April 30, 2026
Thursday of the Fourth Week of Easter
Lectionary: 282
Reading
I
From Paphos, Paul
and his companions
set sail and arrived at Perga in Pamphylia.
But John left them and returned to Jerusalem.
They continued on from Perga and reached Antioch in Pisidia.
On the sabbath they entered into the synagogue and took their seats.
After the reading of the law and the prophets,
the synagogue officials sent word to them,
“My brothers, if one of you has a word of exhortation
for the people, please speak.”
So Paul got up, motioned with his hand, and said,
“Fellow children of Israel and you others who are God-fearing, listen.
The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors
and exalted the people during their sojourn in the land of Egypt.
With uplifted arm he led them out,
and for about forty years he put up with them in the desert.
When he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan,
he gave them their land as an inheritance
at the end of about four hundred and fifty years.
After these things he provided judges up to Samuel the prophet.
Then they asked for a king.
God gave them Saul, son of Kish,
a man from the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
Then he removed him and raised up David as their king;
of him he testified,
I have found David, son of Jesse, a man after my own heart;
he will carry out my every wish.
From this man’s descendants God, according to his promise,
has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus.
John heralded his coming by proclaiming a baptism of repentance
to all the people of Israel;
and as John was completing his course, he would say,
‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he.
Behold, one is coming after me;
I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet.’"
Responsorial
Psalm
Psalm 89:2-3, 21-22, 25 and 27
R.
(2) For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The favors of the LORD I will sing forever;
through all
generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness.
For you have said, “My kindness is established forever”;
in heaven
you have confirmed your faithfulness.
R. For ever I will sing the
goodness of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
“I have found David, my servant;
with my holy
oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my
arm may make him strong.”
R. For ever I will sing the
goodness of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
“My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him,
and through
my name shall his horn be exalted.
He shall say of me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the
Rock, my savior.’”
R. For ever I will sing the
goodness of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
Jesus Christ, you are the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead,
you have loved us and freed us from our sins by your Blood.
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
Gospel
When Jesus had
washed the disciples’ feet, he said to them:
“Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master
nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him.
If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it.
I am not speaking of all of you.
I know those whom I have chosen.
But so that the Scripture might be fulfilled,
The one who ate my food has raised his heel against me.
From now on I am telling you before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe that I AM.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send
receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/043026.cfm
Commentary on Acts
13:13-25
Paul and Barnabas continue their first missionary journey.
From Paphos on the north coast of Cyprus, they set off for Perga, the capital
of the province of Pamphylia. Pamphylia was a coastal province in Asia
Minor, between provinces of Lydia and Cilicia on the south coast of modern
Turkey. It was 8 km (5 miles) inland, and 20 km (12 miles) east of the
important seaport of Attalia.
At this point, John Mark (the cousin of Barnabas), who had
originally been one of the party, returned to Jerusalem, from where they had
originally brought him. Later, this will lead to a dispute between Saul
and Barnabas. Why did John Mark turn back? Various suggestions have
been made, though none of them are certain:
- homesickness
for Jerusalem;
- an
illness of Paul which forced Paul to change his plans and go to Galatia;
- a
change in leadership from Barnabas to Paul;
- or
simply an inability to get on with Paul.
Later, Paul will express his dissatisfaction with John
Mark’s behaviour.
Paul and Barnabas (and note that from now on Paul’s name is
listed first) do not seem to have stopped long in Perga, but continued on to
Antioch in the province of Pisidia (not to be confused with the Antioch in
Syria where they had begun their missionary journey).
Pisidia was a district about 200 km (120 miles) long and 80
km (50 miles) wide, north of Pamphylia. Bandits were known to frequent
the region. Antioch, its capital, had been named after Antiochus, king of
Syria, following the death of Alexander the Great. It was about 185 km
(110 miles) from Perga, and was at the crossroads of busy trading routes. The
city had a large Jewish population. It was a Roman colony, which meant
that a contingent of retired military men also settled there. They were
given free land and made citizens of the city of Rome, with all the
accompanying privileges.
