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Saint Lutgardis

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A pretty girl with a fondness for clothes and no apparent religious vocation, Lutgardis was sent to the Black Benedictine convent near Saint Trond at age 12 because her dowry had been lost in a failed business venture, and there was thus little chance for a life as a normal, married lay woman. In her late teens, Lutgardis received a vision of Christ showing her His wounds, and in 1194 at age 20 she became a Benedictine nun with a true vocation. She had visions of Christ while in prayer, experienced ecstasies, levitated, and dripped blood from forehead and hair when enraptured by the Passion. Chosen as prioress of her community in 1205, she repeatedly refused to be abbess.

The Benedictine order was not strict enough for Lutgardis, and on the advice of her friend Saint Christina the Astonishing, in 1208 she joined the Cistercians at Aywieres (near Brussels in modern Belgium) where she lived for her remaining 30 years. She displayed the gifts of healing, prophecy, spiritual wisdom, and was an inspired teacher on the Gospels. Blind for the last eleven years of her life, she treated the affliction as a gift – it reduced the distraction of the outside world. In one of her last visions, Christ told her when she was to die; she spent the time remaining in prayer for the conversion of sinners.

Born

1182 at Tongres, Limburg, Belgium

Died

16 June 1246 at Aywieres (modern Awirs), Belgium of natural causes, just as night office began on the Saturday night following Feast of the Holy Trinity
relics transferred to Ittre, Belgium on 4 December 1796 to avoid destruction in the French Revolution

Patronage

birth
blind people
blindness
childbirth
disabled people
handicapped people
physically challenged people
–
Belgium
–
in Belgium
– Flanders
– Tongeren

Representation

woman with Christ showing her His wounded side
blind Cistercian abbess
Cistercian nun being blinded by the Heart of Jesus
Cistercian to whom Christ extends his hand from the cross
woman in attendance when Christ shows his Heart to the Father

Source: https://catholicsaints.info/saint-lutgardis/

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Matthew 5:41-42

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A New Depth of Mercy

Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.

Reflection:

As the faith of Israel developed over the centuries, prior to the coming of Christ, there were various stages of advancement in morality. Prior to the establishment of moral laws in the Old Testament, it was common for families to inflict severe vengeance upon other families when harm was done to them. This caused ongoing violence and feuds. But advancements were made when the law of retaliation was established which said, “When a man causes a disfigurement in his neighbor, as he has done it shall be done to him, fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has disfigured a man, he shall be disfigured” (Leviticus 24:19–20). This was a new form of justice that forbade the vengeance from being more severe than the crime that was retaliated against. At the time, this helped end ongoing family feuds that continually escalated.

It is this law of retaliation that Jesus addresses in our Gospel today. The new and much higher form of morality that Jesus taught called His disciples to “offer no resistance to one who is evil” and to turn the other cheek when evil was done to them. Though strict justice requires satisfaction for sin, Jesus’ new teaching was that mercy pays every debt. First, His mercy bestowed upon us, for the forgiveness of our sins, pays the debt of our sins when we truly repent and change. But if we desire our debts to God for our sins to be forgiven and repaid, then we must do the same to others, holding nothing against them.

But Jesus goes even further. In the passage quoted above, Jesus exhorts His disciples to a new and radical form of charity and generosity. This new moral code was how the children of the Kingdom of God were now called to act. It was not enough to only forgive and to forget the debt one owes you because of their sin. Mercy now requires us to “Give to the one who asks” and to walk “two miles” with one who only asks you to walk one mile with them. In other words, Christian charity far exceeds every concept of strict justice and even goes beyond basic forgiveness. This was certainly a new and radical teaching from our Lord.

Think about this new moral law in your own life. What level of “justice” do you most commonly live by? When someone wrongs you, do you live like those prior to the Old Testament laws by seeking to get back at them to an even greater degree than the harm done to you? Do you live by the law that seeks the equal justice of an eye for an eye? Do you seek to forgive and offer mercy as a payment for the debt another has incurred by the sin they have committed against you? Or, ideally, do you strive to go even beyond the act of forgiveness and bestow mercy in a new and generous, superabundant way? This last level of love is difficult to obtain and live, but it is the way our Lord treats us and it is the way that He calls us to treat others.

