19 June 2026 - homily for Friday of the 11th week in Ordinary Time - 11:1-4, 9-18, 20

Juliana Falconieri was born into a noble family in the city of Florence in the year 1270. Her faith was profoundly impacted by her uncle, Alexis Falconieri, one of the Seven Founders of the Servite Order. Her uncle taught her humility, charity, and a profound reverence for the Eucharist. Choosing not to follow the paths of marriage and wealth, Juliana dedicated her life to God and to serving others. Her spiritual journey led her to establish the Servite Third Order of the Servants of Mary. This community focused on caring for the marginalized while maintaining a deep spiritual life centered around the Eucharist. Juliana's devotion to the Eucharist was most profoundly demonstrated at the end of her life in the year 1341. Suffering from a severe illness that prevented her from swallowing, she was unable to receive the Eucharist in the traditional manner. In her final act of devotion, she requested that the Holy Host be placed on her chest. Miraculously, the Host disappeared, and Juliana passed away, her soul united with Jesus. St Juliana Falconieri is a patron saint of bodily ills and of the sick.         

In our first reading from the 2nd book of Kings, the Queen mother kills all but one of her grandchildren who is hidden in an attempt to gain control of the throne after the death of her son. That child goes into hiding in the Temple. With the help of the priest and the guards, justice is brought to Athaliah, the Queen mother, who is put to death, and the temple of the pagan idol Baal is destroyed. We see so much violence and destruction take place in our cities and our communities, and we wonder why such things are tolerated, why we do not take a hard stand for justice and peace and the values of our faith. Some years ago, in a response to a mass shooting that occurred, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago stated that: “In response to hatred, we are called to sow love. In response to violence, peace. And, in response to intolerance, tolerance.”  Indeed, we need to find ways to implement our Gospel values into solutions that will address the violence and terrorism that we hear about each day. We may want tolerance and kindness ourselves when we are hurting or when we are reaching out for help, but how do we show tolerance and kindness to others in those messy, complicated realities that we often face in life?  There are no easy answers to this complicated reality, to be sure. But we are called to work for the values of our faith and to live out those values.