On Thursday, September 24, 2026, the Church observes Thursday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time, Lectionary 452. The daily Mass readings examine the limits of human striving, the brevity of earthly life, and the enduring need for God as refuge. In the Gospel, Herod the tetrarch asks, “Who then is this?” after hearing reports about Jesus. Together, the readings present a central question of Catholic spirituality: whether interest in Christ becomes genuine discipleship and conversion.
The Daily Mass Readings for September 24, 2026
The complete daily Mass readings for September 24, 2026 are:
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First Reading: Ecclesiastes 1:2-11
“Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth… Nothing is new under the sun.” -
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14, 17bc
Response: “In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.” -
Alleluia: John 14:6
“I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord; no one comes to the Father except through me.” -
Gospel: Luke 9:7-9
Herod hears about Jesus, becomes perplexed, and asks, “John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I hear such things?” He continues trying to see Jesus.
The Weariness of Human Striving
Ecclesiastes begins with one of Scripture’s most recognizable declarations: “Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” The word “vanity” refers to vapor or breath: something fleeting, difficult to grasp, and unable to provide permanent security.
Qoheleth examines the recurring patterns of human existence. Generations pass while the earth remains. The sun rises and sets. The wind moves in repeated circuits. Rivers flow toward the sea, yet the sea is never full. Human beings labor, observe, remember, and pursue knowledge, but the cycle continues.
The passage does not deny the value of work, learning, family life, or responsibility. Rather, it identifies the limits of created things when they are treated as ultimate realities. Human achievement cannot provide eternal meaning. Material success cannot prevent death. Recognition cannot secure lasting remembrance. Even knowledge, though valuable, does not eliminate the fundamental questions of existence.
This perspective offers a necessary correction to restless striving. The person who attempts to find complete fulfillment in accomplishments, possessions, reputation, or control eventually encounters their limits. Ecclesiastes directs attention beyond the world “under the sun” toward the God who gives life and meaning to all that exists.
Numbering the Days with Wisdom
Psalm 90 responds to Ecclesiastes by placing human transience within the permanence of God:
“In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.”
The psalm recalls that human beings return to dust, while God remains from age to age. The proper response is not despair but wisdom: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain wisdom of heart.”
To number the days does not mean calculating life merely by its length. It means receiving each day as limited, accountable, and significant before God. A numbered day is not an empty unit in a repetitive cycle. It is an opportunity for prayer, service, repentance, fidelity, and charity.
The daily Mass readings therefore move from the recognition of human limitation to a renewed trust in divine permanence. The same God who remains a refuge in every age gives purpose to ordinary duties and enables human beings to live with greater clarity.
A Catholic daily reflection becomes practical when it examines how time is being used. The day may be directed toward endless distraction, anxious control, or the pursuit of status. It may also become an offering shaped by prayer, work performed honestly, attention to family, care for the vulnerable, and fidelity to Christian responsibilities.
Herod’s Perplexity and the Desire to See Jesus
In the Gospel of Luke, Herod the tetrarch hears about everything taking place through Jesus. Some people say that John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. Others identify Jesus with Elijah or one of the ancient prophets. Herod is perplexed because he knows that he had John beheaded.
Herod’s question is direct: “John I beheaded. Who then is this about whom I hear such things?” The Gospel adds that Herod kept trying to see Jesus.
Herod is not indifferent. He is interested, unsettled, and curious. He wants information about Jesus, but the Gospel does not show him seeking repentance or obedience. His desire to see Christ remains incomplete because it does not become a willingness to change.
This distinction remains important for every daily devotional and examination of conscience. Curiosity about Christ can involve reading Scripture, listening to a homily, studying Church teaching, or following religious news. These activities can be valuable, but they do not by themselves constitute conversion.
Conversion requires a response to the person of Jesus Christ. It involves allowing Christ’s teaching to judge personal choices, surrendering sinful attachments, seeking reconciliation, and accepting the demands of discipleship. Herod wants to see Jesus, but the narrative does not indicate that he wants Jesus to transform his life.
The Gospel therefore presents two different forms of seeking:
- Curiosity asks what is unusual or interesting about Jesus.
- Faith asks what Jesus requires and then responds.
- Interest gathers information.
- Conversion changes conduct.
- Observation keeps Christ at a distance.
