The 21st day of June in the year of Our Lord, 2025
Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Religious
Matthew 6:24-34
24 No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 25 Therefore I say to you, be not solicitous for your life, what you shall eat, nor for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than the meat: and the body more than the raiment?
26 Behold the birds of the air, for they neither sow, nor do they reap, nor gather into barns: and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not you of much more value than they? 27 And which of you by taking thought, can add to his stature by one cubit? 28 And for raiment why are you solicitous? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they labour not, neither do they spin. 29 But I say to you, that not even Solomon in all his glory was arrayed as one of these. 30 And if the grass of the field, which is today, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, God doth so clothe: how much more you, O ye of little faith?
31 Be not solicitous therefore, saying, What shall we eat: or what shall we drink, or wherewith shall we be clothed? 32 For after all these things do the heathens seek. For your Father knoweth that you have need of all these things. 33 Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Be not therefore solicitous for tomorrow; for the morrow will be solicitous for itself. Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof.
The Douay Rheims notes:
[24] "Mammon": That is, riches, worldly interest.
Today's Gospel is one that really needs to be emphasized in our time. The promises of feminism and secularism have failed. Generations of women were told that if they went to college and focused on their careers, this would be the key to happiness and security. They were told that they did not need a husband and that children were merely a burden. Marriage and the family have been completely devalued. Institutions, such as the Church, that teach traditional moral values and uphold the importance of family life have been demonized. Women and men have both been taught to view monogamy as a prison. We were told that self actualization was what mattered most – follow your dreams, if it feels good do it, all morality is subjective. Homosexuality, divorce, promiscuity and abortion have been celebrated in our culture for at least 60 years. The result, as I have mentioned before, is record levels of anxiety, depression, drug addiction and suicide.
To view life as merely the pursuit of material goods and self gratification has destroyed western culture. That is especially true for women. Recent studies show that around 70% of women in America take prescription medicines for depression and anxiety. Men tend to have less trouble with anxiety and, while many do take prescriptions for depression, most rely on alcohol to “self medicate.” The number who use illegal drugs is hard to know, with overdoses from opiates averaging 100,000+ per year and marijuana legalized and commonly used in many states, we may assume that men are equally miserable.
How may we address this problem? Well, so long as our culture teaches that money and status are the keys to happiness, we cannot. God intended man and woman for each other. He said that it was not good for man to be alone and he made woman dependent on man for security and protection. Children need both parents for safety and provision. Anything that goes against the fundamentals of human nature causes dysfunction.
Our ancestors would be quick to tell us that God and family matter most. God and family are the keys to happiness. True happiness will never be found in the world or by focusing only on ourselves. I have known several large Catholic families who make financial sacrifices that allow the mother to stay at home with their children, Many of them also home school, and several have small farms. The have many struggles. But, I have never met one who said they regretted the decision. The Bible says that where your heart is, that is where your treasure lays. Their hearts are focused on their families and in raising their kids to be good Catholics. Life has ups and downs. They certainly experience sickness and grief just as everyone else. But, in those families I see more joy than I have ever experienced as a single man. But, I can also tell you through my own experience that the more I rely on God and the less I worry about money, status, etc., the more I have been blessed.
Once again, if we believe that Jesus is God we must trust His promises. No politician, professor, celebrity, expert, scientist or doctor knows better than God.
Judson Carroll is the author of several books, including his newest, A Daily Catholic Devotional, Reflections on the Daily Mass Readings July-December, 2025 It is Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F5BHFZ7X
and
Confirmation, an Autobiography of Faith. It is also Available in paperback on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNK
His podcast is The Uncensored Catholic https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-uncensored-catholic