Reflect, today, upon any hurt you may currently be struggling with. And consider the way in which you have been dealing with that hurt. As you seek to understand this new law of love and mercy given by our Lord, pray to Him that He will give you the grace you need to give to others the same level of mercy that God gives to you.

Source: https://catholic-daily-reflections.com/2025/06/15/a-new-depth-of-mercy-4/

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The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

First Reading Proverbs 8:22-31

Thus says the wisdom of God:
            “The LORD possessed me, the beginning of his ways,
                        the forerunner of his prodigies of long ago;
            from of old I was poured forth,
                        at the first, before the earth.
            When there were no depths I was brought forth,
                        when there were no fountains or springs of water;
            before the mountains were settled into place,
                        before the hills, I was brought forth;
            while as yet the earth and fields were not made,
                        nor the first clods of the world.

            “When the Lord established the heavens I was there,
                        when he marked out the vault over the face of the deep;
            when he made firm the skies above,
                        when he fixed fast the foundations of the earth;
            when he set for the sea its limit,
                        so that the waters should not transgress his command;
            then was I beside him as his craftsman,
                        and I was his delight day by day,
            playing before him all the while,
                        playing on the surface of his earth;
                        and I found delight in the human race.”

Responsorial Psalm Psalms 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9

R (2a)  O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,
            the moon and the stars which you set in place —
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
            or the son of man that you should care for him?
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
You have made him little less than the angels,
            and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
            putting all things under his feet:
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
All sheep and oxen,
            yes, and the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,
            and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
R O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!

Second Reading Romans 5:1-5

Brothers and sisters:
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have gained access by faith
to this grace in which we stand,
and we boast in hope of the glory of God.
Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions,
knowing that affliction produces endurance,
and endurance, proven character,
and proven character, hope,
and hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

Alleluia Cf. Revelation 1:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit;
to God who is, who was, and who is to come.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel John 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you.”

Source: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061525.cfm

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The Most Holy Trinity

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One of the most fiercely debated dogmas of our faith in the early centuries of the Church was on the nature of the Most Holy Trinity. Today’s solemnity did not enter the General Roman Calendar until the fourteenth century, partly because we are called to honor and worship the Most Holy Trinity every day and in every liturgy. But designating one Sunday on which we ponder the inner life of the Most Holy Trinity is an opportunity to renew and deepen our honor and worship.

The Trinity is first and foremost a mystery. As The Divine Mystery above all mysteries, we must begin by humbly acknowledging that we will never, not even in Heaven, have a complete understanding of God’s essence, His inner reality. Only God knows Himself fully. Not even the Blessed Virgin Mary or the highest choirs of angels see Him and know Him as He sees and knows Himself. Nonetheless, every creature, whether angel or human, is called to probe the mysteries of God to the fullest extent possible. In that probing, contemplating, and understanding, we discover the purpose of our lives and experience the fullness of beatitude to which we are called. God and God alone satisfies the hungry, weary, and seeking soul.

This might come as a surprise, but God is perfectly simple. Saint Thomas Aquinas, one of the Church’s greatest teachers, explains that angels, the physical world, and humans are made up of different material and immaterial parts that can change over time, making us a complex reality capable of internal and external disunity. God, however, is incapable of change, since He is Perfection. He is exactly Who He is, always has been, and will always be. This results in a divine simplicity and harmonious unity that is infinitely beyond His creation. God doesn’t need anything to exist because it is His very nature to exist as the unchanging, transcendent God.

Within this divine simplicity and perfect unity we can distinguish various attributes of God, noting that each attribute is perfectly united with the others in the most simple and complete way. God alone is all-powerful and has supreme authority over all creation. He alone perceives all potentiality within creation and within Himself. He is perfectly wise, just, and merciful. He is both completely beyond creation (transcendent) and intimately involved with every aspect of creation (immanent). God is the perfection of holiness and morality. He is the only standard of goodness and truth. He is present everywhere at all times—unchanging and eternal. God is Love.

