Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time – June 21, 2026 – Sr. Nancy Wellmeier, SNDdeN
Matthew 10:26-33
There is no doubt that Matthew was familiar with numbers. We do not know if he was chosen to collect taxes from the subjugated Israelites because he was already an accountant or if he learned on the job. Perhaps seeing the difficulty his own people had paying the tax led him to respond so eagerly to Jesus’ invitation to follow him and join the group of disciples, who were warned of the persecution they will face, but reassured that the Spirit of Gold will speak through them, even though they are entangled in family disputes and political persecution. Holding out until the end could involve being constantly uprooted, but they should be glad to be like their teacher, Jesus, open to truth and light, going where they are received. They are not to fear death of the body but rather him who can destroy the soul as well as the body in Gehenna. Even the sparrows, worth next to nothing, according to the financial estimate of Matthew, is in the care and concern of God. This same care and concern of God the Father is expressed in one of the most comforting lines in all of Scripture: “As for you, every hair of your head has been counted, so do not be afraid of anything. You are worth more than an entire flock of sparrows.” Jesus assures us that we who recognize him in this life will be recognized by God the Father in heaven.
Matthew 10:26-33
Jesus said to the Twelve:
“Fear no one.
Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed,
nor secret that will not be known.
What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light;
what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.
And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul;
rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy
both soul and body in Gehenna.
Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?
Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge.
Even all the hairs of your head are counted.
So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Everyone who acknowledges me before others
I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.
But whoever denies me before others,
I will deny before my heavenly Father.”
The Gospel of the Lord
Meet Sister Nancy Wellmeier, SNDdeN
