Patrick Comerford
We are in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar, and tomorrow is the Second Sunday after Trinity (Trinity I1, 14 June 2026). Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:
1, reading today’s Gospel reading;
2, a short reflection;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Matthew 5: 33-37 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 33 ‘Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.” 34 But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let your word be “Yes, Yes” or “No, No”; anything more than this comes from the evil one.’
Today’s Reflection:
The Gospel reading at the Eucharist today (Matthew 5: 33-37) continues our readings from the Sermon on the Mount. Christ has spoken about adultery, divorce and remarriage, and now he deals with truth, honesty and credibility.
Christ refers to the Biblical advice on oaths (see Exodus 20: 7, Leviticus 19: 12, Numbers 30: 2, Deuteronomy 5: 11, 6: 3, 22: 21-33) but then calls for even greater, total truth-telling. Our yes is yes and our no is no, and we are called to perfect and transparent, clearly visible honesty.
Of course, we can only aim for such honesty. Nevertheless, we must not swear falsely, break an oath, commit perjury, or call on God as our witness when all we want to do is to express an opinion.
The reference to ‘heaven’ – as with ‘earth’ and ‘Jerusalem’ in verse 35, and ‘your head’ in verse 36 – is an example of oath-taking verifications that allowed varying degrees of authenticity. A vow that was supported by the name of God is particularly binding, but as Christ points out, God is associated with all oath verifications.
Christ proposes standards that go beyond external ways of behaviour but challenge how we feel in our hearts. He suggests that if we do not keep an eye on our feelings and thoughts then we cannot control our actions.
Today’s Prayers (Saturday 13 June 2026):
In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 7 to 13 June 2026 (pp 8-9), has been ‘Safe Churches in Zambia’. This theme was introduced last Sunday with a programme update from Fran Mate, Senior Regional Manager for Africa, USPG.
The USPG prayer diary today (Saturday 13 June 2026, World Day Against Child Labour) invites us to pray:
Lord God, guide Anglican provinces as they strengthen safeguarding through shared learning and accountability. Help your global Church to grow in wisdom, courage, and care for all people.
The Collect:
O God,
the strength of all those who put their trust in you,
mercifully accept our prayers
and, because through the weakness of our mortal nature
we can do no good thing without you,
grant us the help of your grace,
that in the keeping of your commandments
we may please you both in will and deed;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post Communion Prayer:
Eternal Father,
we thank you for nourishing us
with these heavenly gifts:
may our communion strengthen us in faith,
build us up in hope,
and make us grow in love;
for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Additional Collect:
God of truth,
help us to keep your law of love
and to walk in ways of wisdom,
that we may find true life
in Jesus Christ your Son.
Collect on the Eve of Trinity II:
Lord, you have taught us
that all our doings without love are nothing worth:
send your Holy Spirit
and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love,
the true bond of peace and of all virtues,
without which whoever lives is counted dead before you.
Grant this for your only Son Jesus Christ’s sake,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Yesterday’s Reflections
Continued Tomorrow
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
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