18th Week in Ordinary Time 2026 - Monday - Beware false prophets

The Apostle Paul, writing to St. Timothy, warned the young bishop that a time was coming when people would no longer tolerate sound doctrine, but would gather around themselves teachers who told them what they wanted to hear. In other words, those who wish to be confirmed in their errors, biases, prejudices, and sins will seek out authority figures who articulate and justify those errors.

Paul warned that there would be not only a great demand for watered-down or plainly erroneous teaching, but also “a great number of teachers” willing to provide it and thereby lead souls farther from the truth of Christ.

Well, in our first reading today, we meet one of these false teachers, the false prophet Hananiah. The people of Judah were facing the terrible consequences of their infidelity and the growing power of Babylon. Jeremiah had faithfully warned them that the exile would not end quickly and that they needed to repent, submit to God’s chastisement, and return to the covenant.

Hananiah, however, told the people what they wanted to hear: that within two years the power of Babylon would be broken, the exiles would return, and the sacred vessels of the Temple would be restored. His message was attractive, reassuring, and patriotic—but it was not from God. Jeremiah therefore confronted him and foretold his death for leading the people into false confidence and rebellion against the Lord.

Jesus likewise warned that false prophets would come in sheep’s clothing, while inwardly they were ravenous wolves. We live in an age filled with religious voices. Through television, podcasts, websites, and social media, anyone can claim authority, present himself as a defender of the faith, and gather followers. Some justify schism; others dismiss settled moral teaching; still others cultivate suspicion, anger, and contempt toward the Pope, the bishops, or the Church herself.

Not every confident voice is a trustworthy voice. Not every message that confirms our preferences comes from the Holy Spirit. We must test what we hear against Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and the authentic teaching authority of the Church. Truth bears the fruits of holiness, humility, charity, communion, and obedience. Falsehood often bears pride, bitterness, factionalism, and contempt.

Remaining faithful does not mean pretending that every churchman is perfect or that every prudential decision is beyond criticism. It means refusing to place our private judgment, political loyalties, or favorite commentators above the faith handed down through the Church.

Great discernment and humility is needed in these times. May we prefer the truth that converts us over the message that appeals to our preferences, that we remain close to Christ by remaining faithful to the Church he founded for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Trusting in Christ, who guides his Church in truth, let us bring our prayers before the Father.

For the Holy Church of God, that she may remain steadfast in proclaiming the fullness of the Gospel with courage, clarity, and charity, let us pray to the Lord.

For the Pope, bishops, priests, deacons, catechists, and all who teach the faith, that the Holy Spirit may preserve them from error and make them faithful servants of the truth, let us pray to the Lord.

For Christians who are confused, discouraged, or led astray by false teaching, that they may rediscover the sure guidance of sound doctrine, and that That Christian families may be places where the Christian faith is studied, understood, observed, and cherished, let us pray to the Lord.

For those who influence public opinion through the media and social media, that they may reject manipulation, division, and falsehood, and use their gifts in service of truth and the common good, let us pray to the Lord.

For those who struggle because of addiction, mental illness, chronic sickness, unemployment, or ongoing trials of any kind: may they be healed and strengthened in Christ. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those who have died, especially those who helped hand on the faith to us, that they may be welcomed into the fullness of truth and life in the Kingdom of Heaven, let us pray to the Lord.

Father of truth and mercy, preserve us from error and keep us faithful to your Son and to the Church he founded. Hear the prayers we offer in faith, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

12th Week in Ordinary Time 2025 - Wednesday - Authentic vs. False Prophets

Yesterday, we celebrated the birth of the great prophet of the Lord, St. John the Baptist. 

Sometimes we think of a prophet as one who can foretell the future. But that is not really the biblical understanding of the role of the prophet. Rather, a prophet is one who has the ability to point to the Truth in the present. 

In today’s Gospel, the Lord Jesus warns his followers to beware of false prophets. “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves. By their fruits you will know them.” If true prophets point us to truth, false prophets lead us away from the truth.