This philosophically rich language attempts to describe God in His oneness—He is One God, not three Gods. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit each share perfectly in the one divine nature, and all share the same divine attributes. To understand the profound mystery of the Trinity, we must start with the above oneness of God and then move into His threefold Personhood.

How can something be one and three at the same time? We know that God is one-in-three solely because this is the way the Scriptures reveal God to us. The Old Testament alluded to the threefold personhood of God, and Jesus explicitly identified the three persons as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Without this revelation from our Lord, human reason alone could never arrive at the realization that God is One in Three.

In Sacred Scripture and Church teaching, God’s attributes and existence can be summed up as Love. “God is love” (1 John 4:8). Love cannot exist without a giver, a receiver, and the love that unites them. Hence, it is the very nature of God to love perfectly, to receive love perfectly, and to be love itself.

In the Trinity, the Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father, and this mutual love is personified in the Holy Spirit. This “love” in God is defined by the Church as an “eternal begetting” and as an “eternal procession,” which are fundamentally different from an act of creation. The words “begetting” and “proceeding” are used to point to the relational origin of love. The Father eternally begets the Son, reflecting an eternal exchange of love. The Holy Spirit, then, proceeds from both the Father and the Son, emanating from their mutual love. These profound mysteries are articulated in the Nicene Creed:

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made…I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.

The formulation of the Trinitarian relationship in the Creed reveals the profound depth of God’s nature: God is of one essence, yet three distinct Persons. Each Person is involved in an eternal, loving relationship with the others. The mystery within this formulation requires contemplation, as it reveals a God Who is deeply relational and Whose very nature is to exist in a state of perfect, self-giving love.

If these definitions of God seem beyond your grasp, you are correct. They are. By God’s grace, these basic definitions of the Most Holy Trinity took shape, beginning with Church councils in the fourth and fifth centuries. Later, theologians such as Saint Augustine and Saint Thomas Aquinas deepened our understanding. However, even if you were to spend years studying the best theology on the Trinity, you would still only be able to comprehend a slight image of Who God is.

The best way to grow in a deeper understanding of God and all of reality is through the deepest forms of contemplative prayer. Contemplative prayer is not something you can simply turn on. It is an infused prayer that only God can bestow as He invites you to enter into His divine presence. Contemplative prayer begins with a profound purification process by which all sin is purged from one’s life, as well as all attachment to sin, and then all conceptual knowledge of God is eliminated so that the mind can gaze upon God through infused knowledge. This mystical prayer is well taught by the greatest saints of the Church, especially Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa of Ávila. Being drawn into the mystery of God’s inner life sometimes includes periods of mystical ecstasy, raptures, intellectual visions, and other mystical phenomena. Though few reach that height of prayer in this life, it’s helpful to know it is possible and to know that directly infused knowledge of God through mystical prayer is the only way to achieve some comprehension of the Most Holy Trinity.

As you strive to deepen your own prayer life, offer your praise to God the best you can. Profess your unwavering belief in the Creed, despite not fully understanding it. Most importantly, open your heart to God, Who is Love, and love Him in return with every power of your soul. By doing so, you will be on the slow and steady road to a mystical union of love with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Source: https://mycatholic.life/saints/saints-of-the-liturgical-year/first-sunday-after-pentecost-holy-trinity–solemnity/

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Matthew 28:19-20

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The Essence of the Most Holy Trinity

“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

Reflection:

Of all the great feasts we celebrate within the Church throughout the year, today’s Solemnity presents us with a Mystery that is so deep and transcendent that our eternity will be spent in perpetual contemplation. The Trinity, the life of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, will never get old, never be fully understood, and will be the cause of our everlasting adoration and joy. Though the Church has used philosophical concepts to explain the Trinity, no human concept or description will ever fully explain Who God is. Though we can point to some general truths about God, we will never be able to fully depict the inner essence, depth, beauty and omnipotence of the Trinity.

