Hearing The Word

A weekly newsletter delivering context and insight into the Sunday Gospels.

June 28, 2026

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Matthew 10:37-42

Jesus said to his apostles:

“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me,

and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;

and whoever does not take up his cross

and follow after me is not worthy of me.

Whoever finds his life will lose it,

and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.""Whoever receives you receives me,

and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.

Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet

will receive a prophet’s reward,

and whoever receives a righteous man

because he is a righteous man

will receive a righteous man’s reward.

And whoever gives only a cup of cold water

to one of these little ones to drink

because the little one is a disciple—

amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”

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Discipleship and Love

Deacon Joseph Boyle

Saint Mary Magdelene Catholic Church + Media, Pa.

In today’s Gospel, and at first hearing, Jesus' words may seem difficult: 'Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.' Yet Christ is not diminishing the importance of family; rather, He is revealing the proper order of love. Christian discipleship begins by placing Jesus Christ above all other relationships. Why? Because Christ Himself is the source of all authentic love. We cannot give what we do not first receive. Love shared with our spouses, children, parents, friends, and neighbors flows from our relationship with Him. When Christ is first in our lives, every other relationship is purified, strengthened, and transformed. The disciple learns that love is not simply an emotion, but rather a participation in the very life of God. We must continually return to the source before we can effectively spread that love to others.

Jesus then introduces another essential element of discipleship: the cross. This passage marks the first explicit reference to the cross in Matthew's Gospel. The apostles likely did not yet understand the full significance of these words, but they would soon discover that following Christ necessitates sacrifice, surrender, and fidelity to God's will. The cross is not simply a burden to be endured; it is the path by which love is proven and redemption accomplished. Every disciple is called to take up his or her own cross, embracing daily acts of self-denial, service, forgiveness, and trust in God. The cross becomes the visible sign of our faithfulness to Christ and our willingness to follow Him wherever He leads.



Finally, Jesus reminds us that discipleship bears fruit. Those who welcome a disciple welcome Christ Himself. Acts of charity, hospitality, and respect are never unnoticed by God. The true disciple becomes a vessel of Christ's presence in the world, and the Lord, in turn, remains attentive to the needs of His faithful followers. Even the smallest act of kindness offered in His name conveys eternal significance and receives its reward in the Kingdom of God.

God First, Love Deepend

~Stan Sienkiewicz

Saint Albert the Great Church + Huntingdon Valley, Pa.

"Who­ev­er loves fa­ther or moth­er more than me is not wor­thy of me, and who­ev­er loves son or daugh­ter more than me is not wor­thy of me." Those words can strike the heart with sur­pris­ing force. They sound harsh. Is Je­sus re­al­ly ask­ing me to lessen the love I owe my wife and fam­i­ly? St. Fran­cis de Sales, how­ev­er, shows us a dif­fer­ent way to hear this Gospel. Christ is not re­ject­ing hu­man love. He is call­ing every love back to its prop­er or­der. 

St. Fran­cis in­vites us to pray: "O great and good Cre­ator, how much do I owe to Thee, since out of my noth­ing­ness Thou haste made me what I am?” Je­sus is not simply one loved per­son among oth­ers. He is God, the source of my be­ing, and the fi­nal end for which I was made. As such, He must and should be loved first. 

I am re­mind­ed of the an­cient prayer of Is­rael: "Hear, O Is­rael! The LORD is our 

God, the LORD alone!" When asked lat­er in Matthew’s Gospel, Je­sus said the great­est 

com­mand­ment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your 

soul, and with all your mind. This is the great­est and first com­mand­ment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neigh­bor as your­self.” So when He says that any­one 

who loves fa­ther or moth­er more than Him is "not wor­thy" of Him, He is not in­tro­ducing something new and se­vere. He is press­ing the great­est com­mand­ment un­der the 

law to its full mean­ing. 

Still, I ad­mit this Gospel can strike me hard. I know that we were taught that God 

made us "to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be hap­py 

with Him for­ev­er in the next.” But, do I re­al­ly live as if God is first? 

It helps to re­mem­ber that lov­ing God first does not mean de­creas­ing my love for 

my fam­i­ly. The more ful­ly I love God, the more ca­pa­ble I be­come of lov­ing oth­ers. St. 

Fran­cis de Sales says the soul may love many things to­geth­er with God, but only "in 

God and for God." I am not asked to love my wife and fam­i­ly less deeply - only not to 

love them as ri­vals to God. When God is first, fam­i­ly is not dis­placed. 

This is why the Gospel, though de­mand­ing, is not cru­el. To love God first is to love 

the One from whom every oth­er love re­ceives its mean­ing and strength. "Not wor­thy 

of me" is not a threat against fam­i­ly af­fec­tion. It is Christ's in­vi­ta­tion to let every af­fection re­turn to its source — not so oth­ers are loved less, but so they may be loved more 

deeply, more freely, and more ful­ly in Him. 

This week I will try to love God first in one sim­ple way: by lov­ing those clos­est to 

me more pa­tient­ly, more freely, and more grate­ful­ly in Him.