Thursday of the Third Week of Easter
Lectionary: 276
Lectionary: 276
The angel of the
Lord spoke to Philip,
“Get up and head south on the road
that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.”
So he got up and set out.
Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch,
a court official of the Candace,
that is, the queen of the Ethiopians,
in charge of her entire treasury,
who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home.
Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit said to Philip,
“Go and join up with that chariot.”
Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said,
“Do you understand what you are reading?”
He replied,
“How can I, unless someone instructs me?”
So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.
This was the Scripture passage he was reading:
Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will tell of his posterity?
For his life is taken from the earth.
Then the eunuch said to Philip in reply,
“I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this?
About himself, or about someone else?”
Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage,
he proclaimed Jesus to him.
As they traveled along the road
they came to some water,
and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water.
What is to prevent my being baptized?”
Then he ordered the chariot to stop,
and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water,
and he baptized him.
When they came out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away,
and the eunuch saw him no more,
but continued on his way rejoicing.
Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news
to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
“Get up and head south on the road
that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.”
So he got up and set out.
Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch,
a court official of the Candace,
that is, the queen of the Ethiopians,
in charge of her entire treasury,
who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home.
Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit said to Philip,
“Go and join up with that chariot.”
Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said,
“Do you understand what you are reading?”
He replied,
“How can I, unless someone instructs me?”
So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him.
This was the Scripture passage he was reading:
Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will tell of his posterity?
For his life is taken from the earth.
Then the eunuch said to Philip in reply,
“I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this?
About himself, or about someone else?”
Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage,
he proclaimed Jesus to him.
As they traveled along the road
they came to some water,
and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water.
What is to prevent my being baptized?”
Then he ordered the chariot to stop,
and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water,
and he baptized him.
When they came out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away,
and the eunuch saw him no more,
but continued on his way rejoicing.
Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news
to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
Responsorial PsalmPS 66:8-9, 16-17, 20
R. (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless our God, you peoples,
loudly sound his praise;
He has given life to our souls,
and has not let our feet slip.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words,
praise was on the tip of my tongue.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed be God who refused me not
my prayer or his kindness!
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless our God, you peoples,
loudly sound his praise;
He has given life to our souls,
and has not let our feet slip.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words,
praise was on the tip of my tongue.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed be God who refused me not
my prayer or his kindness!
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
AlleluiaJN 6:51
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the Lord;
whoever eats this bread will live forever.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the Lord;
whoever eats this bread will live forever.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelJN 6:44-51
Jesus said to the
crowds:
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him,
and I will raise him on the last day.
It is written in the prophets:
They shall all be taught by God.
Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me.
Not that anyone has seen the Father
except the one who is from God;
he has seen the Father.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life.
Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died;
this is the bread that comes down from heaven
so that one may eat it and not die.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever;
and the bread that I will give
is my Flesh for the life of the world.”
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him,
and I will raise him on the last day.
It is written in the prophets:
They shall all be taught by God.
Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me.
Not that anyone has seen the Father
except the one who is from God;
he has seen the Father.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life.
Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died;
this is the bread that comes down from heaven
so that one may eat it and not die.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever;
and the bread that I will give
is my Flesh for the life of the world.”
Meditation: "If anyone eats of this bread, he
will live for ever"
God offers his people abundant life, but we can
miss it. What is the bread of life which Jesus offers? It is
first of all the life of God himself - life which sustains us not only now in
this age but also in the age to come. The Rabbis said that the
generation in the wilderness have no part in the life to come. In the
Book of Numbers it is recorded that the people who refused to brave the dangers
of the promised land were condemned to wander in the wilderness until they
died. The Rabbis believed that the father who missed the promised land also
missed the life to come. God sustained the Israelites in the wilderness with
manna from heaven. This bread foreshadowed the true heavenly bread which Jesus
would offer his followers.
