GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY : Sunday - June 25, 2023

  

Sunday - June 25, 2023

In order to acquire tranquility in action it is necessary to carefully consider what we are capable of accomplishing and never to undertake more than that. It is self-love, ever more anxious to do much rather than to do well and this self-love that wishes to undertake everything and accomplishes nothing!

~~St. Francis DeSales

June 25, 2023

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 94

 

Reading I                                                                              Jer 20:10-13

 

Jeremiah said:

"I hear the whisperings of many:

'Terror on every side!

Denounce! let us denounce him!'

All those who were my friends

are on the watch for any misstep of mine.

'Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail,

and take our vengeance on him.'

But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion:

my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.

In their failure they will be put to utter shame,

to lasting, unforgettable confusion.

O LORD of hosts, you who test the just,

who probe mind and heart,

let me witness the vengeance you take on them,

for to you I have entrusted my cause.

Sing to the LORD,

praise the LORD,

for he has rescued the life of the poor

from the power of the wicked!"

 

Responsorial Psalm                                              Ps 69:8-10, 14, 17, 33-35

 

R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.

 

For your sake I bear insult,

and shame covers my face.

I have become an outcast to my brothers,

a stranger to my mother's children,

Because zeal for your house consumes me,

and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.

R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.

 

I pray to you, O LORD,

for the time of your favor, O God!

In your great kindness answer me

with your constant help.

Answer me, O LORD, for bounteous is your kindness;

in your great mercy turn toward me.

R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.

 

"See, you lowly ones, and be glad;

you who seek God, may your hearts revive!

For the LORD hears the poor,

and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.

Let the heavens and the earth praise him,

the seas and whatever moves in them!''

R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.

 

Reading II                                                                 Rom 5:12-15

 

Brothers and sisters:

Through one man sin entered the world,

and through sin, death,

and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned—

for up to the time of the law, sin was in the world,

though sin is not accounted when there is no law.

But death reigned from Adam to Moses,

even over those who did not sin

after the pattern of the trespass of Adam,

who is the type of the one who was to come.

 

But the gift is not like the transgression.

For if by the transgression of the one the many died,

how much more did the grace of God

and the gracious gift of the one man Jesus Christ

overflow for the many.

 

Alleluia                                                                                            

 

Alleluia Alleluia

The Spirit of truth will testify to me, says the Lord;

and you also will testify.

Alleluia

 

Gospel                                                                       Mt 10:26-33

 

Jesus said to the Twelve:

"Fear no one.

Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed,

nor secret that will not be known.

What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light;

what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.

And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul;

rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy

both soul and body in Gehenna.

Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?

Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's knowledge.

Even all the hairs of your head are counted.

So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Everyone who acknowledges me before others

I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.

But whoever denies me before others,

I will deny before my heavenly Father."

 

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Be bold with your good news!

Think of a time when you were in darkness: a sin, for example, or when you felt abandoned by God or your prayers seemed dry and your spiritual gifts seemed covered over. What did Jesus say to you at that time (perhaps through scripture or friends or a homily at Mass)? What did his whisperings tell you? His words and his guidance were good news for you!

 

In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, Jesus says: “What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light.”

 

He’s calling you and commissioning you and empowering you, through his Holy Spirit, to share your good news with others, so that they can hear him in their darkness. Proclaim it boldly and visibly so that those who want to hear it will stop and listen. Do not be afraid to openly share how Jesus has been working in your life and how he’s helped you grow or heal or turn away from sin.

 

Yes, when we’re this bold, some people ridicule us and reject us, like how Jeremiah was treated in the first reading. But the Lord is with you, too, as “a mighty champion,” and your persecutors will eventually stumble and fail. Jesus tells us to “fear no one.” God takes good care of us.

 

Jesus acknowledges those who acknowledge him. In other words, when we’re insulted or persecuted for our faith, God holds us and comforts us. It’s his opinion of us that matters anyway, and no one else’s. Listen to him. In the whispers of the sanctuary of your heart, he’s telling you all the good that he sees in you. He’s telling you that he appreciates the good you have done. He’s giving you good news worth sharing.

 

What is your testimony? What did Jesus teach you when you were in sin or handling a recent difficulty? Write it down; this exercise will help you feel more confident when you try to share your story with others.

 

Today's Prayer

 

Lord Jesus, may Your Holy Spirit put Your words on our lips and give us noble and generous hearts to serve You. May we announce Your kingdom with the signs and wonders You promised that will accompany those who believe in You. Amen.

 

 

God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”