As we consider that fact, it’s important to understand that the Trinity is not first a theological mystery we try to define. Rather, the Trinity is first a communion of Persons we are invited to know. We do not primarily come to know God through intellectual deduction. We come to know God through prayerful union with Him. Though theology is exceptionally useful and important, the essence of God is beyond any and every philosophical concept we can define.

The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are Persons. And as Persons, they want to be known. And they want to be known primarily through a life of deep and intimate prayer. Praying to One Person, of course, is praying to all, since they are One God. But we are, nonetheless, called to a relationship of love with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. And though our feeble minds may not be able to fully comprehend the essence of God, He will draw us deeper and deeper into a knowledge of Him if we let Him.

Prayer often begins by saying prayers, by meditating upon Scripture, and by listening. But true prayer is something much deeper. True prayer is contemplative prayer that ultimately leads to divine union. Only God can initiate this form of prayer in our lives, and only God, through this deep form of prayer, can communicate Himself to us as He is. Some of the greatest mystics of our Church, such as Saint John of the Cross and Saint Teresa of Ávila, explain in their mystical theology that the deepest knowledge of God does not come through concepts or images. In fact, if we wish to obtain a knowledge of God in His essence, we must allow Him to purge every concept of Who He is so that the pure light of His essence can be poured forth upon our minds. This knowledge, they say, is beyond knowing “about” God. It’s the beginning of a knowledge “of” God.

Reflect, today, upon the Most Holy Trinity. As you do, say a prayer to God asking for a deeper and more intimate knowledge of Him. Ask Him to communicate to you His divine love and to open your mind and heart to a deeper understanding of Who He is. Try to humble yourself before the great Mystery of the inner life of God. Humility before the Mystery of God means that we know how little we know about Him and how little we know of Him. But that humble truth will help you move closer to the deeper relationship of love to which you are called.

Source: https://catholic-daily-reflections.com/2025/06/14/the-essence-of-the-most-holy-trinity-4/

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Saint Methodius of Constantinople

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Methodius was educated in Syracuse, Sicily. While in Constantinople to seek a position at court, he felt the call to enter the religious life. He built a monastery and started a monastic community on the island of Chinos. Soon after finishing construction, Methodius was summoned by the Patriarch of Constantinople to help govern the diocese.

The Eastern Church was debating the use of icons in worship and as tools to bring the faithful closer to God. Methodius and the Patriarch of Constantinople worked against the iconoclasts, and together suffered nearly as much abuse as the images. They worked to unify and reconcile the sides. Methodius traveled to Rome, Italy to seek the Pope‘s help; during his absence, he was exiled. After seven years, he returned as Patriarch of Constantinople in 842, and continued to work for unity.

Born

8th century at Syracuse, Sicily

Died

847 of natural causes

Canonized

Pre-Congregation

Patronage

Chios, Greece

Source: https://catholicsaints.info/saint-methodius-of-constantinople/

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Matthew 5:33-34

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Daily Sincerity and Honesty

Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow. But I say to you, do not swear at all…”

Reflection:

The purpose of an oath was to guarantee the truthfulness of the statement made. Sometimes this can be very good. For example, many of the Sacraments involve making a public vow before God and the Church. In these cases, the vow is a form of oath that is solemnized so as to invite the grace of God to enter and strengthen it. It becomes a way of making a public witness to one’s faith and an expression of one’s need for God’s grace to be faithful to the promise that is made.

Jesus is not speaking about these forms of public vows, oaths and promises in the Gospel today. Instead, He is addressing a practice that some engaged in, whereby they regularly swore on God’s name about the truthfulness of what they were saying. The problem with this is that it takes something solemn and sacred and carelessly turns it into something ordinary. There is no need to “swear to God” about everything one says.

First of all, if one feels a need to call on God’s name regularly so as to convince another of the truthfulness of their statements, then it is most likely the case that they do so because they are struggling with dishonesty. Oath-taking on a regular basis seems to presuppose a human tendency to lie. For that reason, it is not ideal to go about one’s daily interactions with this presupposition. Instead, as Christians we must strive for a fundamental disposition of truthfulness. Jesus concludes this Gospel teaching by saying, “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the Evil One.” In other words, work to become a person of true honesty and integrity. Be sincere in all of your dealings, and do not begin with a presupposition of dishonesty. Begin with the intention of complete honesty and sincerity, and that will suffice.