Jesus makes a claim only God can make: He is the true
bread of heaven that can satisfy the deepest hunger we experience. The
manna from heaven prefigured the superabundance of the unique bread of the
Eucharist or Lord's Supper which Jesus gave to his disciples on the eve of his
sacrifice. The manna in the wilderness sustained the Israelites on their
journey to the Promised Land. It could not produce eternal life for the
Israelites. The bread which Jesus offers his disciples sustains us not only on
our journey to the heavenly paradise, it gives us the abundant supernatural
life of God which sustains us for all eternity.
When we receive from the Lord's table we unite
ourselves to Jesus Christ, who makes us sharers in his body and blood and
partakers of his divine life. Ignatius of Antioch (35-107 A.D.) calls it the "one bread that provides the medicine of
immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that makes us live for ever
in Jesus Christ" (Ad
Eph. 20,2). This
supernatural food is healing for both body and soul and strength for our
journey heavenward.
Jesus offers us the abundant supernatural life
of heaven itself - but we can miss it or even refuse it. To refuse Jesus is to
refuse eternal life, unending life with the Heavenly Father. To accept Jesus as
the bread of heaven is not only life and spiritual nourishment
for this world but glory in the world to come. When you approach the Table of
the Lord, what do you expect to receive? Healing, pardon, comfort, and rest for
your soul? The Lord has much more for us, more than we can ask or imagine. The
principal fruit of receiving the Eucharist or Lord's Supper is an intimate
union with Christ. As bodily nourishment restores lost strength, so the
Eucharist strengthens us in charity and enables us to break with disordered
attachments to creatures and to be more firmly rooted in the love of Christ. Do
you hunger for the "bread of life"?
"Lord Jesus, you are the living
bread which sustains me in this life. May I always hunger for the bread
which comes from heaven and find in it the nourishment and strength I
need to love and serve you wholeheartedly. May I always live in the joy, peace,
and unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, both now and in the age to
come."
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Bread for Eternity |
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April 23, 2015.
Thursday of the Third Week of Easter
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By Father Daniel Ray, LC John 6: 44-51 Jesus said to the crowds: "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world." Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe that you are present here and now as I turn to you in prayer. I trust and have confidence in your desire to give me every grace I need to receive today. Thank you for your love, thank you for your immense generosity toward me. I give you my life and my love in return. Petition: Lord Jesus, help me value more the gift of yourself in the Eucharist. 1. A Gift from the Loving Father: The Father is the one who sent him and who will draw souls to him. “No one can come to me unless the Father draw him.” So, those individuals who heard Christ’s words and were drawn to him that day were doing so because of a gift of faith from the Father. If we today have faith in Christ, it also is a gift from the Father, who wants to draw us to his Son. If we have doubts or weakness in faith, we should ask the Father to draw us nearer to his Son and to help us believe with our whole heart and mind. 2. The Word Was Made Flesh: Christ’s birth took place in the town of Bethlehem, which in Hebrew (bêth-lehem), means "house of bread." He was also laid in a manger, where food for animals would normally be placed. Before becoming bread which would be our food, Christ first became man. Merely giving us some specially blessed bread would not be nearly as significant as giving himself. That is how God always loves: by giving himself completely and without reserve. 3. His Flesh Was Made Bread: The Gospel accounts of Christ multiplying the loaves report he did so out of compassion for the crowd: "I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way" (Matthew 15:32). This same compassion moves him to give himself as our bread in the Eucharist. He does not want us to die for lack of spiritual nourishment. Christ—in the greatest gesture of humility—became man like us, the same in every way except sin. But in an even greater gesture of humility, he descended further still to become our spiritual food. Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, how can I not trust in you? You have already become human just like me. Then you descend to an even humbler state of service to become food for my soul. Help me to receive you in the Eucharist with gratitude, fully aware of your loving presence. Resolution: I will start preparing my heart today to attend Mass this Sunday and receive Christ lovingly in Communion. |
THURSDAY, APRIL 23, JOHN 6:44-51
Easter Weekday
(Acts 8:26-40; Psalm 66)
Easter Weekday
(Acts 8:26-40; Psalm 66)
KEY VERSE: "This is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die" (v 50).
