I have decided to follow Jesus

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For 17 July 2017, Monday of week 15 in Ordinary Time, based on Matthew 10:34-11:1

Jesus instructed the Twelve as follows:   “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.

  “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”

  Now when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and proclaim his message in their cities.


Scripture passage from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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About Nick Punch, O.P.

Nick joined the Dominican Order in 1961 and was ordained a priest in December 1966. Since then, he has worked in parishes, schools and universities. Nick was Provincial of the Australian New Zealand province of Dominicans from 1981-1988. Since 1991, Nick has been preaching full time with the Thomas More Center at churches in USA, Australia and New Zealand, appreciating the many ways that parish teams reach the people.