As usual, on arriving in Antioch, the two missionaries went
to the local synagogue on the Sabbath. We saw yesterday Paul’s reasons
for doing this. At the same time, he was not neglecting his mission to
the Gentiles, because Gentiles who believed in the God of the Jews were often
among his audience. It was obvious, too, that the synagogue provided a
ready-made starting point with a building, regular meetings and people who were
familiar with the Scriptures.
After the reading of the Scriptures, as was the custom, they
were invited by the synagogue officials to speak to the assembly (remember too
how Jesus was invited to preach in the synagogue). It was the responsibility of
these officials to call on readers and preachers, to arrange the service and
maintain order. As a rabbi and leading Pharisee, it was natural for Paul to be
invited to give a homily. This gave Paul the opportunity to give an outline of
Jewish salvation history, and to show that Jesus was the expected and promised
saviour of Israel.
As he goes through the great events of the Old Testament,
Paul shows how it was all part of God’s plans for his people. This
discourse is typical of Paul’s preaching to a Jewish assembly. It falls
into two parts, of which we have the first part in today’s reading (ending with
v25). It gives a summary of the history of salvation with an appendix
recalling John the Baptist’s testimony.
Today’s reading ends halfway through Paul’s speech quoting
John the Baptist who said:
…one is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the
strap of the sandals on his feet.
We will have the rest of the discourse in tomorrow’s
reading.
It might be very profitable for each one us to look back
over our own lives and see how God’s providence has been at work at various key
points. Some of these experiences will bring back happy memories—others
may be more painful. Nevertheless, God was present at those times and leading
us on to something higher. How did we respond? And now that we are where we are
in the present time, where is God leading us at this stage of our life?
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Commentary on John
13:16-20
Today we begin the second part of John’s Gospel, sometimes
known as the “Book of Glory” (chaps 13-20), covering Jesus’ passion, death and
resurrection. Today’s passage immediately follows on Jesus’ washing of
his disciples’ feet.
It is in that context that he says,
Very truly, I tell you, slaves are not greater than their
master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them.
With these words Jesus clearly urges his followers to serve
each other in the same way that he, their Lord and Master, served them by the
symbolic act of washing their feet. This was an act only done by slaves
in a household.
Jesus has given service to others a dignity which is totally
independent of the status that society confers on people, dividing them into
served and server. Jesus’ whole raison d’être for being among us was to
serve. He tells his disciples:
If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.
It is a truth which many of us—clergy, religious and
laity—do not always find it easy to practise consistently.
It would not be quite right to see Jesus washing his
disciples’ feet as a humbling of himself. Service in the Gospel is
primarily love in action. Love (Greek, agape) is the desire
for the well-being of the other. That love is actualised by service—acts of
brothers and sisters to and for each other. Status or position does not enter
into it.
At the same time, Jesus gives the first warning that there
is one among them to whom these words will not apply. It is to prepare
them for the prediction about his betrayal by one of the group:
The one who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.
To share bread together was a mark of close fellowship, and
that is a primary meaning of the Eucharist, which is a “breaking of bread”
among the members of a close community. To ‘lift up the heel’ may refer to a
horse kicking, or to the shaking off of dust from one’s feet as a sign of
rejection.
Far from being shocked and disturbed by what is going to
happen, they should be aware that everything that Jesus willingly undergoes in
coming days is clear proof of his divine origin:
I tell you this now, before it occurs, so that when it
does occur you may believe that I am he.
Here is another ‘I AM’ statement acknowledging that he is
one with his Father.
What is going to happen to Jesus is the ultimate act of
service to his brothers and sisters. It is the greatest love that can be
shown. Now his disciples are being asked to hold on to Jesus’ identity as
one with the Father even when they see him die in shame and
disgrace on the cross. But in fact, their faith will be deeply shaken and will
not be confirmed until after Pentecost.