John the Baptist was a true prophet because he pointed to the truth that Jesus is the Lamb of God, the Son of God. John was a true prophet because he called people to acknowledge the truth that they had sinned and needed a Savior.

False prophets do the opposite. Ultimately, they point us a way from Jesus. But often, they do so subtly. They say, follow your feelings. It’s your body, you can do whatever you want with it. You don’t need a Savior, you’re fine just the way we are. 

False prophets absolutely permeate our culture. “By their fruits you will know them.”  We see the fruits of these false prophets all around us: broken marriages, the destruction of unborn life, widespread confusion about gender identity, addiction, corruption in government and institutions, ignorance of Scripture, and falling away from right religion. These are not the signs of God’s kingdom, but of a world led astray by voices that do not speak for Christ.

Now, the Lord issues this warning to his followers because he knows that we have a tendency to gravitate toward voices who tell us what we want to hear, that encourage us to justify giving in to temptation and deviating from the path of righteousness because righteousness is hard, bearing the cross is hard.

But, as followers of Jesus, we must cling to the true and the good even when it is difficult. We must form our minds through prayer, Scripture, and sound teaching, so that we may not be deceived. 

Let us pray for wisdom, courage, and fidelity, that we may recognize the true voice of the Shepherd and reject the lies that lead to ruin, and help others to do the same, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Let us turn to the one true Shepherd, Jesus Christ, and offer our prayers with hearts open to truth and grace.

For the Church throughout the world: That she may continue to form faithful prophets who speak the truth of Christ with boldness and compassion in every age.

For leaders in government, education, and media: That they may act with integrity and resist the temptation to mislead or manipulate, always seeking the good of those they serve.

For those led astray by the confusion and moral darkness of our time: That through prayer, sound teaching, and Christian witness, they may come to know the truth that sets us free in Christ.

For the sick, the poor, and the suffering: That they may be comforted by the presence of Christ and supported by the love and prayers of His faithful disciples.

For the faithful departed: That having followed the voice of the Good Shepherd in this life, they may be welcomed into eternal peace and joy.

Father of truth and mercy, grant our prayers and all that we need remain faithful to your Son in all things. Through the same Christ our Lord.

12th Week in Ordinary Time 2024 - Wednesday - Rediscovering God's Word and Authentic Prophets

 Almost a hundred years had passed from yesterday’s old testament reading about King Hezekiah going into the Temple, kneeling down, and pleading to God to deliver his people from the Assyrians. 

In today’s reading, now Josiah was king. His father King Amon had returned idol worship to Judah and abandoning God and His covenant. Chronicles says that Amon “did not humble himself before the LORD…on the contrary, Amon only increased his guilt.” Amon was such a bad king that his royal officials assassinated him, placing Josiah on the throne of Judah.

And unlike his father, Josiah sought to be true to the covenant, “He did what was right in the LORD’s sight, walking in the way of David his father, not turning right or left.”

And today we read how the high priest rediscovers the scriptures, and Josiah tears his clothes out of shame for how far his fathers had fallen from God. And then Josiah gathered all the people and reads the entire book to them. The king helped the nation rediscover its relationship with God and faithfulness to the covenant. He of recommitted himself and the nation to their religious obligations. So that they may know God’s friendship, his divine favor, and protection.

Josiah echoed the sentiments in today’s psalm, written by David centuries before, “Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes, that I may exactly observe them.”

In the reading from the sermon on the mount, the Lord is warning his followers to beware false prophets. 

How can we discern between authentic prophets and false prophets? In light of the first reading and psalm, True prophets point us to the faithful practice of our God-given religion; false prophets l water down the faith and seek to recreate the Church according to the principles of the world. True prophets help us to rediscover and live out the truth of Christ’s teachings, false prophets preach, what St. Paul calls, “an empty seductive philosophy.”  True prophets teach us to bear our crosses, faithfully; false prophets urge us to cast away our crosses and base our decision on feelings, pleasure, power, and wealth.