Furthermore, if one were to go about their day making one oath after another, swearing on God’s name to the truthfulness every time, this would have the effect of lessening the solemnity of those few times when this is a good and holy practice. Making public vows, such as marriage vows, or public promises, such as priests make, are unique and solemn. Publicly renewing our faith within the Church, taking an oath as one begins the responsibility of some public office, or any other more solemn opportunity for oath-taking should be seen as a special occasion. Therefore, our daily commitments must simply be the fruit of our honesty and integrity as persons.

Reflect, today, upon your own daily approach to honesty and sincerity. Do you go about your day with the goal of living in the truth, speaking the truth and seeking the truth? Are you honest with others, seeking good and clear communication with them? Ponder these questions and know that interior integrity requires these virtues of honesty and sincerity. Seek that integrity and others will benefit as they grow to trust you each and every day.

Source: https://catholic-daily-reflections.com/2025/06/13/daily-sincerity-and-honesty-2/

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Saint Anthony of Padua, Priest and Doctor

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1195–1231; Patron Saint of amputees, animals, mail, horses, expectant mothers, fishermen, harvests, lost articles, boatmen, and travelers, as well as the elderly, oppressed, poor, and starving; Canonized by Pope Gregory IX on 30 May 1232; Declared the Evangelizing Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XII in 1946

Saint Anthony of Padua is one of the most revered saints within the Catholic Church. He was born in Lisbon, Portugal and was given the name Fernando Martins de Bulhões. His parents were wealthy nobility who provided a good education for him as a youth, most likely at the Cathedral school in Lisbon. At the age of fifteen, Fernando decided to enter religious life and joined the Canons Regular of St. Augustine, not far from his home. During his two years with the canons, he excelled in his studies and prayer. However, being so close to his home led to frequent visits from family and friends, prompting Fernando to desire greater solitude to more deeply embrace his vocation. He moved to Coimbra, just over 100 miles north of Lisbon, to join the Santa Cruz Monastery. At Santa Cruz, Fernando enjoyed nine years of excellent formation, studying, praying, and growing in virtue. After completing his formation in 1220, Fernando was ordained a priest.

During his nine years of formation in Coimbra, a small group from the newly-founded Franciscan Order took up residence nearby in a hut dedicated to Saint Anthony of Egypt. Fernando came to know these friars and was impressed by their simplicity, poverty, humility, and radical dedication to Christ. The Franciscans, founded by Saint Francis of Assisi only eleven years prior to their arrival in Coimbra, were a new and rapidly growing order within the Church. They were traveling preachers, relying upon divine providence rather than the income produced by large estates. They owned nothing except for the single piece of clothing they wore.

One day, news reached Coimbra that five Franciscan missionaries had been martyred in Morocco by Muslims. The King of Portugal ransomed their bodies, which were then brought back in a solemn procession to Coimbra for burial. The courage of these martyrs, coupled with the witness of their fellow friars, so impressed Fernando that he requested and received permission to leave the Canons Regular and join the Franciscans. He took the name Anthony after Saint Anthony of Egypt, the patron of the friars’ house in Coimbra.

Desiring to emulate these five martyrs, Father Anthony sailed to Morocco to preach to the Muslims. However, he soon fell seriously ill and required medical attention, prompting his return journey to Portugal. A storm blew his ship off course, resulting in a landing in Sicily instead. Shortly after Father Anthony recovered from his illness, Saint Francis called the famous “Chapter of Mats” in Assisi. Most of the Franciscan Friars attended, including one of their newest members, Father Anthony.

In 1209, Saint Francis founded his order with twelve members. By 1221, the number of Franciscan friars had grown to about 5,000. Such rapid growth brought not only zeal and enthusiasm, but also growing pains, divisions, and the need for clarity. At the General Chapter of Mats, Saint Francis resigned as the head of the order, turning leadership over to those he felt were more qualified. He preferred a life of greater humility, poverty, simplicity, and prayer. It was at that Chapter that Father Anthony and Brother Francis likely met for the first time. Shortly afterwards, Father Anthony was assigned to the hermitage of Monte Paola in Forli.

