(Jeremiah 20:10-13; Psalm 69; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 10:26-33)

Our readings today encourage us to live a life of faith which is courageous. In the first reading the prophet Jeremiah is being pressured from all sides including his friends. Jeremiah highlights their lack of faith and goes to the Lord in prayer giving him the courage to persevere regardless of what those who surround him are saying.

In the second reading, St Paul is encouraging the faithful who live in Rome to look at the evidence. He argues that as sin and death came into the world through one man, then it is perfectly acceptable that the sacrifice made by another man, Jesus Christ, can be the remedy for sin and death. The sacrifice Jesus made in dying on the Cross allows us to be able to accept the gift of eternal life from God, if we are faithful followers of Jesus.

In the Gospel from St Matthew, Jesus is urging his Apostles und us to be courageous. He explains how valuable everyone of us is to the Father, so valuable that every one of our hairs has been counted. This courage which Jesus calls us to have means that we have the responsibility of professing our Faith at all times and to never deny that we are Christians. If we can always declare our Faith, even in hostile environments then Jesus will vouch for us before the Father.

This Sunday is the day for prayer for Life in the British Isles. This year it also falls on Father’s Day. In the Bishops Conference’s joint message, they encourage us to ‘remember with gratitude the loving care and direction our parents gave to us, whether they are still with us or have gone to the Lord.’[1] The Bishops ask us to remember in prayer all parents who have lost a child either before birth or in infancy. Having worked in the Parish for several years now I am aware of many families who have lost a child at various ages. These days when we celebrate Mother’s Day or Father’s Day can be particularly difficult for these parents, so hopefully our prayers may give them some consolation. Pope Leo has sent a message to the Bishops Conferences of England & Wales, Ireland and Scotland which expresses his prayers for ‘parents grieving the loss of a child, especially an infant, [that they] may find comfort and peace in the knowledge of God’s love for them and for their child.’[2] 

As Christians we believe that all life from conception to the point of natural death is a precious gift from God. While the Day for Life is focussed this year on the full humanity of the baby in the womb, there is another pressing issue which attacks the sanctity of life in our country at this time. An MP has expressed their desire to reintroduce the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill in the Autumn. This Bill which originally had built in lots of safeguards when it was passed in the House of Commons, was found to be extremely flawed by members of the House of Lords, with many of the so called safeguards found to be diluted, removed or unsuitable. Archbishop John Sherrington, the lead Bishop responsible for Life Issues for our Bishops Conference, stated “The recent debate about this Bill showed how many people found the proposed legislation, even if they accepted it in principle, to be flawed and full of unresolved matters. The majority in the Commons reduced between readings, the Lords identified many shortcomings and bad legislation.”[3]

This is an example of where we as Christians can choose to be courageous in our faith. Do we sit back and do nothing allowing the death culture to erode another aspect of Christian teaching from our Society, or do we take action and write when we are encouraged to by the Bishops or Pro-life Groups? John F Kennedy once said, “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good persons to do nothing.”[4] Are we living in a time when those who back evil; the killing of people; will succeed because of the inaction of the many who seek good?

Further Reading

The Catechism of the Catholic Church

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

CCC 852: the Spirit of Christ sustains the Christian mission
CCC 905: evangelizing by the example of life
CCC 1808, 1816: courageous witness of faith overcomes fear and death
CCC 2471-2474: bear witness to the truth
CCC 359, 402-411, 615: Adam, Original Sin, Christ the New Adam[5]

Please accompany in your prayers

  • All those who are sick, either at home or in hospital, especially those who have very few or no visitors.
  • Those who have died and those who grieve for them.
  • Those who have completed and those who continue with the RCIA programme; especially those who received the Sacraments of Initiation this Easter.
  • The success of the Pastoral Area Mission Plan.
  • Parents who grieve the loss of a child or children.
  • All the couples who celebrated at the Significant Wedding Anniversaries Mass on Saturday.

Deacon Tony

20th June 2026

[1] The Wonder of the Child in the Womb – Catholic Bishops’ Conference

[2] Papal Message: Day for Life 2026 – Catholic Bishops’ Conference

[3] Bishops’ statement on re-introduction of Assisted Dying Bill | ICN

[4] A Profile in Courage: Advice from JFK Almost 60 Years Ago

[5] Homiletic Directory, Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments