Daily Gospel Reflection
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July 8, 2026
Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
The names of the Twelve Apostles are these:
first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew;
James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Philip and Bartholomew,
Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus;
Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot
who betrayed Jesus.
Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
“Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
Jesus’ appointment of the Twelve apostles is a significant moment in the creation of the Catholic church. These were some of the first individuals whom Jesus entrusted to spread the news of the kingdom of God. Given the short passage, we are left with many questions, but first in my mind is why did Jesus pick these people?
Look at the individuals: a tax collector, another who doubted him even after spending time with Jesus, another who denied knowing Jesus, even as the de facto leader of this group of men, and another who ultimately betrayed Jesus. All of them were sinners in different significant ways. Yet Jesus still chose them to help fulfill his will to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Although these men accepted Jesus’ invitation to spread the news, as part of my curiosity, I’m left wondering, did these men do so unquestioningly? I can easily imagine a list of questions: How do we do this? Do we have to do it this way? And why the lost people of Israel? Why can’t we go to the Samaritans or to the pagan people?
Other gospel passages share some of the questions and doubts that the disciples had. However, what sets them apart is that they made the choice to wake up each day, over a lifetime, to choose Christ.
Jesus’ call to his Twelve apostles shows us that God calls each of us regardless of our station in life. Are we willing to answer God’s call willingly and without hesitation? Ultimately, we must take up Jesus’ cross in his commission to us to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. May we have the strength and courage to willingly accept God’s call over and over again.
Prayer
Lord God, every time we read the names of the Twelve disciples, we wonder what it will be like to meet them all someday in heaven. Though we know a little about some of them—Peter denied you three times, Matthew was a tax collector, Judas betrayed you, they were fishermen—we don’t really know them. Some day we will know them. Help us not to be afraid of the truth that each day we are one day closer to our heavenly homeland. And send us out, Lord, to witness to the kingdom, to preach the kingdom. May our words and actions be a sign to all the world that your kingdom is here among us and yet to come. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Priscilla and Aquila were a married couple from the early Church, well-known in Scripture for being “co-workers in Christ” with St. Paul, even allowing their home to be used as a local church.
Associating with Paul, the couple traveled with him throughout the region, living in Corinth, Ephesus, and Rome. Paul used their home as a headquarters during his journeys, and they would open their house as a gathering place for the Church wherever they lived. At one point, Paul says, they “risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I am grateful but also all the churches of the Gentiles” (Rom 16:4).
Aquila was a tent-maker, a trade he shared with Paul. We do not know if Paul brought them to faith in Christ or if they were already Christians when they met Paul. It is certain, however, that they were pillars of the early Church. They instructed others in the faith, and their hospitality gave early Christians a place to break bread together and remember Jesus’ words and deeds.
The relics of Sts. Priscilla and Aquila rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica.
Sts. Priscilla and Aquila, you worked with Paul and gave a home to the early Church—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of Sts. Priscilla and Aquila is available for use under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Last accessed March 19, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
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