Free Republic

25 August 2026 Tuesday of week 21 in Ordinary Time St Louis Cathedral Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First reading2 Thessalonians 2:1-3,14-17Stand firm and keep the traditions we have taught youTo turn, brothers, to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we shall all be gathered round him: please do not get excited too soon or alarmed by any prediction or rumour or any letter claiming to come from us, implying that the Day of the Lord has already arrived. Never let anyone deceive you in this way. Through the Good News that we brought God...

24 August 2026 Saint Bartholomew, Apostle Feast High Altar in St. Bartholomew's Church in New York CityReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Red. Year: A(II).First readingApocalypse 21:9-14He showed me Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down from God out of heavenThe angel came to speak to me, and said, ‘Come here and I will show you the bride that the Lamb has married.’ In the spirit, he took me to the top of an enormous high mountain and showed me Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down from God out of heaven. It had all the radiant glory of God and glittered like...

Left-wing extremists and Antifa militants stormed the Precious Blood Catholic Church in Los Angeles on Saturday, August 23, where right-wing activist and free speech advocate Eoin Richard was hosting a peaceful free speech, anti-Islam rally. The confrontation unfolded after Connolly, known publicly as Eoin Richard, organized a “Take Back LA” free-speech rally criticizing Islam. Connolly originally advertised the August 23 demonstration outside the Islamic Center of Southern California on Vermont Avenue. A pre-event advisory circulated by opponents described the gathering as a “far-right” rally and accused its organizers of targeting the Muslim community. As counter-protesters gathered outside the Islamic center,...

23 August 2026 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time St. Rose of Lima Church, Murfreesboro, Tennessee Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First readingIsaiah 22:19-23I place the key of the House of David on my servant's shoulderThus says the Lord of Hosts to Shebna, the master of the palace:I dismiss you from your office,I remove you from your post,and the same day I call on my servantEliakim son of Hilkiah.I invest him with your robe,gird him with your sash,entrust him with your authority;and he shall be a fatherto the inhabitants of Jerusalemand to the House of Judah.I place the key...

22 August 2026Our Lady, Mother and Queen on Saturday of week 20 in Ordinary Time St. Symphorian in Zell am Harmersbach, Germany. Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).Readings for the feriaReadings for the memorialThese are the readings for the feriaFirst readingEzekiel 43:1-7The vision of the coming of the glory of the Lord to the TempleThe angel took me to the gate, the one facing east. I saw the glory of the God of Israel approaching from the east. A sound came with it, like the sound of the ocean, and the earth shone with his glory. This vision...

Michigan pastor Lorenzo Sewell delivered a blistering address at a Dearborn City Council meeting this week, accusing local leaders of allowing the city to fall under Sharia law. VIDEOS AT LINK............. Sewell stepped to the microphone and seemed intent on refusing to bend the knee in his messaging. It's impossible to overstate the amount of courage it takes to make this kind of stand. "America, we have lost this city,” he declared, his tone rising with urgency. “This is a city that is no longer under American laws; we are under Sharia law. We will not have it anymore.” "Enough...

21 August 2026 Saint Pius X, Pope on Friday of week 20 in Ordinary TimeSt. Pius X Church – Fairfield CTReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).Readings for the feriaReadings for the memorialThese are the readings for the feriaFirst readingEzekiel 37:1-14A vision of Israel's death and resurrectionThe hand of the Lord was laid on me, and he carried me away by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley, a valley full of bones. He made me walk up and down among them. There were vast quantities of these bones on the...

New Jersey Right to Life (NJRTL) strongly condemns Governor Mikie Sherrill’s decision to sign S2260 into law. This legislation grants sweeping legal immunity to abortion providers and erects new barriers against accountability for activities the state now broadly labels “reproductive health care,” shielding them from certain investigations, legal actions, and records requests originating outside New Jersey. “Governor Sherrill just signed a blank check for the abortion industry and a death warrant for countless unborn children with beating hearts, and she did it despite thousands of emails from New Jersey residents urging her to veto this bill,” said NJRTL Executive Director...

The church, whose earliest accounts are recorded in the book of Acts, was established by Jesus and given a Great Commission (see Matthew 28:18-20) to continue His work in the world. Taken seriously, what would the world look like if the church does its job? Does the ministry of pregnancy help offer a reflection of that work? Reports from of a resurgence in faith from Christian research organization Barna Group versus Pew Research Center showing a slowing and leveling off in the decline of Christianity, both from 2025, may not align, but both offer encouragement. News reports covering anecdotal trends...

