Only face-to-face with a wounded Christ,

Seeing is believing, and it is through those witnesses that saw the risen Lord

that we have come to believe. Jesus acknowledges as much when he says,

“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet come to believe.”

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Ephesians 2:19-22

Now you are

"And whoever loves son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me."

 Rather than demanding that believers abandon their families,

Jesus is highlighting that true faith requires a radical, supreme devotion.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

2 Kings 4:8-11, 14-16a

One day

Sin is inherently destructive.

It physically, emotionally,

and spiritually harms us by introducing brokenness, guilt,

and slavery to bad habits into our lives.

It disrupts our relationship with the Creator.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Amos 7:10-17

Amaziah, the priest of Bethel,

 These miracles serve as tangible signs that God's Kingdom has arrived

—a reign of divine compassion, power, and ultimate restoration.

Healings and exorcisms demonstrate that sickness

and evil have no lasting place in God's Kingdom.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Lamentations 2: 2. 10-14. 18-19*

Without pity,

 Jesus is our liberator, breaking chains of sin and setting captives free.

He is also our restorer, healing broken hearts, renewing our minds.

and bringing abundant life where there was once loss.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Amos 5:14-15, 21-24

Seek good and shun evil,

 We need to remember His words, "Without Me you can do nothing."

He was God Almighty. "According to your faith let it be to you."

We know we can find the Lord in His Word, He is really there and that He can help us.

Perhaps we are ust like the leper. We long for the Lord's help.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

2 Kings 25:1-12

In the ninth year

 
Faith doesn't always guarantee an immediate end to the storm,

but it offers the peace, strength, and grace to endure it.

It anchors us in the unwavering truth that Christ is with us in every trial. 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Amos 3:1-8; 4:11-12

Hear this word

 Faith is not merely professed; it must also be practiced.

True faith requires both belief and active expression.

A purely intellectual commitment lacks transformative power,

while faith rooted in love naturally manifests through meaningful deeds and obedience.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

2 Kings 24:8-17

Jehoiachin was eighteen years old

 
The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is honoring

the two foundational apostles of the Church.

St. Peter was the leader of the Apostles and the foundational "rock" upon

whom Jesus built His Church, St. Paul was "Apostle to the Gentiles".

The Church celebrates them together as inseparable,

representing the complete foundation and unity of the Christian faith in Rome.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Acts 12:1-11

About that time

 
he is considered to be the final and most vital prophet.

Jesus himself identifies John as "Elijah who is to come"

In the Gospels, he is portrayed as the precursor or forerunner of Jesus.

The New Testament, John anticipated a messianic figure greater than himself.

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Isaiah 49:1-6

Listen to me,