- Discipleship follows Christ in daily life.
“Who Then Is This?”- The Question of Every Disciple
Herod’s question is also the question every disciple must answer: “Who then is this?”
Jesus cannot be reduced to a teacher, prophet, social reformer, or historical figure. The Alleluia verse from John’s Gospel identifies him as “the way and the truth and the life.” The Church confesses Jesus as the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and the living Lord who calls every person to communion with the Father.
The answer must be more than verbal agreement. The identity of Jesus becomes decisive when it shapes the way a person understands time, suffering, work, relationships, sin, death, and hope. If Christ is truly the way, then discipleship requires a direction. If Christ is the truth, then personal preferences cannot define reality completely. If Christ is the life, then no created possession can serve as the final source of security.
The question may be considered in concrete terms:
- Does Christ receive the first place in daily prayer?
- Do the demands of the Gospel influence moral decisions?
- Does the Christian life include regular participation in the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation?
- Does faith lead to service of the Church and care for those in need?
- Does the search for Christ lead to a more faithful and generous life?
The Eucharist: The Place Where the Church Sees and Receives Christ
The desire to see Jesus finds its fullest answer in the Eucharist. At every valid celebration of the Mass, the Church receives Christ truly present under the appearances of bread and wine. The Eucharist is not merely a reminder of Jesus or a symbolic gathering around his teachings. It is the sacramental presence of the crucified and risen Lord.
The Eucharist places the question “Who then is this?” at the center of Christian worship. The one received in Holy Communion is Jesus Christ, the same Lord proclaimed in the Gospel and offered for the salvation of the world.
In the Eucharist, the Church learns that seeing Christ involves more than physical observation. Faith recognizes the Lord through the proclamation of Scripture, the breaking of the bread, and the communion of the faithful. The Eucharist also sends the Church into the world with a responsibility to live what has been received.
The Society of St. Peter the Apostle and Indigenous Clergy
The question of who Christ is is closely connected to the Church’s responsibility to proclaim him in every culture and community. The Society of St. Peter the Apostle supports the formation of local clergy and religious in mission territories.
The Society was founded in 1889 through the collaboration of Bishop Jules-Alphonse Cousin, MEP, Vicar Apostolic of Southern Japan and later Bishop of Nagasaki, and Stéphanie and Jeanne Bigard, a mother and daughter in France who supported missionary vocations. Bishop Cousin had encountered young men with priestly vocations but lacked the resources necessary to receive and educate them.
The Society works with local bishops and Christian communities to support sustainable, locally led Church growth. Its assistance includes:
- Ordinary subsidies for the daily needs and formation of seminarians, novices, and religious sisters.
- Extraordinary subsidies for constructing and renovating seminaries and novitiates.
- Self-sustainability projects that help mission institutions develop long-term financial and practical stability.
- Mass intentions that provide assistance to seminary formators and missionary priests.
- Scholarships for future seminary educators and those receiving advanced theological and pastoral formation.
This work strengthens the capacity of local Churches to evangelize, celebrate the sacraments, educate the faithful, and serve their communities through indigenous clergy and religious leaders.
Prayerful Resolution
- The reader will spend several minutes considering the question, “Who then is this?” and will answer it through a renewed profession of faith in Jesus Christ.
- The reader will identify one area of life in which human achievement, comfort, or control has replaced trust in God.
- The reader will “number” the day by setting aside a specific time for Scripture and prayer.
- The reader will participate attentively in the next celebration of Mass and receive the Eucharist with renewed awareness of Christ’s real presence.
- The reader will take one concrete step from curiosity toward conversion, such as seeking reconciliation, repairing a relationship, or correcting a persistent fault.
- The reader will learn more about the formation of indigenous clergy through the Society of St. Peter the Apostle.
Support the Formation of Indigenous Clergy
The Society of St. Peter the Apostle provides a direct means of supporting seminarians, religious novices, sisters, seminary formators, and mission institutions. Information about financial support is available through the Society’s official giving page.
Those who wish to arrange a Mass intention may use the Request a Mass page.
Contact Information
The Pontifical Mission Societies
70 West 36th Street, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10018, USA
Phone: 212-563-8700
Email: contact@pontificalmissions.org
Additional information is available through the Pontifical Mission Societies website and the Contact Us page.