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Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

August 30, 2026

Fr. John Colacino C.PP.S.

Introit

Collect

God of might, giver of every good gift,
put into our hearts the love of your name,
so that, by deepening our sense of reverence,
you may nurture in us what is good
and, by your watchful care,
keep safe what you have nurtured.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Reading Jer 20:7-9

Jeremiah cried out to the Lord: 7 “O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed; you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me. 8 For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’ For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. 9 “If I say, ‘I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,’ then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 63:2,3-4,5-6,8-9

R/ My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

Second Reading Rom 12:1-2

I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God— what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Alleluia Cf. Eph 1:17-18

Gospel Mt 16:21-27

Jesus sternly warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. 21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” 24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? 27 “For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.”

Catena Nova

What does it mean to take up one’s cross? It means bearing whatever is unpleasant—that is following me. Once you begin to follow me by conforming your life to my commandments, you will find many to contradict you, forbid you, or dissuade you, and some of these will be people calling themselves followers of Christ. Therefore if you meet with threats, flattery, or opposition, let this be your cross; pick it up and carry it—do not collapse under it. These words of our Lord are like an exhortation to endure martyrdom. If you are persecuted you ought, surely, to make light of any suffering for the sake of Christ (St. Augustine).

Who possesses God’s love, finds so much joy that every bitterness transforms itself into sweetness, and that every great weight becomes light.... Thus, living in God you can have no bitterness because God is delight, gentleness and never-ending joy! This is why God’s friends are always happy! Even if we are sick, poor, grieved, troubled, persecuted, we are always joyful.... We do not seek joy elsewhere than in Jesus and we avoid any glory which is not that of the Cross. Embrace, then, Jesus crucified, raising to Him the eyes of your desire! (St. Catherine of Siena)

Would that people might come at last to see that it is quite impossible to reach the thicket of the riches and wisdom of God except by first entering the thicket of much suffering, in such a way that the soul finds there its consolation and desire. The soul that longs for divine wisdom chooses first, and in truth, to enter the thicket of the cross....The gate that gives entry into these riches of his wisdom is the cross; because it is a narrow gate, while many seek the joys that can be gained through it, it is given to few to desire to pass through it (St. John of the Cross).

God created through love and for love. God did not create anything except love itself, and the means to love. He created love in all its forms. He created beings capable of love from all possible distances. Because no other could do it, he himself went to the greatest possible distance, the infinite distance. This infinite distance between God and God, this supreme tearing apart, this agony beyond all others, this marvel of love, is the crucifixion. Nothing can be further from God than that which has been made accursed (Simone Weil).

Because being one with Christ is our sanctity, and progressively becoming one with him our happiness on earth, the love of the cross in no way contradicts being a joyful child of God. Helping Christ carry his cross fills one with a strong and pure joy, and those who may and can do so, the builders of God’s kingdom, are the most authentic children of God…. Only those who are saved, only children of grace, can in fact be bearers of Christ’s cross. Only in union with the divine Head does human suffering take on expiatory power. (St. Edith Stein/Benedicta of the Cross).

Really living like Christ will not mean reward, social recognition, and an assured income, but difficulties, discrimination, solitude, anxiety. Here, too, the basic experience of the cross applies: the wider we open our hearts to others, the more audibly we intervene against the injustice that rules over us, the more difficult our lives in the rich unjust society will become (Dorothee Solle).

The traditional English translation of stumbling block is far superior to timid recent translations, for the Greek skandalon designates an unavoidable obstacle that somehow becomes more attractive (as well as repulsive) each time we stumble against it. The first time Jesus predicts his violent death (Matthew 16:21–23), his resignation appalls Peter, who tries to instill some worldly ambition in his master: Instead of imitating Jesus, Peter wants Jesus to imitate him. If two friends imitate each other’s desire, they both desire the same object. And if they cannot share this object, they will compete for it, each becoming simultaneously a model and an obstacle to the other. The competing desires intensify as model and obstacle reinforce each other, and an escalation of mimetic rivalry follows; admiration gives way to indignation, jealousy, envy, hatred, and, at last, violence and vengeance. Had Jesus imitated Peter’s ambition, the two thereby would have begun competing for the leadership of some politicized “Jesus movement.” Sensing the danger, Jesus vehemently interrupts Peter: “Get behind me, Satan, you are a skandalon to me….” Satan is skandalon personified, as Jesus makes explicit in his rebuke of Peter (René Girard).

Homily

You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church (Mt. 16: 18). Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me (G- Gk. text). Within five verses of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus addresses Simon Peter by two titles, shocking in their contrast: “Rock” and “Satan.” The one of high regard, the other of utter contempt. How could such a stunning rebuke come so soon after Jesus’ lofty tribute to the fisherman from Galilee?

Well, the change occurred when a new word entered the disciples’ vocabulary: “Cross.” A terrifying word to anyone acquainted with Roman justice. A word as unexpected as Peter’s earlier confession of faith. For when Jesus asked -- Who do people say the Son of Man is? -- Peter was an unlikely source for the answer: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt. 16:13,16). After all, Peter wasn’t known for being a quick study!

And that curve ball set the stage for the real surprise: Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly from the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed…. (G). If only Peter’s insight into hidden things served him now. But no. The Rock falters and becomes a stumbling-stone: God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you (G). That little word “cross” threw everything off balance. So the rock tripped over the stone in his path.

Of course, the stumbling-stone — skandalon in Greek — of the cross is always a challenge to faith. As long as the gospel doesn’t intrude on our comfort, words of faith fall easily from our lips. But that business about, Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me (G), that’s another matter. The rough wood of the cross has a way of wearing down a rock’s hardness, even making it crumble. Like Peter’s faith crumbled that day when lips that once confessed the Son of God denied him three times.