Anthony’s initial time in Forli was spent in solitude, study, and prayer. One day, due to confusion between the Dominicans and Franciscans, no one was assigned to preach at a first Mass in the local church. At the last minute, Father Anthony reluctantly agreed to preach. His sermon left the congregation in awe of his exceptional gift for preaching, his profound knowledge of the Sacred Scriptures, and his depth of holiness. From then on, Father Anthony became a well-known and sought-after preacher, changing many lives with his humble, down-to-earth, yet theologically profound preaching. He drew on the storehouse of wisdom from ancient saints but never presented himself in a proud or arrogant manner. His allegorical method of preaching sought to bring out the symbolic and hidden meanings of the text in a way that connected with people. His preaching and humble wisdom even caught the attention of Saint Francis, who was concerned about higher education for the friars, fearing that advanced studies could lead to pride and undermine the order’s mission. In Father Anthony, however, Francis found someone he could trust and put him in charge of the theological training of the friars preparing for ordination.

Father Anthony continued to preach far and wide for the next several years until his death at the age of thirty-five. One day, he was even invited to preach to the pope and the cardinals. During that sermon, Father Anthony was given the gift of tongues, enabling everyone present to understand him in his native language. Pope Gregory IX was so impressed with Anthony’s insight into Scripture that he referred to him as the “Ark of the Testament.” The pope asked Father Anthony to compose sermons for Sundays and feast days of the liturgical year, which he did in the form of outlines and commentaries on the Scriptures. It is those sermons that later led to him being named a Doctor of the Church with the unique title of “Evangelizing Doctor.”

Many other legends surround Father Anthony’s preaching and miracles. He is said to have preached to fish one day when the heretical townspeople had rejected him. When they saw the fish sticking their heads out of the water to listen attentively, the people converted. For this reason, he is often called the “Hammer of Heretics.” He is known as the patron saint of lost items because one day a friar stole a Gospel book from Father Anthony and when Father Anthony prayed for its return, the friar was so convicted in his heart that he returned it and repented.

Saint Anthony is often depicted holding the Child Jesus, a portrayal inspired by an account of a friar who reportedly saw Anthony in deep prayer, conversing with the Christ Child. Sacred Scripture is also frequently featured in art as a symbol of his profound knowledge of Scripture. Lilies, signifying his poverty and chastity, are present in many depictions.

Although Saint Anthony lived just thirty-five years, God used him in powerful ways. His life bears testament to the idea that the quality of life supersedes its length. “Quality” of life can only be attained through grace, and Saint Anthony received an abundance of grace in his life. It’s worth reflecting on the importance of seeking as much holiness as possible in life. Too often, we pursue longevity rather than holiness. However, many of the great saints, including Saint Anthony, lived on this earth for only a brief period. As we honor this great saint, remember that God wants you to spend whatever time you have left on earth dedicated to growing in holiness and serving His holy will. Doing so will imbue your life with a quality that far surpasses mere longevity.

Source: https://mycatholic.life/saints/saints-of-the-liturgical-year/june-13–st-antony-of-padua/

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Matthew 5:29-30

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The Love of Friendship

If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

Reflection:

This imagery of tearing out your eye and cutting off your hand is clearly meant to get our attention. Though we can be certain that Jesus is not actually suggesting we mutilate our bodies, we should not hesitate to prayerfully ponder this imagery so as to understand the truths Jesus is speaking.

Saint Augustine, in reflecting upon this passage, states: “By the eye we must understand our most cherished friend…” Augustine further points out that Jesus specifically mentions the “right eye” as a way of denoting those friendships that have a “higher degree of affection” (Serm. in Mont. i. 13.). Thus, although friendship—especially very close friendship—is a gift, sometimes those close to us can become a source of sin or an occasion of sin. In that case, they are not truly friends, and it might be better to limit or even end that relationship rather than to allow it to lead us into sin.

