Sunday, June 28, 2026
🔥 Summary of 30 Day Retreat – Episode 28
1. The Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary
- Fr. Edgardo “Bing” Arellano teaches that the Two Hearts—Jesus and Mary—represent the fullness of divine love and maternal intercession.
- Devotion to the Sacred Heart is presented as a direct confrontation with evil, because it enthrones Christ’s kingship over the soul, home, and nation.
- The Heart of Mary is shown as the perfect model of purity, obedience, and spiritual warfare.
2. Countries that promote the Sacred Heart
Episode 28 references nations historically consecrated to or strongly associated with the Sacred Heart, including:
- Ireland, whose bishops have repeatedly renewed national consecrations (152 years of tradition). catholicnewsworld.com
- Other Catholic nations with longstanding enthronement traditions (inferred from the episode’s theme and supported by global consecration history).
3. Confronting Evil (CCC context)
While the episode does not quote the Catechism directly, its themes align with CCC teachings on:
- Spiritual combat (CCC 409)
- The victory of Christ’s love over sin (CCC 272, 2846–2849)
- The role of the family as a domestic church (CCC 1655–1658)
The Sacred Heart is presented as a shield against moral decay, especially in families and nations.
🇺🇸 The Importance of the U.S. Consecration to the Sacred Heart
Historic act (2026)
- The U.S. bishops formally consecrated the United States of America to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11, 2026, during the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
- This is the first national consecration of the U.S. to the Sacred Heart. catholicnewsworld.com
Why it matters
- The bishops describe consecration as recognizing Christ’s kingship and renewing the moral and spiritual foundations of the nation. catholicnewsworld.com
- It aims to bring unity, peace, and conversion, especially in a time of cultural fragmentation.
- It calls families to enthrone the Sacred Heart in their homes—an act Episode 28 strongly emphasizes.
🏠 Consecration of Families
Episode 28 stresses that:
- Families must enthrone the Sacred Heart to push back against evil influences.
- The home becomes a domestic sanctuary, echoing the U.S. bishops’ call for parish and household participation in the national consecration. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
- Devotion to the Two Hearts strengthens marriages, protects children, and restores moral clarity.
SMOKE IN THIS LIFE, NOT THE NEXT
JUNE
28 Fifth Sunday after
Pentecost
Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr
2 Chronicles, Chapter 26, Verse 5
He was prepared to seek God as long
as Zechariah
lived,
who taught him to FEAR God; and as
long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.
As long as you seek the Lord you
will prosper. This verse is about the reign of King Uzziah.
Self-righteousness[1]
King
Uzziah reigns for 52 years and does a whole bunch of awesome stuff. He wins
wars, he makes allies, he builds up cities, he develops agricultural systems,
and he creates a mighty army.
But
pride comes before a fall. King Uzziah gets so powerful that he starts to get
over-confident.
One
day, he decides that he'd like to step into the Temple to make some offerings.
Only the high priests can make offerings in the Temple, and they warn him to get out.
While
Uzziah's reading the riot act to the priests, he breaks out in a huge rash all
over his face right there in the Temple.
After
that, he's considered "leprous" so he can't enter the Temple ever
again.
He's
so sick that his son Jotham has to take over his kingly duties until he dies.
Humble yourselves therefor under the mighty
hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. (1 Peter 5:6)
ON KEEPING THE LORD'S
DAY HOLY[2]
CHAPTER III
DIES
ECCLESIAE
The Eucharistic
Assembly:
Heart of Sunday
The table of the Body of Christ
43. This "ascending" movement is
inherent in every Eucharistic celebration and makes it a joyous event,
overflowing with gratitude and hope. But it emerges particularly at Sunday Mass
because of its special link with the commemoration of the Resurrection. By
contrast, this "Eucharistic" rejoicing which "lifts up our
hearts" is the fruit of God's "descending" movement towards us,
which remains forever etched in the essential sacrificial element of the
Eucharist, the supreme expression and celebration of the mystery of the kenosis,
the descent by which Christ "humbled himself, and became obedient unto
death, even death on a Cross" (Phil 2:8).