“By their fruits you will know” the false prophets. And we do know the fruits of the false prophets of our age: broken marriages, abortion, perversion, corruption in government, biblical and doctrinal illiteracy, grievously low church attendance, the dehumanization of the poor, and the loss of the sense of sin. So many rotten fruits from turning away from the authentic teaching of Christ.

Rather, Christ teaches us that we are blessed—we come to know the fullness of life—when we humble ourselves, and aim to obey all he teaches, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. 

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For the Church, that like King Josiah, our leaders may help us rediscover the fullness of our faith and recommit ourselves to living out Christ's teachings faithfully. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our society, that we may turn away from the rotten fruits of false teachings and instead embrace the life-giving words of Christ. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those who have fallen away from the faith, that like the people of Judah in Josiah's time, they may rediscover the beauty and truth of God's word. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those who are suffering, especially the poor and marginalized, that we may see Christ in them and respond with compassion and justice. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our community, that we may grow in biblical and doctrinal literacy, deepening our understanding and love for our faith. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the grace to bear our crosses faithfully, finding in them a path to draw closer to Christ and His saving love. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all who have died, may they rejoice forever in the presence of the Lamb of God, especially X….

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord

June 27 2023 - St. Cyril of Alexandria, bishop and doctor - Champion of Truth

 In the Gospels, the blessed Lord warns his disciples against false prophets and spiritual con men. And these agents of error have plagued the Church since the beginning, just as Our Lord foretold. 

The saint we honor today, Saint Cyril of Alexandria, defended and taught the Catholic Faith in the face of a heresy which was creating great division in the Church.  Division is often one of the great fruits of false prophets.

The heresy is now called Nestorianism, named after the bishop who promoted it, named Nestorius.  Nestorius was Archbishop of Constantinople in the early 5th century.  Nestorius taught the heresy that Mary could not be given the title Theotokos, that is God-bearer, and thereby Nestorius taught that Jesus really wasn’t Truly God—a truth clear from Scripture and the Church Fathers and Church Councils like the Council of Nicea.

St. Cyril, Archbishop of Alexandria wrote to Nestorius, reminding him of the duty of bishops to preserve sound doctrine, but Nestorius continued to teach error creating division in the Church. And the division became so great that a Church Council was needed to clarify the issue.

So in 431, the First Council of Ephesus was called to deal with this false teaching. Ephesus being the very place where Our Lady—the God Bearer—lived with St. John the Apostle before her Glorious Assumption.  St. Cyril was tasked by the Pope to preside over the Council as Papal representative. Now, many of the bishops gathered at Ephesus, some say the majority of bishops, sided with the heretic bishop Nestorius. But the Papal Representative Archbishop Cyril defended the Truth that Christ is truly God and Truly man and thereby Our Lady can rightly be called Theotokos—God-Bearer—Mother of God.

Listen to his words, from this morning’s Office of Readings from the writings of St. Cyril, “That anyone could doubt the right of the holy Virgin to be called the mother of God fills me with astonishment. Surely she must be the Mother of God if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, and she gave birth to him! Our Lord’s disciples may not have used those exact words, but they delivered to us the belief those words enshrine, and this has also been taught us by the holy fathers” (especially St. Athanasius) 

St. Cyril sets the standard for theological questions in the Church. We must look to Scripture and Apostolic Tradition and apply clear logic. Scripture is clear that Jesus is God—the Word Made Flesh, and that he took that flesh from the Virgin Mary. As St. Paul writes “he fashioned a body for himself from a woman and shared our flesh and blood”. Cyril also looked to the Church Fathers, like St. Athanasius, who taught nothing contrary to the Scriptures. And St. Athanasius several times calls Mary, Theotokos, in his writings.

What’s the practical lesson from this? All Christians need to be discerning, using our gifts of reason and wisdom in living out the Christian faith.  Jesus warns us that there ARE false prophets.  There ARE teachings which lead us away from the true faith, that lead us away from the union of our minds and hearts with God. False teachings, especially in recent centuries, have caused terrible division in the Church. And that division has born nothing but rotten fruit: so-called Christians who promote abortion, euthanasia, sexual perversion, and adultery. There are many sects of Christians who deny the sacraments of Holy Orders, Confession, and Eucharist, and even baptism. So-called Christians who even deny the need for baptism, so clearly taught by Our Lord.

