Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

A HUMBLE KING

Like a tonal center in music, the note to which we keep returning in today’s readings is humility. We wait in joyful expectation for the coming of our Lord as King. But what we are told to expect and rejoice over is a meek and humble king, riding on an ass. Not horses or chariots of the great and mighty, but a humble beast carries the Ruler whose dominion stretches “from the River to the ends of the earth” (Zechariah 9:10). This King comes to banish the tools of the warrior and bring peace. No wonder that a weary world rejoices and gives thanks to God!

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Masses for the Week

• Sun. July 5 9:00 AM & 12:00 PM — Spanish
• Mon. July 6 8:30 AM
• Weds. July 8 8:30 AM & 6:30 PM
• Thurs. July 9 8:30 AM
• Fri. July 10 8:30 AM
• Sat. July 11 8:30 AM & 5:30 PM
• Sun. July 12 9:00 AM & 12:00 PM — Spanish

Announcements

Welcome / New Parishioners

Welcome to all our new parishioners! Please fill out a registration form found in the hall or vestibule, and put it in the collection basket. You can also register online. If you would like to receive Sunday envelopes and/or the Tennessee Register, please contact the office.

Mass Intention Forms

Mass Intention forms can be found in the vestibule and hall. If you fill one out, please put it in the collection basket.

Adoration

Adoration is the first Saturday of the month at 8:00 AM.

St. John’s Enrichment Co-op

We are excited to announce St. John’s Enrichment Co-op, a homeschool community for K-8 (nursery included for younger siblings). At St. John’s Enrichment Co-op we exist to create a community of saints through enrichment by forming our children in faith and virtue. We will meet on the 1st and 3rd Friday of each month starting August 2026 for morning Mass and enrichment classes (including art, science, Liturgy/Saints, and life skills). Registration is open until July 1, 2026. We are looking for more families to join, as well as adult volunteers for the school year. To register, volunteer, or for more info contact the parish office at (931) 359-5017 or speak with Raqueli DeWitt.

Kroger Community Rewards Program

The Kroger Community Rewards Program is an opportunity to raise funds for St. John by shopping at Kroger and swiping your Shopper’s card or entering your phone number. To begin this process go to https://www.Kroger.com/ and sign in or create a digital account. If you already have a digital account or Shopper’s card, simply link your shopper’s card to your account. If you have any questions call 1-800-576-4377.

Kroger Gift Cards

If you would like to help those in our community in need of food or gas, please pick up a Kroger gift card and put it in the collection basket on Sunday.

Online Giving

Here is the established QR code for the parish if you would like to make your donation online.

Today’s Readings

First Reading: Rejoice heartily, O Jerusalem! For see, your savior comes (Zechariah 9:9-10).

Psalm: I will praise your name for ever, my king and my God (Psalm 145).

Second Reading: The one who raised Christ from death will give life to your mortal bodies also (Romans 8:9, 11-13).

Gospel: Come, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:25- 30).

Readings for the Week

Monday: Gn 28:10-22a; Ps 91:1-4, 14-15ab; Mt 9:18-26

Tuesday: Gn 32:23-33; Ps 17:1b, 2-3, 6-7ab, 8b, 15; Mt 9:32-38

Wednesday: Gn 41:55-57; 42:5-7a, 17-24a; Ps 33:2-3, 10-11, 18-19; Mt 10:1-7

Thursday: Gn 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5; Ps 105:16-21; Mt 10:7-15

Friday: Gn 46:1-7, 28-30; Ps 37:3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40; Mt 10:16-23

Saturday: Gn 49:29-32; 50:15-26a; Ps 105:1-4, 6-7; Mt 10:24-33

Sunday: Is 55:10-11; Ps 65:10-14; Rom 8:18-23; Mt 13:1-23 [1-9]

Reflecting on the Word

“I don’t want to. It would stink!” I couldn’t understand why this little one was starting to get upset. It took me a minute to realize that the child had misunderstood “yoke” as “yolk.” I agreed with him and assured him that Jesus was not talking about an egg but rather a piece of wood that was part of a plow. Although this is not typically a passage that we reflect on with young children, it so happened that this little one was accompanying his older sibling, and partially participated in our reflection. It was funny, but it made me think about how each one of us receives the words of scripture from where we are in our life and context. Hence the misunderstandings and conflicts. The lesson in today’s Gospel and first reading is humility, which is a perfect antidote to conflict. The point that Jesus was making with the yoke analogy was that the complicated requirements of religious observance kept the people from fully experiencing God as love. However, that yoke has now become heavy with the accrual of complicated rules and observances over a history of two thousand years.

Children can show us how to divest ourselves of the encrustations of the centuries and let us go to the very core of our faith, where we can find rest in the arms of our Good Shepherd. We don’t need the peripherals of our faith in order to remain in the covenant with God. May we enjoy the rest and joy that Jesus so deeply desires for us.

Excerpted from Living the Word

Mission Statement

We, the members of Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church, recognize and respect our diverse and multicultural character. By the grace of God, we will nurture our spiritual community through prayer, service, and example to become one family in Christ.

Adoration

8:00 AM — 1st Saturday of the month

7:00 PM — 1st & 3rd Friday (Spanish)