Lk 10:25-37

The parable of the “Good Samaritan” that we hear today is embedded in the dialog between Jesus and a scribe (Lk 10:25-37) who wants to put him to the test.

The scribe’s question is an important one, the same question that every disciple asks his teacher.

But his attitude is not sincere, is not that of a good disciple: he is not so much looking for an answer as trying to embarrass his interlocutor, to discredit him. The doctor of the Law asks: “Teacher, what must I do to in-herit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25).

Jesus responds to this one, important question with two questions that are also fundamental: “What is written in the law? How do you read it?” (Luke 10:26).

It is important to keep these two questions together. The complete answer to the doctor of the Law can only be found by holding these two questions of Jesus together. One must indeed know what is written in the Law, what God has revealed about eternal life. But one must also know how to read it, with which heart, with which eye.

The doctor indeed knows the Law well and answers it correctly. But he doesn’t seem to fully understand what it means, how to interpret it. It is the look of someone who wants to justify himself (“But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus...” - Luke 10:29).

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV celebrates the first Mass for the Care of Creation at the Laudato Si’ Village in Castel Gandolfo, and urges Christians to embrace our mission to bring peace and reconciliation to our world and all creation.

By Devin Watkins

Just a few days after beginning his summer holidays in Castel Gandolfo, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV celebrated the first Mass for the Care of Creation,” a new formulary of the Roman Missal.

The Mass took place at the Laudato Si’ Village, an educational center located in the Papal summer residence near Rome, and was attended by the center’s staff.

In off-the-cuff remarks at the start of his homily, the Holy Father said the Mass was being celebrated surrounded by beauty in “a kind of ‘natural’ cathedral.”

The General Secretariat of the Synod releases “Pathways for the Implementation of the Synod”, which provides “an interpretive key for understanding the implementation phase of the Synod on Synodality.”

By Christopher Wells

A new document from the Synod of Bishops is intended “to provide an interpretive key for understanding the implementation phase of the synodal process.”

Released by the Synod on Monday, Pathways for the Implementation Phase of the Synod offers “local Churches throughout the world the world a shared framework that will make it easier to walk together” and promotes “the dialogue that will lead the whole Church to the Ecclesial Assembly,” set for October 2028 that will mark the culmination of the synodal process begun by His Holiness Pope Francis in 2020.

With the blessing of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), the summer school officially commenced at the Khoren I Center on June 30, 2025, organized by the center’s committee.

The day commenced with a joint prayer in the Holy Trinity Chapel, followed by a welcome speech from the center’s director, V. Rev. Fr. Zaven Najarian. The summer school coordinator, Maral Harboyan, then welcomed the students, highlighting the exciting and enriching programs they would experience.

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV arrives at Castel Gandolfo on Sunday, July 6, 2025, afternoon where he will spend a period of rest. A large group of faithful, including a group of nuns, waited hours for his arrival.

By Salvatore Cernuzio

The signal was the opening of the gate and the exit of two Swiss Guards. Then the roar of motorcycle engines and the dark car appeared from the bottom of the hill before pausing for the Pope to get out to greet the long line of people standing in the sun, who had been waiting for at least a couple of hours behind the barriers that even the mayor had helped to set up this morning. At around 5 p.m., Pope Leo XIV arrived at Castel Gandolfo, the summer residence of the Popes 25 km from Rome, where he will spend a period of summer rest until 20 July and then again for a few days in August.

During his Sunday Angelus, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV reflects on the universal call to mission, urging Christians to move beyond occasional faith and become committed witnesses in daily life.

By Francesca Merlo

Addressing the faithful gathered for his Sunday Angelus on 6 July, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV offered a reflection on the missionary nature of the Church, grounded in the Gospel of Luke.

The Pope focused his reflection on Jesus’ sending out of seventy-two disciples, an act which, he explained, represents the universal scope of the Gospel. “The hope of the Gospel is meant for all peoples,” he said, adding that this reflects “the breadth of God’s heart and the abundance of His harvest.”

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV releases his Prayer intention for the month of July, and invites us to pray that we may know how to choose the right path for our life and reject anything that leads us away from Christ.

By Devin Watkins

“Let us pray that we might again learn how to discern, to know how to choose paths of life and reject everything that leads us away from Christ and the Gospel.”

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV made that invitation in his prayer intention for July 2025, released in The Pope Video, which accompanies his monthly intention.

In the video produced by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, the Holy Father offers a prayer to guide Christians in our discernment process.

The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments present at the Holy See Press Office, a new formulary of the Roman Missal dedicated to the “Care for Creation”.

By Isabella H. de Carvalho

On July 9, 2025, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV will celebrate the first “Mass for the Care of Creation”, with a new formulary of the Roman Missal, produced by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and presented Thursday, July 3, during a press conference at the Vatican. The Pope will celebrate this private Mass during his holiday with the staff of the “Borgo Laudato Sì” (“Laudato Sì Village”), an educational center located in the Papal residence in Castel Gandolfo. 

Lk 10:1-12,17-20 

The context of the Gospel we read today (Lk 10:1-12,17-20) is that of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem.

A few verses earlier, the evangelist Luke reports that Jesus makes the firm decision to set off for Jerusalem (Lk 9:51) and immediately sends his disciples off to prepare for his arrival from village to village (Lk 9:52). Luke had also already reported on the first mission of the twelve in chapter 9 (Lk 9:1-6), so one might think that this is something particularly important for the evangelist.

Let us first turn to the opening verse, where we read that the “the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit” (Lk 10:1)…

In his Message for the 10th World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV quotes extensively from Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato si’, denouncing environmental and social injustice and noting that God’s creation is not intended to be a battleground for vital resources.