Think about the people in your own life. Though we must love all people with the love of God, friendship is more than love. Friendship establishes a special bond with another and opens you up to their presence and influence in your life. When you establish a friendship, you allow another a certain influence in your life. When that influence is good, then the friendship produces much good fruit. But when that influence is evil, then that friendship becomes a danger to the good of your soul. In that case, it may need to be torn out or cut off so that you are not drawn into serious sin or even the occasion of sin.

When a friend in your life becomes an occasion of sin to you, your love for them must remain, but it must also change. Love, in this case, may take on the form of a loving rebuke, a withdrawal of your own heart, or a limiting of your interactions. But this is love. By analogy, when a person sins against God, their relationship with God also changes. God withdraws His friendship. He is less present to the person, and their internal communion diminishes or even ends when the sin is serious. This is not a lack of love on God’s part; it is simply the effect of sin. So also in our relations with another, when the grace of God is not mutually given and received between two people, then friendship in the truest sense is not possible. True friendship is always centered in God’s grace and dependent upon it. Therefore, when God is excluded from a relationship, that relationship must change from a true friendship to a relationship that imitates God’s love for a sinner. Mercy, compassion and forgiveness must continually be offered, but interior communion and unity will end. But this is love.

Reflect, today, upon those in your life whom God has given you to love. First, reflect upon those relationships that do have God at the center. These relationships will become true friendships and will produce an abundance of good fruit in your life. Rejoice in these friendships and give thanks to God for them. Second, reflect upon any relationship that does not bear good fruit. As you do, prayerfully consider how you approach that relationship. Do you attempt to maintain a “friendship” even though God is not able to be the center of that relationship? If so, ponder how God is calling you to change that relationship so that it more fully reflects the love God has for you and for that other person in your life.

Source: https://catholic-daily-reflections.com/2025/06/12/the-love-of-friendship-2/

Matthew 5:29-30 Read More »

Pope Saint Leo III

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Pope Leo III was the son of Atyuppius and Elizabeth. He was a priest, Cardinal, and a Papal treasurer. He was elected pope the day after his predecessor’s burial, probably so there would not be any outside interference with the decision of the cardinals.

Upon his election, he sent Charlemagne the keys of Saint Peter and the standard of the city of Rome, Italy indicating his choice of Charlemagne as protector of the city and the see. Charlemagne, with his letters of congratulations, sent a fortune which Leo used to build churches and found charitable institutions.

On 25 April 799, members of Pope Adrian I‘s family hired thugs to attack Leo in a procession. They scarred his face and tried to tear out his tongue and eyes to render him unfit for the papacy. He survived the attack, scarred but his tongue and eyes miraculously healed. He fled to Charlemagne‘s protection at Paderborn, Germany where his enemies tried to turn the king against him. When Leo recovered, Charlemagne escorted him back to Rome. In 800, he conducted a trial of Leo and of his accusers. There was no evidence of Leo’s guilt, but there was of his accusers, and they were imprisoned. On Christmas day in 800, Leo crowned Charlemagne emperor, marking the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire.

Born

at Rome, Italy

Papal Ascension

26 December 795

Died

12 June 816 relics at Saint Peter’s, Rome, Italy

Canonized

1673 by Pope Clement X

Source: https://catholicsaints.info/pope-saint-leo-iii/

Pope Saint Leo III Read More »

Author name: Sani

Saint Lutgardis

Matthew 5:41-42

A New Depth of Mercy

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

First Reading Proverbs 8:22-31

Responsorial Psalm Psalms 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9

Second Reading Romans 5:1-5

Alleluia Cf. Revelation 1:8

Gospel John 16:12-15

The Most Holy Trinity

Matthew 28:19-20

The Essence of the Most Holy Trinity

Saint Methodius of Constantinople

Matthew 5:33-34

Daily Sincerity and Honesty

Saint Anthony of Padua, Priest and Doctor

Matthew 5:29-30

The Love of Friendship

Pope Saint Leo III

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