TO READ: On the Exodus journey through the wilderness, the people grumbled against God and Moses for having brought them into the desert only to die of starvation. Nevertheless, Moses fed them with the "manna" that God provided (Ex 16:2, 15). Jesus also fed the hungry people in the wilderness with miraculous loaves, and just like the people of the Exodus, they murmured against him when he told them that he was the "bread that came down from heaven" (v 41). The bread in the wilderness was only a foretaste of the true bread that came from God. The Israelites ate the manna in the desert, but they all died. Jesus was the life-giving bread who eternally sustained those who believed in him. Whoever listens to God's truth are drawn to Jesus who is Divine Wisdom incarnate.
TO REFLECT: Do I help those who are physically and spiritually hungry?
TO RESPOND: Risen Lord, feed me with your Eucharistic presence.
Optional Memorial of George, martyr
The best known story attached to St. George is the Golden Legend in which he fought a dragon that lived in a lake near Silena, Libya. Whole armies had gone up against this fierce creature, and had gone down in painful defeat. George crossed himself, rode to battle against the serpent, and killed it with a single blow with his lance. Then, with a magnificent sermon, he converted the locals. Given a large reward by the king, George distributed it to the poor. Due to his chivalrous behavior, devotion to St. George became widespread in Europe. In the 15th century his feast day was as popular as Christmas. Many of his areas of patronage have to do with George's life as a knight on horseback. The celebrated Knights of the Garter are actually Knights of the Order of Saint George. The shrine built for his relics at Lydda, Palestine was a popular point of pilgrimage for centuries. He is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers.
The best known story attached to St. George is the Golden Legend in which he fought a dragon that lived in a lake near Silena, Libya. Whole armies had gone up against this fierce creature, and had gone down in painful defeat. George crossed himself, rode to battle against the serpent, and killed it with a single blow with his lance. Then, with a magnificent sermon, he converted the locals. Given a large reward by the king, George distributed it to the poor. Due to his chivalrous behavior, devotion to St. George became widespread in Europe. In the 15th century his feast day was as popular as Christmas. Many of his areas of patronage have to do with George's life as a knight on horseback. The celebrated Knights of the Garter are actually Knights of the Order of Saint George. The shrine built for his relics at Lydda, Palestine was a popular point of pilgrimage for centuries. He is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers.
Optional Memorial of Adalbert, bishop and
martyr
Adalbert was the Bishop of Prague in 983. A friend of Emperor Otto III, he encouraged the evangelization of the Magyars, and worked on it with St. Astricus. Opposed by the nobility in Prague, he withdrew to Rome and became a Benedictine. Pope John XV sent him back. Adalbert founded the monastery of Brevnov. Again he met with opposition from the nobility, and returned to Rome. There being no hope of his working in Prague, he was allowed to evangelize in Pomerania, Poland, Prussia, Hungary, and Russia. He and his fellow missionaries were martyred by Prussians near Koenigsberg or Danzig at the instigation of a pagan priest.
Thursday 23 April 2015
St George; St Adalbert.
Acts 8:26-40. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy—Ps 65(66):8-9, 16-17, 20. John 6:44-51.
Acts 8:26-40. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy—Ps 65(66):8-9, 16-17, 20. John 6:44-51.
In most hearts, there is a
chamber waiting for a guest (Nathaniel Hawthorne).
The Ethiopian was obviously
a searcher, having been to Jerusalem on pilgrimage. He was puzzling over the
passage from Isaiah when Philip came to him. What a marvellous encounter for
them both! Philip finds a genuine seeker; the eunuch finds a guide—one who
knows from experience how to explain clearly the confusion of the Scripture.