The Mass in fact truly makes present the
sacrifice of the Cross. Under the species of bread and wine, upon which has
been invoked the outpouring of the Spirit who works with absolutely unique
power in the words of consecration, Christ offers himself to the Father in the
same act of sacrifice by which he offered himself on the Cross. "In this
divine sacrifice, which is accomplished in the Mass, the same Christ who
offered himself once and for all in a bloody manner on the altar of the Cross
is contained and is offered in an unbloody manner". To his sacrifice
Christ unites the sacrifice of the Church: "In the Eucharist the sacrifice
of Christ becomes also the sacrifice of the members of his Body. The lives of
the faithful, their praise, sufferings, prayer and work, are united with those
of Christ and with his total offering, and so acquire a new value". The
truth that the whole community shares in Christ's sacrifice is especially
evident in the Sunday gathering, which makes it possible to bring to the altar
the week that has passed, with all its human burdens.
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost[3]
WITH the
priest in the Introit of the Mass, let us implore God’s assistance, and say: “Hear,
O Lord, my voice, with which I have cried to Thee; be Thou my helper, forsake
not, do not Thou despise me, O God, my Savior. The Lord is my light and my
salvation, whom shall I fear?” (Ps. xxvi. 7, 9, 1.)
Prayer. O God, Who hast prepared invisible
goods for them that love Thee, infuse into our hearts the affection of Thy
love, that loving Thee in all things and above all, we may obtain Thy promises
which surpass every desire.
EPISTLE, i. Peter iii. 8-15.
Dearly
Beloved: Be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, being lovers
of the brotherhood, merciful, modest, humble: not rendering evil for evil, nor
railing for railing, but contrariwise, blessing: for unto this are you called,
that you may inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days,
let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile.
Let him decline from evil, and do good: let him seek after peace, and pursue
it: because the eyes of the Lord are upon the just, and His ears unto their
prayers: but the countenance of the Lord upon them that do evil things. And who
is he that can hurt you, if you be zealous of good? But if also you suffer
anything for justice sake, blessed are ye. And be not afraid of their fear, and
be not troubled; but sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts. How may and ought
we to sanctify the Lord Jesus in our hearts? By faithfully imitating Him; for
thereby we become His true and faithful disciples, honor Him, sanctify ourselves
and edify others, who by our good example are led to admire Christianity, and
Christ its founder, and to become His followers.
GOSPEL. Matt. v. 20-24.
At that time
Jesus said to His disciples: I tell you, unless your justice abounds more than
that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter into the kingdom of
heaven. You have heard that it was said to them of old: Thou shalt not kill and
whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you: that
whosoever is angry with his brother, shall be in danger of the judgment. And
whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council.
And whoso ever shall say, thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. If
therefore thou offer thy gift at the altar, and there thou remember that thy
brother hath anything against thee: leave there thy offering before the altar,
and go first to be reconciled to thy brother, and then coming thou shalt offer
thy gift.
In what did
the justice of the Pharisees consist?
They
were very pious in outward appearance, and avoided those vices which caused
temporal disgrace and injury; but, on the other hand, they were full of malice
in their hearts, and this Christ often reproached them with, calling them
hypocrites.
How are we
to understand what Christ says about anger and using abusive words?
The
meaning of His words is, “You have heard from your teachers and doctors of the
law, that whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment of men; but I
say to you, who think it no sin to be angry or envious, that whosoever is angry
with his brother without cause, shall be in danger of the judgment of God. You
have heard that whosoever calls his brother fool, shall be brought before the
council and punished; but I say to you, that God punishes with hell fire every
grievous offence against your neighbor, as also the hatred and enmity of your
heart towards Him.”
Why must one first be reconciled to his brother before he offers his gift at the altar, or undertakes any good work?
Because
no offering, or other good work, can be pleasing to God so long as we are
living in enmity, hatred, and strife with our neighbor, and thereby going
directly against His will and example.
Remedies for Anger.
The first
and best means to overcome anger is humility; to become thus humble, gentle,
and patient, one must often consider the example of Christ, Who endured so many
contradictions, persecutions, and insults, without reviling again when reviled
Himself, and without threatening vengeance to any one for all He suffered. An
excellent preventive to anger is, to think over in the morning what causes will
be likely to draw us into anger at any time during the day, and to guard
ourselves against them beforehand, by a firm resolution to bear everything
patiently for the love of God; and then, when anything vexatious occurs and
excites our anger, to say and do nothing so long as the anger lasts.
How shall we
be reconciled with our enemies?
Not
only with the lips but from the heart, and with sincerity and promptness. “Is
he absent whom you have wronged,” says St. Augustine, “so that you cannot
easily reach him? humble yourself then before God, and ask His pardon before
you offer your gift, with a firm resolution to be reconciled with your enemy as
soon as possible.”
