Daily Catholic Mass Readings for June 22, 2025
First Reading: Genesis 14.18-20
18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.)19And he blessed him and said, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;20and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!"And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Psalm 110
1The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool."2The LORD sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies!3Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours.4The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek."5The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.6He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses; he will shatter chiefs over the wide earth.7He will drink from the brook by the way; therefore he will lift up his head.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 11.23-26
23For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,24and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me."25In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
Gospel: Luke 9.11b-17
11When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.12Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, "Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place."13But he said to them, "You give them something to eat." They said, "We have no more than five loaves and two fish--unless we are to go and buy food for all these people."14For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each."15And they did so, and had them all sit down.16And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing over them. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.17And they all ate and were satisfied. And what was left over was picked up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
Sermon
In today’s readings, we encounter powerful narratives that weave together themes of faith, gratitude, and divine provision. The first reading from Genesis introduces Melchizedek, a priest-king who offers bread and wine, blessing Abram and receiving a tithe. This ancient act of worship prefigures the Eucharistic tradition, highlighting the importance of acknowledging God as the source of all blessings. The second reading from 1 Corinthians details the institution of the Eucharist, where Jesus, on the night before His passion, transforms bread and wine into His body and blood, commanding us to remember Him through this sacred meal. The Gospel from Luke recounts the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand, where Jesus takes five loaves and two fish, blesses them, and satisfies the multitude, leaving an abundance of leftovers.
These readings are deeply interconnected, each shedding light on the others. Melchizedek’s offering of bread and wine in Genesis foreshadows the Eucharistic sacrifice, while the feeding miracle in Luke mirrors the abundance of God’s grace, much like the overflowing bread in the wilderness. The Eucharist, as described by Paul, is the culmination of these themes, where we participate in Christ’s sacrifice and are nourished for our journey. Together, they remind us that God’s provision is always sufficient, often exceeding our needs.
In our daily lives, these readings invite us to cultivate gratitude and trust. Like Abram, we are called to give back to God from the abundance He has given us, whether through our resources or our time. The Eucharist urges us to remember Christ’s sacrifice, integrating this remembrance into our actions and decisions. The feeding of the five thousand challenges us to approach life with faith, trusting that God can multiply even our meager offerings. May we embrace a spirit of stewardship, recognizing that all we have comes from God, and may we use these gifts wisely and generously, mirroring the divine generosity we encounter in these readings.