And now… the rest of the story. Every year, families across America gather around the television. They’ll watch a bald kid try to kick a football. They’ll watch a beagle dance on a dog house. They’ll watch Charlie Brown get a rock instead of candy. They’ll laugh. They won’t know they’re watching a man’s autobiography. When Charles Schulz was a little boy, the other children called him “Sparky.” It wasn’t a term of affection. Sparky was the name of a horse in the comic strip Barney Google. A dumb horse. A joke horse. They were calling him an animal. And...

20 August 2026 Saint Bernard, Abbot, Doctor on Thursday of week 20 in Ordinary Time St. Bernard Of Clairvaux Catholic church, Scottsdale, AZ Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).Readings for the feriaReadings for the memorialThese are the readings for the feriaFirst readingEzekiel 36:23-28I will remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of fleshThe word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘I mean to display the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will learn that I...

"Remove St. John' Passion from Lectionary" - Jewish Woman New President of Catholic Biblical Association On July 20, at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore, the 88th Annual Meeting of the Catholic Biblical Association (CBA) elected Amy-Jill Levine, 70, as president for 2026–2027.She is the first Jewish president in the CBA’s history.Founded in 1936, the CBA is an independent association with longstanding institutional ties to the U.S. bishops. Its constitution says it pursues biblical scholarship “in conformity with the teaching of the magisterium of the Catholic Church.”Levine is a New Testament scholar and is a longtime member of the CBA. In...

19 August 2026 Wednesday of week 20 in Ordinary Time St. John Eudes Church, Chatsworth, CA Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First readingEzekiel 34:1-11An oracle against bad and selfish shepherdsThe word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: ‘“Shepherds, the Lord says this: Trouble for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shepherds ought to feed their flock, yet you have fed on milk, you have dressed yourselves in wool, you have sacrificed the fattest sheep, but failed to feed the flock....

Sometimes it's those with the least that give the most. Jesus used a widow's offering to teach a lesson of giving from the heart. Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans. So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them; "Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put...

18 August 2026 Tuesday of week 20 in Ordinary Time more than 100 volunteers from the Hogar de Cristo, gather in the Shrine of Father Hurtado, to celebrate Volunteer Day. Santiago, Chile Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First readingEzekiel 28:1-10Against the arrogance of the king of TyreThe word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows, ‘Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre, “The Lord says this:Being swollen with pride,you have said: I am a god;I am sitting on the throne of God,surrounded by the seas.Though you are a man and not a god,you consider yourself...

17 August 2026 Monday of week 20 in Ordinary Time St. Hyacinth Church, Detroit , MI Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First readingEzekiel 24:15-24The Lord will profane his sanctuaryThe word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows, ‘Son of man, I am about to deprive you suddenly of the delight of your eyes. But you are not to lament, not to weep, not to let your tears run down. Groan in silence, do not go into mourning for the dead, knot your turban round your head, put your sandals on your feet, do not cover your...

16 August 2026 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time Saint Stephens Cathedral Budapest Hungary Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Green. Year: A(II).First readingIsaiah 56:1,6-7I will bring foreigners to my holy mountainThus says the Lord: Have a care for justice, act with integrity, for soon my salvation will come and my integrity be manifest. Foreigners who have attached themselves to the Lord to serve him and to love his name and be his servants – all who observe the sabbath, not profaning it, and cling to my covenant – these I will bring to my holy mountain. I will make them joyful...

“In the third grade our teacher wanted us to draw a picture and then write a story to read to the class based on the picture. I don’t remember what picture I drew, but I know the story I wrote on the paper was not what I had ended up reading to the class. Later that day after grading the papers, my teacher asked me, “Where is the story I had read to the class and why was it different than what I wrote?” She said the one I had read was much better and she wished I had written...

15 August 2026 The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Solemnity Pfarrkirche Mariä Himmelfahrt, ca. 1715, BavariaReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: A(II).These readings are for the Vigil Mass on the evening before the feast.These readings are for the day of the feast itself.These readings are for the Vigil Mass on the evening before the feast.First reading1 Chronicles 15:3-4,15-16,16:1-2They brought in the ark of God and put it inside the tent that David had pitched for itDavid gathered all Israel together to bring the ark of God up to the place he had prepared for it. David called together...

Open Letter to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV - by Bishop Robert MutsaertsWe have often published the great texts of Bishop Rob Mutsaerts (Auxiliary of s-Hertogenbosch /Bois-le-Duc), Netherlands. He has just published (in English and Dutch) an open letter to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV on the need for concern for the salvation of souls amidst the confusion of synodality and other trends.Holy Father,With reverence for the office entrusted to you as successor of Saint Peter, and in communion with the Church which Christ built upon the apostles, I address you with this open letter. I don't do so lightly....