Philip had travelled with
Jesus and knew the suffering servant was his Master; he had learned well from
him and was steeped in the Good News. His explanation to the eunuch filled the
empty, searching heart with the guest he sought, and he asked for baptism.
Many RCIA catechumens asked
for baptism a few weeks ago, so we pray for them and continue to support them
on their journey of faith.
MINUTE MEDITATIONS
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Invitation to Grow
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Do not grieve over the temptations you suffer. When the Lord
intends to bestow a particular virtue on us, He often permits us first to be
tempted by the opposite vice. Therefore, look upon every temptation as an
invitation to grow in a particular virtue and a promise by God that you will be
successful, if only you stand fast. —St. Philip Neri
April
23
St. George
d. c. 303
St. George
d. c. 303
If Mary Magdalene was the victim of misunderstanding, George is
the object of a vast amount of imagination. There is every reason to believe
that he was a real martyr who suffered at Lydda in Palestine, probably before
the time of Constantine. The Church adheres to his memory, but not to the
legends surrounding his life.
That he
was willing to pay the supreme price to follow Christ is what the Church
believes. And it is enough.
The story
of George's slaying the dragon, rescuing the king's daughter and converting
Libya is a 12th-century Italian fable. George was a favorite patron saint of
crusaders, as well as of Eastern soldiers in earlier times. He is a patron
saint of England, Portugal, Germany, Aragon, Catalonia, Genoa and Venice.
Comment:
Human nature seems to crave more than cold historical data. Americans have Washington and Lincoln, but we somehow need Paul Bunyan, too. The life of St. Francis of Assisi is inspiring enough, but for centuries the Italians have found his spirit in the legends of the Fioretti, too. Santa Claus is the popular extension of the spirit of St. Nicholas. The legends about St. George are part of this yearning. Both fact and legend are human ways of illumining the mysterious truth about the One who alone is holy.
Human nature seems to crave more than cold historical data. Americans have Washington and Lincoln, but we somehow need Paul Bunyan, too. The life of St. Francis of Assisi is inspiring enough, but for centuries the Italians have found his spirit in the legends of the Fioretti, too. Santa Claus is the popular extension of the spirit of St. Nicholas. The legends about St. George are part of this yearning. Both fact and legend are human ways of illumining the mysterious truth about the One who alone is holy.
Quote:
"When we look at the lives of those who have faithfully followed Christ, we are inspired with a new reason for seeking the city which is to come" (Vatican II,Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 50).
"When we look at the lives of those who have faithfully followed Christ, we are inspired with a new reason for seeking the city which is to come" (Vatican II,Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 50).
Patron Saint of:
Boy Scouts
England
Germany
Portugal
Soldiers
Boy Scouts
England
Germany
Portugal
Soldiers
LECTIO DIVINA:
JOHN 6,44-51
Lectio:
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Easter Time
1)
OPENING PRAYER
Father,
you draw all people to you
who believe in your Son Jesus Christ.
Faith, Lord, faith it is that we need.
Give it to us, we pray you,
a living faith that we can encounter today
Jesus Christ, your Son,
in your word that you speak to us
in the bread that you offer us,
and in the food that we can give
and can be to one another,
in Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit
now and for ever.
you draw all people to you
who believe in your Son Jesus Christ.
Faith, Lord, faith it is that we need.
Give it to us, we pray you,
a living faith that we can encounter today
Jesus Christ, your Son,
in your word that you speak to us
in the bread that you offer us,
and in the food that we can give
and can be to one another,
in Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord,
who lives with you and the Holy Spirit
now and for ever.
2)
GOSPEL READING - JOHN 6,44-51
'No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me,
and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets:
They will all be taught by God; everyone who has listened to the Father, and
learnt from him, comes to me. Not that anybody has seen the Father, except him
who has his being from God: he has seen the Father. In all truth I tell you,
everyone who believes has eternal life.
