Today is June 13, memorial of St. Anthony of Padua, Priest and Doctor of the Church.
We read at today’s Mass, “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart'” (Mt 5:27-28).
In Matthew 5, Jesus delivers one of his most challenging teachings: “Everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” That’s a hard word, but it’s deeply connected to one of the most beautiful beatitudes: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
Jesus reminds us that purity of heart is not just about external behavior — it’s about the orientation of our desires, the ordering of our love. When our hearts are preoccupied with lesser loves, disordered desires or inordinate attachments, we lose sight of God. Lust, in particular, darkens the intellect and impairs our ability to see clearly. St. Thomas Aquinas put it starkly: Lust makes you stupid. It blinds the heart and dulls our moral compass.
The Sacred Heart of Jesus, by contrast, is a heart perfectly chaste and wholly ordered in love. Jesus was fully human — he had passions and emotions — but his Sacred Heart was never ruled by them. Instead, his desires were always aligned with the will of the Father, marked by purity, by clarity, by perfect love.
Pursuing authentic love
That’s the model we need. In a world so distorted by confusion about love and desire, the Sacred Heart teaches us that true love is noble, self-giving and chaste. And this vision isn’t meant just for priests and religious — it’s meant for every disciple.
Today is also a day to pray for those entering into marriage. June marks the beginning of wedding season, and there are many young couples embarking on the beautiful and challenging vocation of married life. These couples need our prayers so that they might love with hearts like Christ’s: pure, faithful and strong.
I’ll be attending the wedding of my friend Laura tomorrow, and I’m praying for her and her husband-to-be. Maybe there’s a couple you’d like to pray for, too. If so, I invite you to include their names in the comments below — just first names are fine — so we can lift them up in prayer together.
Let us pray,
Almighty ever-living God, who gave Saint Anthony of Padua to your people as an outstanding preacher and an intercessor in their need, grant that, with his assistance, as we follow the teachings of the Christian life, we may know your help in every trial. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
