Thursday, December 3, 2026 — Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Priest
The house on the rock
Matthew 7:21, 24-27
Readings of the day: Isaiah 26:1-6; Psalm 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a; Isaiah 55:6; Matthew 7:21, 24-27.
The Gospel
Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the Kingdom of heaven, says Jesus, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Whoever hears his words and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on rock: the rain fell, the floods came, the winds blew and beat upon the house, and it did not fall. Whoever hears and does not act is like a fool who built his house on sand: it fell, and great was its ruin.
Reflection
Saying “Lord, Lord” is not enough, and neither are wonders: St. Gregory teaches that among men charity and humility, and not mighty works, are to be esteemed, and that the proof of holiness is not to work miracles, but to love our neighbour as ourselves. St. Augustine adds that the true fruit is to do the will of God; St. Jerome, that a servant of God must have his work approved by his teaching and his teaching by his works. The wise man hears the words of Christ and does them, and so, says Pseudo-Chrysostom, he is like Christ himself, building on the rock, which is Christ. The rain will fall on every house; the question is only what it stands on. Advent is the season to dig down to the rock: one word heard, and one word done.
From the Fathers
“And the proof of holiness is not to work miracles, but to love our neighbour as ourselves, to think truly of God, and of our neighbour better than of ourselves.”
— St. Gregory the Great, Moralia 20.7, in the Catena Aurea on Matthew 7:21–27
“He then is like unto Christ, who hears Christ’s words, and does them; for he builds on a rock, that is, upon Christ.”
— Pseudo-Chrysostom, in the Catena Aurea on Matthew 7:24–27
Saint of the day
Saint Francis Xavier, Priest (1506–1552), co-founder of the Society of Jesus with St. Ignatius of Loyola. He carried the Gospel to India and to Japan, baptizing thousands, and died on Shangchuan Island off the coast of China while waiting to enter the mainland. Canonized in 1622, he is patron of foreign missions.
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Sources: the day’s readings follow the daily lectionary (USCCB, Lectionary 178). The Gospel text is not reproduced here; read it at the link above. Patristic quotes: Catena Aurea on Matthew 7:21–27, compiled by St. Thomas Aquinas, translated by John Henry Newman (1841, public domain).