July 2, 2026 | Liturgical Year A
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
- Zechariah 9:9-10
- Psalm 145: 1-2, 8-11, 13-14
- Romans 8: 9, 11-13
- Matthew 11:25-30
Commentary
As a Franciscan Sister of the Sacred Heart, I am very inspired by today’s Gospel. How many times I have heard these words of “Come” as well as sung them in relation to the living out of my Franciscan life as a Gospel woman. (I suggest that you Google the song, “Come to Me.” Listen to it and let it touch your heart.) Jesus invites us to come near to him when we are heavily burdened. Of course he always wants us to be near him, but it is in the difficult moments that it is easy to stray away, to forget that our weakness is the true path to God.
Jesus promises rest. Think about that. He doesn’t promise to solve our problems or take them away. Our God is not an abracadabra God with magic powder that makes bad things disappear! Jesus offers us, instead, his yoke as if ours was not enough. As we take his yoke, we can learn from him. We can become meek and humble of heart. How this actually happens, I am not sure, but my experience is when I am open to the yoke and suffering of Jesus, it helps me to put my life in a different perspective. Humility is the result. How can I expect my life to be any different than Jesus’? Yes, there are abundant joys in life, but there are also heavy yokes.
Jesus claims that his yoke is easy. In my mind I see the many times when, in Brazil, I saw the water buffaloes with their wooden yokes either pulling heavy carts filled with farinha bags or rice, or when they walked in circles to pump water from the ground. What makes the yoke easy as Jesus says, is the willingness to accept it and better yet, embrace this yoke of Jesus as mine. I know that my yoke is also Jesus’ yoke. We share the burden and that makes it easy. Well, I would say “easier”! The burden becomes light because there is a force within me that comes from the Spirit that gives me the courage to carry whatever is necessary.
This Gospel invites us to understand that carrying the burden, no matter what kind it may be, is an intrinsic value of living one’s mission. It is difficult to explain when people ask why do we have to suffer. It is, to me, a mystery of life we see in the life of Jesus. But why? May God’s Spirit guide and inspires us to carry Jesus’ yoke with ours.
Notes on the Readings
First Reading: Zechariah 9:9-10
The joy that emanates from this reading is so obvious. God has promised a Messiah and the prophet Zechariah communicates this joy to the people. The people at the time of this prophet rejoiced at hearing this news. Perhaps for some, like the Israelites at the time of Jesus, were not expecting a humble savior nor did they understand how he was to save God’s people.
Psalm: 145: 1-2, 8-11, 13-14
The virtue of faithfulness permeates this section of psalm 145. God is praised for being faithful to all his promises. God’s mercy and compassion are remembered by the psalmist. How appropriate this psalm is for our times, too. In spite of the many challenges that all peoples are experiencing at these times, we can truly say with the psalmist: “The Lord is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works.” God desires our faithfulness in relation to God’s will which will further God’s mission in our world.
Second Reading: Romans 8: 9, 11-13
When reading Paul’s letters, we must recognize that the culture at that time was greatly influenced by the dualistic idea of body (flesh) and the spirit. Today we realize that the body is what makes us human as God created us to be.
The power of Paul’s words comes in his reflection on the Spirit: the Spirit of God and our spirit. We rely on God’s Spirit to guide us, strengthen us, inspire us to do the God’s will at all moments. The Spirit is always present but we must choose to follow the Spirit. The choice is ours.
Gospel: Matthew 11:25-30
Today’s Gospel is a most precious one that all who have a devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus are familiar. In the first part we see the action of the Spirit in our lives. To all the “little” ones (which I hope includes us!) the hidden things are revealed. As we just heard in Paul’s letter the Spirit inspires and guides us because of an attitude of humility recognizes that we do not know nor understand everything that happens. Jesus invites us to come to him especially when times are rough.
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