I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate manna in the desert and
they are dead; but this is the bread which comes down from heaven, so that a
person may eat it and not die. I am the living bread which has come down from
heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I
shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world.'
3)
REFLECTION
• Up until now the dialogue had been between Jesus and the
people. From now on, the Jewish leaders begin to enter into conversation and
the discussion becomes tenser.
• John 6, 44-46: Anyone who opens himself to God accepts Jesus
and his proposal. The conversation becomes more demanding. Now, it is the Jews,
the leaders of the people who complain: “Surely, this is Jesus, son of Joseph,
whose father and mother we know. How can he say: I have come down from heaven?”
(Jn 6, 42). They thought they knew the things of God. But, in reality, they did
not know them. If we were truly open and faithful to God, we would feel within
us the impulse of God which attracts us toward Jesus and we would recognize
that Jesus comes from God, because it is written in the Prophets: “They will
all be taught by God; everyone who has listened to the Father and has learnt
from him, comes to me.
• John 6, 47-50: Your fathers ate manna in the desert and they
are dead. In the celebration of the Passover, the Jews recalled the bread of
the desert. Jesus helps them to take a step ahead. Anyone who celebrates the
Passover, recalling only the bread that the fathers ate in the past, will die
as all of them did! The true sense of the Passover is not to recall the manna
which falls from heaven, but to accept Jesus, the new Bread of Life and to
follow the way which he has indicated. It is no longer a question of eating the
meat of the paschal lamb, but rather of eating the flesh of Jesus, so that the
one who eats it will not die, but will have eternal life!
• John 6, 51: Anyone who eats of this bread will live for ever.
And Jesus ends saying: “I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.
If anyone eats of this bread he will live for ever and the bread that I shall
give is my flesh for the life of the world.” Instead of the manna and the
paschal lamb of the first exodus, we are invited to eat the new manna and the
new paschal lamb that was sacrificed on the Cross for the life of all.
• The new Exodus. The multiplication of the loaves takes place
close to the Passover (Jn 6, 4). The feast of the Passover was the prodigious
souvenir of the Exodus, the liberation of the People from the clutches of
Pharaoh. The whole episode which is narrated in chapter 6 of the Gospel of John
has a parallel in the episodes related to the feast of the Passover, whether as
liberation from Egypt or with the journey of the people in the desert in search
of the Promised Land. The discourse of the Bread of Life, in the Synagogue of
Capernaum, is related to chapter 16 of the Book of Exodus which speaks about
the Manna. It is worth while to read all of chapter 16 of Exodus. In perceiving
the difficulties of the people in the desert we can understand better the
teaching of Jesus here in chapter 6 of the Gospel of John. For example, when
Jesus speaks of a “food which does not perish, which endures for eternal life”
(Jn 6, 27) he is recalling the manna which produced worms and became rotten (Ex
16, 20) Like when the Jews “complained” (Jn 6, 41), they do the same thing as
the Israelites in the desert, when they doubted of the presence of God in their
midst during their journey across the desert (Ex 16, 2; 17, 3; Nb 11, 1). The
lack of food made the people doubt about God and they began to complain against
Moses and against God. Here also, the Jews doubt about God’s presence in Jesus
of Nazareth and begin to complain (Jn 6, 41-42).
4)
PERSONAL QUESTIONS
• Does the Eucharist help me to live in a permanent state of
Exodus? Am I succeeding?
• Anyone who is open to truth finds the response in Jesus.
Today, many people withdraw and do not find any response. Whose fault is it? Is
it of the persons who know how to listen? Or is it the fault of us, Christians,
who do not know how to present the Gospel as a message of life?
5)
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Come and listen, all who fear God,
while I tell what he has done for me.
To him I cried aloud,
high praise was on my tongue. (Ps 66,16-17)
while I tell what he has done for me.
To him I cried aloud,
high praise was on my tongue. (Ps 66,16-17)
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