Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

August 24, 2026

The following message by Sister Mary Ann Boretti, SNDdeN was provided by the SNDdeN Congregational Mission Office:

Matthew 16: 13-20

As I sit here gazing out at the light gray, part-silvery Atlantic Ocean with only a razor-thin line on the horizon separating the sea and sky, I notice 7 small black dots on the very still sea, early morning fisherfolk quietly gathering food for family and a supply for local restaurants. It is impossible to not be amazed by the expanse and depth of Earth’s oceans, which cover 70 percent of the globe. This vast ecosystem was designed by God to provide sustenance for billions of human beings and fellow creatures.

For the apostles – many of whom spent their lives as fishermen or for St. Paul who traveled the sea on missions, surviving shipwrecks, nothing was more powerful and profound than the sea whose depths were dark and mysterious, and wonderfully abundant.

I believe it is that sense of overwhelming depth that prompted St. Paul’s spontaneous outburst of wonder and praise in our second reading from Romans:

“Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!”

What had Paul experienced that he was impelled to still cry out with such wonder and gratitude even while facing rejection, controversy within the early church, and so many other personal challenges? I sense the answer in part is found in the quiet intimacy of today’s Gospel.