By Linda Bordoni

As the Church prepares to mark the Tenth World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation on 1 September 2025, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV’s message for the occasion urges Christians and all people of goodwill to recognize the urgent need for environmental and social justice in a world increasingly scarred by climate change, conflict, and inequality.

The National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon held the 2025 Women's Conference, from June 29 to July 3 at the Dhour Chweir Evangelical Center - Lebanon.

The gathering addressed important issues affecting women's lives, such as mental health, the challenges of achieving balance amid pressure, and the role of women in times of change. It also included biblical reflections on grace, hope, and the Kingdom.

Acts 12:1-11; 2 Tim 4:6-8,17-18; Mt 16:13-19 

Dear brothers in Christ and in St. Peter 

Dear Fr. Custos,  
may the Lord give you peace! 

The Gospel that we read every year on this occasion always offers us new suggestions. Today, too, we are picking up just one of them. I am talking about the knowledge of God according to flesh and blood on the one hand, or according to God’s own inspiration on the other. These are two different ways of standing before God, the life and the world. They can also be two ways of standing in the life of the church, as we shall see. 

To say something about Jesus, the crowd and the disciples refer to the great prophets of the past (“Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets” - Mt 16:14): That is, they realize that Jesus is understood as a great, special person, but no different from others who were already part of biblical history…

Due regional issues, the three-day 78th General Assembly of the the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE) was changed to a one-day meeting, which took place on 30 June 2025 at the First Armenian Evangelical Church (Beirut), and those unable to travel joined online. There were 35 voting members in all (in person and online), plus guests and honorary members.

Commemorating the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed, the Opening Worship Service for the 78th General Assembly of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE) took place on 29 June 2025, at the First Armenian Evangelical Church, Beirut. The service was also broadcasted live on the UAECNE YouTube Channel.

Members of Union Churches, Pastors, Ecumenical Representatives and friends joined with participants to take part in a solemn and spiritually uplifting evening, enjoying God’s presence through song and reading, Prayer and preaching.

Basing his Sermon on Hebrews, chapter 11, Reverend Dr. Paul Haidostian, Acting President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE), President of Haigazian University in Lebanon, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Evangelical Family, explored the strength the Church finds in its common witness of faith.

Under the auspices and blessing of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC), the Armenological Center of the Catholicosate of Cilicia concluded its academic year with a ceremony marking the graduation of three students—Claudine Geudelekian, Perouz Tutunjian, and Anita Nalbandian—who successfully completed the Center’s three-year program.

The intimate ceremony began with opening remarks by the Center’s director, Mr. Aharon Shekherdemian. Representing the graduating students, Ms. Anita Nalbandian delivered a heartfelt speech reflecting on their academic journey. The event culminated with the distribution of diplomas by His Holiness Aram I, who also addressed the audience with a closing message.

Presiding over the Mass on the Solemnity of the Patron Saints of the Diocese and City of Rome, with the blessing and imposition of the pallium on the new Metropolitan Archbishops — His Holiness Pope Leo XIV invites the faithful to contemplate the two Apostles. Though different in their gifts and approaches, they lived “a fruitful harmony in diversity.”

By Edoardo Giribaldi

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV presided over the celebration of Sunday's Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, patrons of the Diocese and city of Rome, in St. Peter’s Basilica. The Mass included the blessing and imposition of the pallium on 54 new Metropolitan Archbishops.

Balamand, June 30, 2025

His Beatitude Patriarch John X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and President of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) for the Orthodox Family, received France’s condolences for the Martyrs of St. Elias Church in Doweila. The condolences were conveyed by His Excellency, the French Ambassador to Lebanon, Mr. Hervé Magro, and His Excellency the Chargé d’Affaires of the French Embassy in Syria, Mr. Jean-Baptiste Faivre, who met with the Patriarch at the Patriarchal Residency in Balamand.

During the meeting, the French delegation expressed their condemnation of this genocide.

For his part, His Beatitude Patriarch John X thanked the French side for its solidarity and humanitarian support for the Antiochian Church and the families of the martyrs.

The meeting also included a discussion of the general situation and current issues in light of the ongoing developments on the local and regional levels.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee expressed “deep lamentation and outrage” as the crisis in Palestine and [Israel] escalates to levels that flagrantly violate international humanitarian and human rights law as well as the most basic principles of morality.

“We recognize a clear distinction between the Jewish people, our siblings in faith, and the acts of the Government of [Israel], and we reaffirm that the WCC stands firm against any kind of racism, including antisemitism, anti-Arab racism, and islamophobia,” reads a statement released by the WCC governing body. “However, the unbearable suffering inflicted on the people of Gaza, and the escalating violence and oppression in the West Bank and in Jerusalem compel the global fellowship of churches to speak with clarity, urgency, and commitment to the principles of justice under international law and ethics.”

The Coptic Orthodox Church, led by His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, escorts to the Paradise of Joy the martyrs who fell as a result of the treacherous suicide bombing that took place inside the Church of Saint Elias in the Douilaa district of Damascus, Syria.

Damascus, June 22, 2025

On this day when our Antiochian Church commemorates All the Saints of Antioch, the treacherous hand of evil struck this evening, claiming our lives, along with the lives of our loved ones who fell today as martyrs during the evening Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Prophet Elias in Dweilaa, Damascus.

According to the initial information available at this time, an explosion occurred at the entrance of the church, resulting in the deaths of numerous martyrs and causing injuries to many others who were inside the church or in its immediate vicinity.