For Peter preferred Jesus build his church on some other foundation. Something more in keeping with the times. After all, who would believe in a crucified Messiah? Public opinion would never accept such a thing. The cross – then and now-- is a public relations disaster for the church. That’s why those who would reconstruct the gospel on some other basis always find support. I think of the false "prosperity gospel" peddled by self-appointed charlatans who have prospered mightily by fleecing their misguided flocks. Or those lured by the siren song of someone who promised greatness and delivered ruin — many a Christian among them. Oh, there’s never a shortage of people who would refashion the faith, following false prophets, for whom "cross" is a foreign word. Can you imagine a politician peddling a "Make the Cross Great Again" campaign slogan?

So Peter’s problem persists. His objections can still be heard: “If you could just get rid of that cross business, they would come flocking to us.” “If you could just make your message a little more in keeping with the times, our image problem will be solved.” We celebrated the apostle Nathaniel this week. I can imagine him suggesting to Jesus he downplay those Nazareth roots: "It's not exactly the place you'd expect a Messiah to be from, or anything good for that matter."

And I know there are a lot of church teachings that leave people between a rock and a hard place, especially in a culture of affluence like our own. Things like the church’s stated preference for the poor; the church’s uncompromising defense of human rights and the dignity of the human person including the immigrant and the refugee; the church’s critique of unbridled capitalism and the all-consuming desire for profit; the church’s insistence on the just distribution of the world’s wealth; the church’s vital concerns about climate change and the environment, and lately the ethical use of technology. Not the "pelvic issues" the media obsesses about, but teachings not as often heard in certain circles within the church — around which there sometimes seems to be a conspiracy of silence. Unless you listen to the current successor of Peter, that is. For Leo, like Francis before him, is unrelenting in bringing such things to our attention.

And while the media are quick to report how people ignore or dissent from teachings on sexual morality, they rarely mention how many American Catholics do not know, care about, or follow, their church’s teaching on the just ordering society. And many clergy are just as uneven in what they choose to emphasize — or minimize. I suspect the teachings I mentioned would turn many a rock to dust -- if the boardroom were as much a concern as the bedroom seems to be.

Pope Leo was just in the Italian city of Rimini last week at the "Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples" where he gave a lengthy address during which he said,

when we recognize one another in the dignity of being children of God, we come into contact with that which fundamentally unites human beings, beyond every difference, division or conflict. We can enter into one another’s experience, listen to one another and become friends — first as individuals and then as peoples. Before borders, definitions and institutions, there are always persons. This awareness lies at the heart of Christianity….Today, Catholic culture must counter the false realism that rearms minds, words and nations, with the realism of mercy which recognizes that there can be no enemies, and that everyone, even those who oppose us, is a brother or sister to be looked in the eye and encountered in truth. Sin exists, of course, but stronger still is the redeeming love of Christ. That love commits us to purifying our thoughts, interests, habits, associations, plans and investments — indeed, every aspect of our lives – from all that the culture of power has tainted…..Let us, then, together free our lives from suspicion, culture from arrogance, education from ideology, work from the idolatry of profit, and technology and finance from the business of death. Beginning with the organizations that we have created and in which we work, let us expose unjust structures of power that lie at the root of poverty, inequality, war and environmental disasters. (August 22, 2026)

He spoke earlier in the tiny country of San Marino, the world's oldest republic. (Sorry, USA). While extolling the country's unique form of government, calling it a "laboratory of good politics" — the pope warned about others "in the face of the idolatry that corrupts at their root those political and economic projects that present themselves in the name of freedom, but in reality are slaves of idols and of power." Nor did he call for a "Catholic nationalism" but rather affirmed "the secularity of the State" — just one informed by the principles of Catholic social teaching.

Of course, Pope Leo understands very well that critiques of government policy makers, including our own hapless ideologues, will likely make Jeremiah's lament his own: All the day long I am an object of laughter; everyone mocks me . . . The word of the LORD has brought me derision and reproach all the day. (I) And attempts to soften the rock deserve the same response Jesus gave to Peter: You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do (G).

So the advice Paul gave the Romans is still relevant: Do not conform yourself to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect (II). Till that day when the Son of Man comes with his angels in his Father’s glory . . . [to] repay everyone according to his or her conduct (cf. G): Who live and reign, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Intercessions (Joe Milner; The Sunday Website)

For all who are suffering for the sake of the Gospel: that God will protect and sustain those who risk their lives to bring the Gospel message, the sacraments, or medical care to those in difficult or distant places.

For all who are discouraged by the burdens of life: that the compassionate love of God will renew their hearts and lead them through their struggles.

For all who live amidst civil discord and conflict: that God will break the cycle of violence, heal the divisions that exist within the civic community, and protect the innocent.

For all recovering from storms, floods, and wildfires: that God will ease their suffering, give them strength, and help them to find the resources that they need to rebuild their homes and lives.

For civility in public discourse: that public figures may respect the human dignity of each other and find ways to address the heart of the real issues of our world and nation.

For those who are starving or malnourished: that God will remove the bureaucratic barriers the block food distribution, help people to more aware of hunger around them, and come to the aid of those who lack food, particularly children.

For new spirit in leadership: that God will call women and men to leadership in the church, education, and government and gift them with critical insights and the ability to place the needs of the most vulnerable above their own.

O God, whose word burns like a fire within us, grant us a bold and faithful spirit, that in your strength we may be unafraid to speak your word and follow where you lead. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. (ICEL; 1998)

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