Daily TV Mass Saturday July 25, 2026

Fr. Gustave Ineza, OP

Transcript

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From the St. Ignatius Chapel at the Manresa Jesuit Spiritual Renewal Center in Pickering, Ontario. The National Catholic Broadcasting Council presents the Daily TV Mass.

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Welcome to the celebration of the Daily TV Mass. I am Father Gustave Ineza. The televising of this Mass is made possible by the contribution from an anonymous donor from the Philippines. This Mass is offered as a Thanksgiving Mass today for the 88th birthday of Marilyn G. Mati in Makati City, Philippines. On behalf of everyone gathered for this sacred celebration, we thank our donor for the gift of this Mass, and we all wish Marilyn a very happy birthday. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

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Amen.

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The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

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And with your spirit.

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Dear brothers and sisters, today the church commemorates St. James the Greater, the brother of John, sons of Zebedee. And we entrust ourselves to their prayers, asking for God's forgiveness. Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy. May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.

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Amen.

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Glory to God in the highest and peace to people of good will. We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory. Lord God, Heavenly King, O God Almighty Father, Lord Jesus Christ, only begotten Son. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world. Have mercy on us. You take away the sins of the world. Receive our prayer. You are seated at the right hand of the Father. Have mercy on us. For you alone are the Holy One. You alone are the Lord. You alone are the Most High Jesus Christ. With the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Let us pray. Almighty ever living God, who consecrated the first fruits of your apostles by the blood of St. James, grant we pray that your church may be strengthened by his confession of faith and constantly sustained by his protection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever.

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A reading from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians. We have this treasure in clay vessels, so that it may be made clear that this extra no or extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed, perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down, but not destroyed. Always carrying in the body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. Just as we have the same spirit of faith that is in accordance with the scripture. I believed and so I spoke. We also believe and so we speak. Because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will bring us with you into his presence. Yes, everything is for your sake. So that grace as it extends to more and more people may increase thanksgiving to the glory of God. The word of the Lord.

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And our tongue with shouts of joy. Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy. Then it was said among the nations The Lord has done great things for them. The Lord has done great things for us, and we joined those who sow in teas shall reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for so wing shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves. Those who sow in teas shall weap with shouts of joy hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that will last.

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And kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. And Jesus said to her, What do you want? She said to him, Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left in your kingdom. But Jesus answered, You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink? They said to him, We are able. Just as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. The Gospel of the Lord. Dear brothers and sisters, today the church celebrates the feast of St. James the Greater, one of the first disciples called by Jesus, one of the members of the inner circle who witnessed the transfiguration and one of the first witnesses of the agony of the Lord in Gethsemane. Yet the gospel that the church proposes for this feast does not immediately show us James at his best. Instead, it presents a family ambition. The mother of James St. John approaches Jesus and asks that her sons be granted the highest places in his kingdom, one at his right and one at his left. At first glance, these requests may be shocking, yet it is also deeply human, who among us has never dreamed of recognition, influence, success, and status, who has never hoped that following Christ would bring some form of reward. The request of the sons of Zebedee and their mother reveals motivations that are not entirely purified. They have heard Jesus speak about the kingdom, but they still imagine it according to worldly categories. They are thinking about rank, privilege, and honor. What is remarkable is that Jesus does not reject them. He does not dismiss them because their motivations are imperfect. Instead, he begins the patient work of transformation, transforming them. He asks a question: can you drink the cup that I'm going to drink? And the brothers confidently answer, perhaps without fully understanding what they are saying. They imagine glory when they hear the cup. But Jesus speaks about sacrifice. They dream of thrones, but Jesus points towards the cross. This exchange reveal something important about Christian discipleship. Very few of us begin our journey with perfect pure motives. We may come to faith seeking comfort, security, and answers, or even recognition. Yet the Lord does not wait until our motives are flawless before calling us. Rather, he calls us as we are and gradually purifies our hearts. If you allow him, he cleanses our desires and reshapes our ambitions so that they become aligned with his mission. The life of St. James demonstrates this transformation. In today's gospel, we encounter a disciple who is still concerned about status. But after the resurrection and Pentecost, we encounter a very different person. James became a courageous witness to Christ. He preached the gospel with conviction and he accepted suffering for the sake of the kingdom. According to the Acts of the Apostles, he became the first of the twelve to shed to shed his who shed his blood for Christ when he was put to death by King Herod. The disciple who once sought a place of honor eventually drinks the cup of his Lord. The ambition of privilege has been transformed into the courage of self-giving love. This transformation should challenge us. Too often we can become preoccupied with the rewards of faith. We speak about heaven, eternal life, and the promises that God has prepared for those who love Him. These promises are real and precious, they sustain our hope. Yet Jesus reminds us today that focusing exclusively on the reward can distract us from the daily demands of discipleship. Notice that Jesus does not spend much time describing who we sit where in the kingdom. In fact, he says that such matters belong to the Father. The reward is God's concern. Our concern is the mission. The reward is certain because God is faithful, but its form and fullness remain known only to him. What Jesus places before the disciples is not a map of heavenly honors, but the reality of the cup they must drink. The Christian life is therefore not primarily about earning a place of distinction. It is about allowing ourselves to be transformed into the likeness of Christ. It is about learning to suffer with those who suffer, to weep with those who are weeping, to stand beside the forgotten, to forgive those who are hurt, and to love when love is costly. It is about living as our Lord lived. Before discipleship is about being rewarded, it is about being changed. History offers many examples of what happens when believers forget this lesson. Whenever Christians have fought for the highest seats, whenever they have sought power, prestige, or domination in the name of God, they have often ended up trampling on others. At various moments in history, individuals and groups have been tempted to confuse the kingdom of God with worldly powers. Instead of imitating the servant Lord who washed feet, they sought positions of privilege. So the result was frequently division, injustice, and scandal. The gospel reminds us that the pursuit of status, even in religious settings, can lead us away from Christ if it is not purified by humility and service. And this is precisely why Jesus gathers the disciples and gives them one of the most important teachings in the Gospel. It shall not be so among you. In the world, greatness is often measured by power, influence, and authority. In God's kingdom, greatness is measured by service. The one who wishes to be great must become a servant. The one who wishes to be first must place others before self. And this teaching remains essential to the church today. The church does have ministries, offices, and responsibilities. There are bishops, priests, deacons, religious and lay leaders. These roles are important and necessary. Yet their purpose is not privilege but service. Hierarchical positions and service do not contradict one another. In the vision of Christ, authority itself becomes a form of service. The greater the responsibility, the greater the call to humility, sacrifice, and care for others. In the church, service is the highest honor because it reflects the very heart of Jesus. The Feast of St. James invites us to examine our own discipleship. Why do we follow Christ? What do we seek from him? Are there ambitions, desires, or expectations that still need purification? The good news is that God is patient. Just as he transformed James, he can transform us. He can take our mixed motives and gradually shape them according to his will. So may the Lord who transformed an ambitious disciple into a courageous martyr continue to transform us until our lives reflect the self-giving love of the one who came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Amen. Now let us bring our prayers and petitions to the Lord. For all those in our Daily TV Mass Prayer Intentions book, we pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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As a community prayer, let us give thanks for grandparents and elders like St. Joachim and Anne, who nurture faith and family across generations with quiet strength. We pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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All these prayers and the prayers that remain in our hearts to bring them to God when you ask God to grant them through Christ our Lord. Let us pray. Cleanse us, Lord, by the saving baptism of your Son's Passion, so that on the feast of St. James, whom you will to be the first among the apostles, to drink of Christ's chalice of suffering, we may offer a sacrifice pleasing to you through Christ our Lord.

