Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dominica XII per Annum A
21 June 2026

The context here in chapter 10 of St. Matthew is that Jesus has just commissioned the Apostles, given them his authority, and is sending them out to share in his preaching. As this chapter (10) progresses, the Lord tells the apostles that, like him, they will face the same opposition, hostility, and even dangers to their life. This culminates with him pronouncing to the Apostles that “No disciple is above his teacher, no slave above his master” (Mt. 10:24). And then the Lord moves right into the beginning of the selection we hear today: “Fear no one” (Mt. 10:26).

Now, given all that preceded today’s passage, what me might call the bad news about persecutions, that’s a tall order!  Jesus warns his apostles – and it applies to us too – that they (and we) will face difficulty and tests in remaining faithful in this world. Jesus warns us that our commitment to him will be put to the test. And so, we must examine ourselves as disciples. Do we acknowledge that when we face hostility, rejection, and even persecution that is not an excuse for hiding our faith, explaining it away, or being unfaithful? Do we have that proper perspective that even as good as bodily life is, and for as much as we should guard it and help it to flourish, bodily life is limited but eternal life, the good of the soul, is far more important?

I was a priest for only about two (2) years when I took a trip to St. Louis with another priest. Just days before our scheduled trip the crime and sin of clerical abuse broke out in the news in St. Louis. There was fierce anger all over the news, on the front page of newspapers and on television. Visiting on the phone before our trip, my friend and I were nervously discussing how ugly things were in St. Louis at that time. As we spoke, we found ourselves considering: Should we maybe not wear our priest collar on the plane? We could just fly into St. Louis, grab our bags, and move out of the airport unidentified. It was very tempting since we knew we were flying into a hornet’s nest. In the end, we decided we could not let the ugliness of abuse cloud our judgement. We could not be ashamed to be identified as priests because, frankly, we weren’t ashamed. And so, we both wore our roman collar on the plane. We exited the plane in St. Louis, and we could feel the eyes upon us. We walked past airport gates with televisions broadcasting clips from a recent press conference where the local bishop was fielding heated questions. This was the time frame when newspapers were still sold from racks. Images of the recent press conference were on the front page and very visible as we passed by those newspaper machines. At baggage claim we both were trying to keep to ourselves. And then from behind us came, “HEY!” I remember stiffening up as I took a deep breath. “Here we go,” I thought, “it’s about to get ugly”. We both turned around slowly to face the direction of the voice. We saw a younger man in his twenties. He still had his arm held up in the air, finger pointing at us, and then he said, “Thank you for being priests!” To say we were shocked and relieved would be an understatement.

Now, that story is by no means equivalent to insult or persecution or martyrdom. But maybe that proves the Lord’s lesson even better, because notice how even just the possibility of being looked down upon, the possibility of facing some negative opinions in public, the possibility of some mere temporary discomfort was enough to make me consider not being identifiable as a follower of Jesus and as a priest. Maybe I’m just exceptionally weak, or maybe that story speaks a lesson to you too. Serious persecution and even martyrdom still happens today and on a scale that may surprise you. It may still be unlikely that you and I will face the loss of our bodily life for being Christians, even though we have to admit that our society is becoming more hostile to serious Christian living and public witness. But the lesson here from the Lord, the test of our commitment to him, and the test of fidelity is not limited to the most extreme persecutions. You and I are tested too in far more simple and ordinary ways. Do we acknowledge the Lord before others or do we deny him? We should examine ourselves to find out where we are inclined to make exceptions for being witnesses to the Lord and excuses for failing to share his teaching.

The Lord knows that fear can get in the way of our thinking and our judgment. He wants us to have the right perspective on this life and the life to come. His words in the Gospel mean that we should not have an irrational fear. Death is frightening. It is the end of our earthly life. It may be prolonged or come quickly. It could even be painful and ugly. But death in this body, we can presume, comes to all of us. It is coming, and so to risk eternal death in the soul to preserve bodily life would be irrational. Rather, the Lord wants us to have a proper perspective about death, such that when we are tempted by momentary discomfort and threat in this life, we do not become so irrational as to risk our soul and eternal death by being unfaithful to him. It is irrational to give more attention to the body than to the soul.

How do even small matters reveal our preparation for daily fidelity to belonging to the Lord? How do even small matters prepare us for ultimate fidelity in the bigger trials? Do we participate well in our worship of the Lord at Holy Mass? Do we prepare by meditating upon the readings in advance? Do we dress for Mass in such a way that shows it is the most important thing in our life? Are we building spiritual muscle for witness and will we be ready to endure opposition if we are habitually (emphasis on habitually) late for Mass or habitually have some excuse to be leaving Mass early before the priest does? Does that make strong disciples, soldiers for the Lord? I don’t think so. Do we make it a habit to pray, and even in public? Do we make the sign of the cross in public? Or do we hide it? When planning trips and time with family, are we shy about living the faith when others in our group do not, or when activities are suggested that would interfere with Mass? Are we prepared to stand our ground and be a public witness to the Lord in the face of cultural opposition? Do we vote and engage in civic action precisely as disciples, bringing Christian values into the voting booth? When secular society celebrates what it tends to celebrate this month, do we shy away from opportunities to be a witness to the Lord for the good of the souls around us? These smaller matters are by no means the most serious of sufferings, but it is very telling for our level of commitment to belonging first and foremost to the Lord.

When belonging to the Lord causes us fear, Jesus assures us that we are worth far more than common birds and that he knows even the hairs on our head. In other words, he has our value and our being in his hands. Don’t lose proper perspective about your training to be a disciple. Even the small things matter. Jesus says, “Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father” (Mt. 10:32).