God once again makes it clear that evil is abominable and displeasing to God. What He expects from us is to avoid evil, and to remain faithful to Him. If one fails in this, he will meet the consequences, ending up in destruction.
Many may acclaim “Lord, Lord”. But that will not suffice. If they fail to do God’s will, they will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Some others may also do apparently many religious activities and spiritual gifts like prophecy, exorcism, and miracles. But that too will not suffice. They need to avoid their wickedness and be faithful to God in an integral life. Otherwise, they will meet the fate of rejection by the Lord who would declare, “I never knew you, depart from me, you workers of wickedness”.
Ultimately what matters the most is to live a life, founded and built on rock. It means to live a life that remains solid and firm in faith, beaten by winds and floods but unshaken. It means to live a life that is docile and submissive to listen and be tuned to His voice and promptings. It means to live a life that is constantly built on His teachings and values. It means to live a life that strives to do His mission of spreading His kingdom and bearing abundant fruits of good actions.
But on the contrary, if one builds his house on a foundation of sand, their fall will be sure and great. It is to entangle oneself in worldly dissipations, being carried away by worthless interests and pursuits. These are the ones who are content with mere empty words and shallow activities. Their hearts cling to evil and their lives continue dichotomous.
My Practice: It is wisdom that makes the vital difference between the two types of foundations. People of wisdom build their life on rock while those foolish, on sand. What are we – wise or foolish? What foundation is ours – rock or sand?
