The urgency of the modern age often proves unfulfilling, driven by the relentless pursuit of possessions and control. Faith offers the opposite path—it calls for surrender to the Holy Spirit and a deep trust in God’s will as the true source of fulfillment. Today’s reading highlights the futility of materialistic and hedonistic lifestyles that are prevalent in today's world.

² Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity! ³ What profit has man from all the labor which he toils at under the sun? ⁴ One generation passes and another comes, but the world forever stays. ⁵ The sun rises and the sun goes down; then it presses on to the place where it rises. ⁶ Blowing now toward the south, then toward the north, the wind turns again and again, resuming its rounds. ⁷ All rivers go to the sea, yet never does the sea become full. To the place where they go, the rivers keep on going. ⁸ All speech is labored; there is nothing one can say. The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor is the ear filled with hearing. ⁹ What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun. ¹⁰ Even the thing of which we say, “See, this is new!” has already existed in the ages that preceded us. ¹¹ There is no remembrance of the men of old; nor of those to come will there be any remembrance among those who come after them.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14, 17

R: In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

³ You turn man back to dust, saying, “Return, O children of men.” ⁴ For a thousand years in your sight are as yesterday, now that it is past, or as a watch of the night. (R) ⁵ You make an end of them in their sleep; the next morning they are like the changing grass, ⁶ which at dawn springs up anew, but by evening wilts and fades. (R) ¹² Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart. ¹³ Return, O Lord! How long? Have pity on your servants! (R) ¹⁴ Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days. ¹⁷ Prosper the work of our hands for us! Prosper the work of our hands! (R)

Gospel | Luke 9:7-9

The identity of Jesus remains a mystery to some because they seek evidence and signs that were never meant to exist. Yet, belief in God is rooted not in proof but in trust—the certainty that He exists and desires to be part of our lives. Faith calls us to step forward with courage, ready to take the risk, believe, and entrust ourselves completely to Him.

Gospel Acclamation

I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord; no one comes to the Father except through me.

7 Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was greatly perplexed because some were saying, “John has been raised from the dead”; 8 others were saying, “Elijah has appeared”; still others, “One of the ancient prophets has arisen.” ⁹ But Herod said, “John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I hear such things?” And he kept trying to see him.

Read the Bible in one year! Read PSALMS 146 - 150 today.

A chain smoker began the new year reading materials about lung cancer. After some months, he went to a fellow chain smoker and said, “After reading countless medical journals, it was becoming clear to me that smoking has a direct link to lung cancer. And so I made the great decision to stop . . . reading those journals.”

In the Gospel today, Herod is portrayed as someone intrigued by the message of John the Baptist. Luke recounts that every time John preached, Herod felt a certain attraction in John’s words. That is the nature of truth—when proclaimed, it never fails to strike a sympathetic chord in the heart. 

But truth can be threatening as it demands a corresponding action. It either affirms or convicts. Herod was attracted by the message of John, but he did not have the courage to act on its corresponding demands. What did he do? He put John in prison and beheaded him.

In Herod, we see a man wanting to know the truth but could not handle it. He found attraction in the truth, but he felt afraid of its consequences and demands. So what did he do? He stopped his pursuit of the truth like the smoker who stopped reading the journals.

Today, the culture suffers from what I call a “truth decay,” and it shows up in different ways. Sometimes, we trivialize the truth by making it irrelevant and treating reality as a matter of personal opinion. Some rationalize a lie and present it as truth. Who was it who said that to rationalize is nothing but to tell rational lies? Worst of all, we bastardize the truth by distorting it to suit personal agendas and ideologies. The existence of salaried social media trolls and peddlers of fake news, even at the mainstream news level, is the sad testimony to the institutionalization of bastardized truth.

Fr. Joel O. Jason

reflection question

In what way do you imprison the power of God’s message in your life?

Lord Jesus, I don’t want to be in prison. I want to be free. Entice my heart with the beauty of Your truth, and allow me to rejoice in it. Amen.

Today, I pray for: _____________________________________