Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament

August 22, 2026

Even my own mother said, “Do as I say, not as I do.” As she smoked cigarettes day and night. In the Gospel of Matthew today, Jesus tells the crowd and his followers to do and observe whatever the scribes and Pharisees tell them, but not to follow their example.

We listen to a lot of people these days with access to the internet at our fingertips daily. We read about what to eat, how to exercise, what flowers to plant, how to stay healthy, where to vacation, what medicine to take, and on and on and on. There is so much information to follow if you choose to do so; yet Jesus, in his own words, says you have but one master, the Christ.

The question is, are we following Jesus and his word? Are we reading God’s word as much as we search the internet for our daily lives? Do we have a holy fear of God?

For Christians, it is always an examination of conscience. How am I spending the time God has blessed me with? Jesus is the only one who can say “Do as I say and do as I do.” Let us follow him.

Father Eymard writes, “Work to become a saint, so that heaven may celebrate your feast! To be a saint, love our Lord dearly, sacrifice your personality to him, and joyfully consecrate your whole life to him.” Taken from A Year With Father Eymard by Father Erasto Fernandez, SSS.

Let Us Pray:

Dear heavenly Father, help us daily to read our Bibles to learn what is really important in this life now and for eternity. In Jesus’ name. Amen.