The doctors of the Church, St. Athanasius, St. Cyril, equip us with doing our part to heal the divisions in the Church, to lead souls to the truth. At least one member of our RCIA last year was raised protestant but came to the Faith by reading the Fathers. 

And the doctors help us to be on guard against those false prophets about whom the Lord Himself warned us. 

May St. Cyril help us to revere Our Lady, to champion and live the truth, and to labor always for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

For all those who reject the faith, for those who show contempt for the holy word of God and the Catholic Church, for their openness to the Truth, and that all Christians may be committed to spreading the faith boldly, patiently, and clearly.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

12th Week in OT 2019 - Wednesday - Beware of false prophets

On Monday we celebrated the nativity of a true prophet, John the Baptist. The biblical understanding of a prophet, isn’t someone who can foretell the future, but rather, someone who has the ability to point to the Truth in the present. John the Baptist was a true prophet because he pointed to the truth that Jesus is the Lamb of God, the Son of God, the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. He called people to acknowledge the truth that they had sinned and needed a savior.

In pointing to the truth, the true prophet often challenges people, pushing them beyond complacency; his message often contains words that people do not want to hear. John was prophetic when he pointed out to the truth of the moral error of Herod, having married his brother’s wife. For this he was arrested and killed. The prophet often knows the consequences for his message. But preaches it anyway because the message comes from God.

We hear from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount today, his warning for his followers to beware of false prophets. “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves. By their fruits you will know them.”

If true prophets point us to truth, false prophets preach, what St. Paul calls, “an empty seductive philosophy.”  Where the prophets teach us to bear our crosses, the false prophets urge us to lay them down when they get too heavy, and that IS seductive. Where true prophets point us to faithful practice of our God-given religion, false prophets will water down the faith, seek to recreate the Church according to the principles of the world.

“By their fruits you will know them” and look at the fruits of the false prophets: broken marriages, abortion, sexual perversion, corruption in government, biblical and doctrinal illiteracy, grievously low church attendance, the dehumanization of the poor, drug and alcohol addiction, and what St. John Paul called the "loss of the sense of sin." 

Are there, and have there been false shepherds in the Church? Yes. Our Lord warns us to beware the false prophets in every age. So, we properly guard ourselves against false prophets by studying the Word of God, studying Church doctrine, studying the lives and writings of the saints, the Church fathers, forming our minds through the Truth to detect the false Gospel.

Not to be completely dour, we need to remember that the good fruit of Christ certainly flourishes in our midst as well.  The seeds of sanctity are nourished by authentic Catholic worship, authentic devotion, prayer, authentic Christian education, use of the sacrament of confession, the holy works of mercy.  Christianity does flourish—Christians in our parish and diocese are experiencing the real joy of knowing Christ, and they are coming to that joy not through the watered-down, seductive religion of the false prophets, but through the Truth of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Faith.

May we be discerning of false teaching in our midst, may we protect the younger generations from following the false shepherds of the present age, may we help them to know the One teacher and Lord of Life, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That Pope Francis and all the clergy may witness to the truth of the Gospel faithfully, courageously, and compassionately.

For the protection of the unborn, and that people of goodwill will work together to enshrine the protection of the unborn in law and in the hearts of all.

For the conversion of those who do not believe in God, for Catholics who have left the Church, those guilty of heresy or schism, and for a return to the sacraments of those who have fallen into serious sin.

For the sick and afflicted, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, for victims of natural disaster,  those who suffer from war, violence, and terrorism, all victims of abuse, especially children, for the mentally ill, those with addictions, and the imprisoned, for those who struggle to live the call of Christian chastity, for the comfort of the dying and the consolation of their families.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom, for the repose of the soul of St. Joseph Father Larry Tosco, and for N. for whom this mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.