When the Truth Stings

Thursday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Jeremiah 18:1-6

This word came to Jeremiah from the LORD:
Rise up, be off to the potter’s house;
there I will give you my message.
I went down to the potter’s house and there he was, 
working at the wheel.
Whenever the object of clay which he was making
turned out badly in his hand, 
he tried again,
making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased.
Then the word of the LORD came to me:
Can I not do to you, house of Israel,
as this potter has done? says the LORD.
Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter,
so are you in my hand, house of Israel.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 146:1B-2, 3-4, 5-6ab

R. (5a)  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, O my soul;
I will praise the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.
R.  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Put not your trust in princes,
in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation.
When his spirit departs he returns to his earth;
on that day his plans perish.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD, his God.
Who made heaven and earth,
the sea and all that is in them.
R. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia Acts 16:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Open our heart, O Lord,
to listen to the words of your Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Matthew 13:47-53

Jesus said to the disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,
which collects fish of every kind.
When it is full they haul it ashore
and sit down to put what is good into buckets.
What is bad they throw away.
Thus it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous
and throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

“Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes.”
And he replied,
“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven
is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom
both the new and the old.”
When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.

 

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Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

When the Truth Stings

July 31, 2026 // Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Matthew 13:54-58

Reflect on the Word // 

On our usual morning walk and in the middle of a long conversation, I asked my friend, half-jokingly, “Why do you always have to be the bad girl?” 

“I don’t know,” she fired back,“why do you always have to be the good girl?” 

Her words caught me off guard, lodging in my mind like an arrow. I felt exposed. There was an uncomfortable truth in her question, and it stung to hear it, especially from someone I knew so well. 

I place myself in the scene of today’s Gospel and soon recognize my tendency to take offense at the prophet or “truth-speaker” (see Matthew 13:57), especially when it’s someone I think I know well. Who are the prophets I am tempted to dismiss because I know all about them and presume they could have nothing to teach me? Am I missing out on the mighty works God wants to do in me because I don’t believe He speaks through those closest to me? 

When I bring my questions to Jesus, He assures me that as I keep coming to Him, he will help me to receive His truth always. I need not hide. He sees every part of me. Under the gaze of His love, I can admit to Him my failings and weaknesses. His love burns away the false ideal of  “good girl”  that I’ve tried to portray. What remains is a woman with both strengths and weaknesses, one who, having received God’s mercy anew, is more free to live as a beloved child of God and hear the truth from whomever He sends.

Sister, we are not so different from the residents of Jesus’ native place. And just as He wanted to teach and heal them, Jesus wants to transform our hearts. Are we willing to ask Him for the grace to receive it when someone close to us speaks a truth that stings?

Relate to the Lord // Ask Jesus to help you be open to the truth about yourself. When you feel ready, ask Him to give you the grace to receive it.

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Lani Bogart - Blessed Is She
About Lani Bogart
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Lani Bogart began to love Jesus as a child and He eventually led her and her family into the Catholic Church. An Arizona transplant to Houston, she enjoys singing, writing, scripture study, and hosting family and friends with her deacon husband.For more of her story see Lanibogart.blog.

Lani Bogart nació en Hawaii y creció en Ohio y Michigan. Era una niña pequeña cuando empezó a amar a Jesús. Está en su casa en Texas con su esposo, un carpintero diácono, cerca de sus hijos y nietos. Lani también es una directora espiritual activa y voluntaria de curación de traumas. Puedes leer más en Lanibogart.blog