His Face Is Our Homeland

Tuesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Hosea 8:4-7, 11-13

Thus says the LORD:
They made kings in Israel, but not by my authority;
they established princes, but without my approval.
With their silver and gold they made
idols for themselves, to their own destruction.
Cast away your calf, O Samaria!
my wrath is kindled against them;
How long will they be unable to attain
innocence in Israel?
The work of an artisan,
no god at all,
Destined for the flames—
such is the calf of Samaria!

When they sow the wind,
they shall reap the whirlwind;
The stalk of grain that forms no ear
can yield no flour;
Even if it could,
strangers would swallow it.

When Ephraim made many altars to expiate sin,
his altars became occasions of sin.
Though I write for him my many ordinances,
they are considered as a stranger’s.
Though they offer sacrifice,
immolate flesh and eat it,
the LORD is not pleased with them.
He shall still remember their guilt
and punish their sins;
they shall return to Egypt.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 115:3-4, 5-6, 7ab-8, 9-10

R. (9a) The house of Israel trusts in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Our God is in heaven;
whatever he wills, he does.
Their idols are silver and gold,
the handiwork of men.
R. The house of Israel trusts in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
They have mouths but speak not;
they have eyes but see not;
They have ears but hear not;
they have noses but smell not.
R. The house of Israel trusts in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
They have hands but feel not;
they have feet but walk not.
Their makers shall be like them,
everyone that trusts in them.
R. The house of Israel trusts in the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia John 10:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my sheep, and mine know me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Matthew 9:32-38

A demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus,
and when the demon was driven out the mute man spoke.
The crowds were amazed and said,
“Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”
But the Pharisees said,
“He drives out demons by the prince of demons.”

Jesus went around to all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.”

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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.

July 8, 2026 // Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 105:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

Reflect on the Word //

Her gaze was penetrating as she held my face with her hard-earned wrinkling hands. We were in public, yet I felt no discomfort. She wanted to communicate something to me, a message beyond the ability of words. She had just finished telling me a story from an earlier chapter of her life, sharing about an experience that deeply shaped her and moved the trajectory of her future years. Her look’s intent was to transmit a lesson that she wanted to be sure I comprehended. Her final words to me were, “There’s always more. We have a great deal to look forward to after this life.”

In that moment, this woman imparted a word of hope to me, a reminder of the end for which I was created. Her intent gaze revealed to me that the Father’s gaze constantly invites me into “the ever-more.” We are called to respond, just as we hear David exclaim in today’s Psalm: “Seek always the face of the Lord” (105:4). God’s look of love beckons, and He desires to receive a response of love from each soul He created, each soul whom He knows. Each one of us is awaited in the gaze of Christ—the icon of the Father, the second Person of the Trinity, true God and true Man.

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux was known for her devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus, a devotion she learned from her own beloved sister. In her Canticle of the Holy Face, Thérèse prays, “Your Face is my only Homeland.” May this be the constant prayer of my own heart.

We are all invited each day to recall the wonders of the Lord and to live our lives glorifying Him. The gaze of Christ invites each of us to reorient our own gaze to the fundamental call of our lives: union with Him, the One Who thirsts for us to enter into the eternal Presence of the Holy Trinity.

Relate to the Lord // Pray Saint Thérèse’s Canticle of the Holy Face today.

Be a Woman of the Word

About Senite Sahlezghi

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Senite Sahlezghi is a consecrated virgin for the Archdiocese of Denver. Native to Colorado, she is a first generation Eritrean American, is a Licensed Professional Counselor with a master’s in Counseling Psychology, and serves as the School Counselor for St. John Paul the Great Catholic High School. Grateful to be in a place surrounded by mountains and live music, the greatest privilege of her life remains being called to be Christ’s bride.