INSTRUCTION ON SWEARING.
To swear is
to call upon God, upon His truth, His justice, or other attributes, or upon His
creatures, in the name of God, as witnesses of the truth.
Is swearing
lawful, and when?
Yes,
when necessity demands it, and when the matter sworn to is true and just: when
a man thus swears he imitates God, honors Him as all-holy, all-wise, all-just,
and contributes to the triumph of justice and innocence. On the other hand,
great sins are committed:
1.
By those who swear in a false and
unjust cause, which may be, besides, of little moment; for they call upon God
as a witness to falsehood and wrong, thus violating His truth and justice.
2.
By those who swear in a good cause,
but without necessity or a sufficient reason; for it is certainly unseemly to
call God as witness on every trivial occasion.
3. In like manner, they sin grievously and constantly who have become so habituated to swearing as to break out into oaths, without so much as knowing or thinking whether the thing is true or false, whether they will keep their word or not; where by they expose themselves to great danger, both because they run the risk of swearing falsely, and also because they frivolously abuse the name of God, of His saints, and of His works.
Everyone,
says St. Chrysostom, who swears often sometimes swears falsely; just as lie who
talks a great deal sometimes utters things unseemly and improper. For this
reason, according to the opinion of St. Augustine, the Savior forbade
Christians to swear at all (Matt. v. 34), that they might not fall into a habit
of swearing, and, by reason of that, into swearing falsely. Whoever has this
habit should take the greatest pains to overcome it. To accomplish which, it
will be useful to him to reflect:
1.
That if we have to render an account
for every idle word we speak, how much more strictly will we be judged for
needless, idle, and false oaths! “Remember thy last end, and thou shalt not sin,”
2.
To remember that persons who swear
so lightly are generally less believed than others.
3.
To repent each time that he swears,
and to punish himself by a penance.
St.
Irenaeus of Lyons, Bishop and Martyr (130-202).[4]
He was born in Asia Minor around the year 140. It is not known when he came to
Gaul. He was a priest of the Church of Lyons during the persecution of 177 when
St. Pothinus, first bishop of the city and the first martyr of Lyons, was put
to death. Irenaeus succeeded him as bishop and twenty-five years later was
martyred in his turn during a fresh persecution. At a time when Gnostic sects
threatened to undermine Christianity by a perversion of Christian thought, St.
Irenaeus vigorously denounced all heresies and safeguarded unity of belief by
laying down the principles of the doctrinal tradition of the Church.
Tomorrow
is the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. Observance of the solemnity
begins with First Vespers (Evening Prayer I) in the Liturgy of the Hours on
June 28, and a special Vigil Mass before or after First Vespers. The
liturgical day is from midnight to midnight in the Church's observance, except
for Sunday and solemnities which begin with the evening of the preceding day.
Bible
in a year Day 358 From Rebellion to Faithfulness
Fr.
Mike leads us through the book of Jude and discusses its main message of
calling us to lives of faithfulness. He also contextualizes 2 Timothy by
highlighting Paul’s imprisonment and his final message to rekindle the gift of
God within us. Today’s readings are from Jude, 2 Timothy 1-2, and Proverbs
31:1-7.
Around the Corner
·
Today in honor of the Holy Trinity do the Divine Office giving
your day to God. To honor God REST: no shopping after 6 pm Saturday till
Monday. Don’t forget the internet.
·
Bucket Item
trip: Pilgrimage-National Marian Shrine located in
Subukia, Kenya (Maybe you’ll see Barack there)
· June 28, 1926, stands out as a true icon in the world of comedy. His journey began in Brooklyn, New York
.
·
Some catholic groups fast for the
Vigil of Ss. Peter and Paul (June 28)
·
Elon Musk,
born on June 28, 1971
· Foodie: Beast of a Feast
·
Spirit hour: Dawa
Daily
Devotions
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Increase in Christian Femininity
·
From a Catholic perspective, increasing
Christian femininity means embracing the God-given dignity, vocation, and
spiritual gifts unique to women—rooted in Scripture, tradition, and the example
of the Virgin Mary.
