16/06/2026
๐๐๐ป๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ณ, ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฒ
๐๐ผ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐น
Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.
โ ๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ต๐ผ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐น ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐๐ต๐ฒ๐
Jesus said to his disciples:
โTake care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
โWhen you pray, do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door,
and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
โWhen you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to others to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.โ
๐๐ผ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐น ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ณ๐น๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฏ๐ Fr. Antoni CAROL i Hostench (Sant Cugat del Vallรจs, Barcelona, Spain)
Today, Jesus invites us to act for the glory of God, to please the Father, for that is precisely why we were created. The Catechism of the Church states: "God created everything for man, but man in turn was created to serve and love God and to offer all creation back to him." This is the meaning of our life and our honor: to please the Father, to please God. This is the witness Christ left us. May the heavenly Father bear witness to each of us as he did to his Son at his baptism: " This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Mt 3:17).
The lack of rectitude of intention would be especially grave and ridiculous if it occurred in actions such as prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, since these are acts of piety and charity, that is, acts thatโper seโare proper to the virtue of religion or acts performed for the love of God.
Therefore, "Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father" (Mt 6:1). How can we please God if what we seek from the outset is to be seen and to look good - first and foremost - before men? It's not that we must hide from men so they won't see us, but rather it's about directing our good works directly and foremost to God. It doesn't matter, nor is it bad, that others see us: quite the contrary, for we can build them up with a coherent witness to our actions.
But what does matterโand very much so! โis that we see God behind our actions. And, therefore, we must "examine our intention very carefully in everything we do, and not seek our own interests, if we want to serve the Lord" (Saint Gregory the Great).
