Saturday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time (2025)

Let’s start this morning with a trivia question:

What is the most sinful organ in the human body according to the Bible?

Some great guesses!

But here’s the catch — the Bible never actually calls any specific organ the most sinful.

Still, it does highlight one part of the body that, when not guided by God, can cause serious damage to ourselves and others.

What is it?

The tongue.

The Jewish Talmud teaches that among the three most serious sins—murder, idol worship, and adultery—which are forbidden even to save a life, there’s one considered even worse:

Lashon hara, or “an evil tongue.”

It’s so harmful that the Talmud says God Himself declares:

“He and I cannot exist in the same world.”

Why is it so dangerous?

Because we usually don’t see the damage right away.

Words might seem harmless at first, but lies, gossip, slander, and insults can quietly destroy trust, break relationships, and wound hearts.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus warns us clearly about this.

He says:

“Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the Evil One.” (Matthew 5:37)

And just a few chapters later, Jesus says something even stronger:

“On the day of judgment, people will give account for every careless word they speak.” (Matthew 12:36)

That’s powerful.

And the message is simple:

If you wouldn’t say it in front of God, don’t say it at all.

Because whether you realize it or not—you are always in His presence.

So before we speak, we should ask ourselves:

Is this true?

Will it build someone up, or tear them down?

Is this something I’ll be glad I said when I stand before God?

What about people who curse, lie, or blaspheme right in front of us?

There’s a great story from the childhood of St. John Bosco.

When he was about 9 years old, he had a dream: he was in a yard full of boys who were swearing and blaspheming.

Trying to stop them, he started hitting them with his fists.

But then a man in a white cloak, shining with light, stopped him and said:

“You must win these friends not with blows, but with gentleness and love. I want you to teach them the ugliness of sin.”

That’s the key.

When we hear people speaking badly—spreading lies, tearing others down, using God’s name carelessly—we can’t just ignore it.

But we also can’t respond with harshness or pride.

We’re called to speak with charity, with truth, and with love.

Let’s not forget:

Words may seem small, but they’re powerful.

Many of history’s greatest conflicts—including world wars—started not with weapons, but with words: lies, propaganda, manipulation, hatred.

It all began with an untamed tongue.