·
Here are some keyways this is understood and
nurtured:
o
Rediscovering Femininity as a Gift
Catholic teaching emphasizes that femininity is not a social construct but a
divine design. Women are created in the image of God with a unique capacity for
fruitful receptivity—not just in motherhood, but in spiritual and
relational life.
o
Imitating the Virgin Mary
Mary is seen as the perfect model of Catholic femininity: humble, strong,
nurturing, and obedient to God's will. Her “yes” to God is the ultimate
expression of trust and spiritual motherhood.
o
Cultivating Feminine Virtues
Traits like patience, self-giving, tenderness, and receptivity are
celebrated—not as weaknesses, but as powerful virtues that reflect Christ’s
love. Catholic thinkers like St. Edith Stein and Alice von Hildebrand have
written beautifully about how these qualities are essential to the Church and
society.
o
Healing Cultural Wounds
The Church acknowledges that many women have been hurt by distorted views of
femininity—whether through radical feminism, societal pressures, or even
neglect within Church structures. A return to authentic femininity is also a
path of healing and renewal.
o
Living Out Vocation
Whether as mothers, consecrated religious, professionals, or single women,
Catholic femininity is about living one’s vocation with love, integrity, and a
heart open to God’s grace.
Litany
of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
Rosary
[3] Goffine’s Devout Instructions, 1896.
BLAST FROM THE PAST (1999)
Brendan Fraser • Alicia Silverstone • Christopher Walken • Sissy Spacek
Directed by Hugh Wilson
A comedy wrapped in innocence yet anchored in longing,
Blast From the Past is not merely a fish‑out‑of‑water romance.
It is a meditation on what happens when unspoiled goodness
walks straight into a world that has forgotten how to hope.
Brendan Fraser plays Adam with a sincerity
that borders on the sacramental —
a man raised in a sealed world of manners, music, and trust,
released into a culture that prizes irony over virtue.
Alicia Silverstone’s Eve is the modern heart —
guarded, skeptical, allergic to sentiment —
yet drawn, almost against her will,
to a man who embodies everything she stopped believing in.
Beneath the humor lies a deeper truth:
innocence, when lived without fear,
becomes a force that disarms cynicism.
1. Production & Cultural Setting
America at the Turn of the Millennium
Released in 1999, the film arrives at the end of a decade
defined by sarcasm, detachment, and post‑Cold‑War uncertainty.
Audiences were ready — even hungry —
for a story where kindness wasn’t a punchline
and optimism wasn’t a flaw.
Brendan Fraser: The Earnest Idealist
Fraser’s Adam is a man untouched by bitterness.
His politeness is not affectation —
it is the natural language of a soul raised on trust.
Alicia Silverstone: The Wounded Realist
Eve is the counterweight —
streetwise, bruised by life,
yet still capable of recognizing goodness
when it stands in front of her with open hands.
Walken & Spacek: The Guardians of a Lost World
Their bunker‑bound eccentricity
is both comic and strangely noble —
a portrait of parents who preserved a world
their son would one day redeem.
2. Story Summary
The Shelter
In 1962, fearing nuclear annihilation,
a brilliant scientist seals his family underground
for what becomes 35 years.
The Emergence
Adam steps into 1990s Los Angeles
like a pilgrim entering a foreign land —
bewildered, hopeful, uncorrupted.
The Encounter
He meets Eve,
whose skepticism is both armor and wound.
The Transformation
Through small acts of courtesy, courage, and wonder,
Adam softens Eve’s defenses
and reveals a world she thought no longer existed.
3. Moral & Emotional Resonances
A. Innocence as Counter‑Culture
Adam’s goodness is not naïveté —
it is resistance to the cynicism of the age.
B. The Healing Power of Courtesy
Manners become a form of mercy,
a way of restoring dignity in a graceless world.
C. Cynicism as a Wound, Not a Virtue
Eve’s skepticism is understandable —
but not final.
D. Love as Re‑Enchantment
Their romance is not about chemistry alone
but about rediscovering the possibility of hope.
E. The Past as a Gift, Not a Prison
Adam brings forward the best of another era
without being trapped by it.
4. Hospitality Pairing — A Night of Gentle Wonder
Drink: A vanilla cream soda or bourbon‑vanilla highball — nostalgic, sweet, slightly fizzy with hope.
Plate: Meatloaf with mashed potatoes — comfort food from a world before irony.
Atmosphere: Swing music on vinyl, warm lamplight, a touch of mid‑century décor.
Symbol: A small globe or vintage radio — the world Adam inherits and transforms.
5. Reflection Prompts
- Where have I allowed cynicism to masquerade as wisdom.
- What part of my life longs to be met with innocence instead of suspicion.
- Who around me needs the healing of simple kindness.
- What “bunker” beliefs do I need to leave behind.
- Where is hope asking to re‑enter my life.
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