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Amen.

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The Lord be with you.

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And with your spirit.

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Lift up your hearts.

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Lift them up to the Lord.

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Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right and just truly right and just our duty and our salvation, always and everywhere, to give you thanks, Lord Holy Father, Almighty and Eternal God, through Christ our Lord. For you have built your church to stand firm on apostolic foundations, to be a lasting sign of your holiness on earth, and offer all humanity your heavenly teaching. Therefore, now and for ages unending, with all the hosts of angels, we sing to you with all our hearts, crying out as we acclaim.

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Holy, holy, holy Lord God of us, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the Yes Hosanna in the You are indeed holy, O Lord, the fountain of all holiness.

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Make holy therefore these gifts we pray by sending down your spirit upon them like they do for, so that they may become for us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the time he was betrayed and entered willingly into his passion, he took bread and giving thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, Take these, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body which will be given up for you. In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the chalice, and once more giving thanks, he gave it to his disciples, saying, Take these all of you and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many, for the forgiving. Do these in memory of me. The mystery of faith.

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When we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim your death, whole Lord, until you come again.

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Therefore, as we celebrate the memory of his death and resurrection, we offer you, Lord, the bread of life and the charities of salvation, giving thanks that you have held us worthy to be in your presence and minister to you. Humbly pray that partaking of the body and blood of Christ, we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit. Remember, Lord, your church spread throughout the world, and bring us to the fullness of charity together with Leo, our Pope, and Francis, our bishop, and all the clergy. Remember also our brothers and sisters who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection. And all who have died in your mercy. Welcome them into the light of your faith. Have mercy on us all. We pray that with the blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, with the blessed Joseph, our spouse, with the blessed Apostles, St. James the Greater, and all the saints who have pleased you throughout the ages, we may merit to be co-heirs to eternal life and may praise and glorify you through your Son Jesus Christ. Through him and with him and in him, O God, Almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, our glory and honor is yours forever and ever. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Deliver us, Lord, we pray from every evil. Graciously grant peace in our days, that by the help of your mercy we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Now and forever. Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your apostles, peace I leave you, my peace I give you. Look not on our sins, but on the faith of your church, and graciously grant her peace and unity in accordance with your will, who live and reign forever and ever. Amen. The peace of the Lord be with you always.

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And with your spirit.

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Let us offer each other the sign of peace.

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Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world. Have mercy on us. Grant us.

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Behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those who call to the supper of the Lamb. Lord, I'm not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.

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My Jesus, I believe that you are present in this holy sacrament of the altar. I love you above all things, and I passionately desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot now receive you sacramentally, come spiritually into my soul, so that I may unite myself wholly to you now and forever. Amen.

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Help us, O Lord, we pray through the intercession of the blessed Apostle James, on whose feast day we have received with joy your holy gifts. Through Christ our Lord. The Lord be with you.

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And with your spirit.

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And may the Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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Amen.

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Our Mass is ended. Let us go and glorify the Lord by our lives.

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Thanks.

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Thanks be to God.

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Our thanks to our donors for the gift of this Mass.