Finally, anyone who accepts a disciple or messenger of
Jesus, accepts both Jesus himself and the Father who sent him. There is a
clear line of unity emanating from the Father going through the Son and passing
through the disciples to others. There is just one mission—to bring about
the Kingdom, the Reign of God in the world. This acceptance is done by our
sharing fully in Jesus’ own attitude of selfless service, which for him
extended even to the giving of his life.
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https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/e1045g/
Thursday,
April 30, 2026
Easter Time
Opening Prayer
All-powerful God,
Your Son Jesus reminds
us today that we are no greater than Your and our servant, Jesus, our Lord and master.
Give us the love and
endurance to serve You and people without waiting for awards or gratitude and
to accept the difficulties and contradictions which are part of the Christian life
and which are normal for followers of Him who bore the cross for us, Jesus Christ
our Lord.
Gospel Reading - John 13: 16-20
When Jesus had washed
the disciples' feet, he said to them: "Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is
greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him. If
you understand this, blessed are you if you do it. I am not speaking of all of you.
I know those whom I have chosen. But so that the Scripture might be fulfilled, The
one who ate my food has raised his heel against me. From now on I am telling you
before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe that I AM. Amen, amen,
I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives
me receives the one who sent me."
Reflection
Beginning today, every
day for several weeks, except on feast days, the Gospel of each day is taken
from the long conversation of Jesus with the disciples during the Last Supper (Jn
13 to 17). In these five chapters which describe the farewell of Jesus, the presence
of those three threads which we had spoken before is seen. Those threads knit and
compose the Gospel of John: the word of Jesus, the word of the community and the
word of the Evangelist who writes the last redaction of the Fourth Gospel. In these
chapters, the three threads are intertwined in such a way that the whole is presented
as a unique fabric or cloth with a rare beauty and inspiration, where
it is difficult to distinguish what is from one and what is from the other, but
where everything is the Word of God for us.
These five
chapters present the conversation which Jesus had with His friends on the evening
when He was arrested and put to death. It was a friendly conversation, which
remained in the memory of the beloved disciple. Jesus seems to want to prolong
this last encounter, this moment of great intimacy. The same thing happens
today. There is conversation and more conversation. There is the superficial
conversation which uses many words and reveals the emptiness of the person, and
there is the conversation which goes to the depth of the heart and remains in the
memory. All of us, once in a while, have these moments of friendly living
together, which expand the heart and constitute strength in moments of difficulty.
They help us to trust and to overcome fear. The five verses of today’s Gospel draw
two conclusions from the washing of the feet (Jn 13: 1-15). They speak
(a)
of service
as the principal characteristic of the followers of Jesus, and
(b)
the identity
of Jesus as the revelation of the Father.
•
John 13:
16-17: The servant is not greater than his master. Jesus has just finished washing
the feet of the disciples. Peter becomes afraid and does not want Jesus to wash
his feet. “If I do not wash you, you can have no share with Me” (Jn 13: 8). It is
enough to wash the feet; there is no need to wash the rest (Jn 13: 10). The symbolic
value of the gesture of the washing of the feet consists in accepting Jesus as Messiah
Servant, who gives Himself for others, and to reject a Messiah as glorious king.
This gift of self, servant of all, is the key to understanding the gesture of
the washing of the feet. To understand this is the root of the happiness of a
person: “Knowing these things, you will be blessed if you put them into
practice”. But there were some people, even among the disciples, who did not accept
Jesus in this role. They did not want to be the servants of others. They likely
wanted a glorious Messiah, king and judge, according to the official ideology. Jesus
says: “I am not speaking about all of you. I know the ones I have chosen. but
what Scripture says must be fulfilled: He who shares My table takes advantage of
Me!” John refers to Judas, whose betrayal will be announced immediately afterward
(Jn 13: 21-30).
•
John 13:
18-20: I tell you this now, before it happens, so that you may believe that I AM
HE. It was on the occasion of the liberation from Egypt at the foot of Mount Sinai
that God revealed His name to Moses: “I am with you!” (Ex 3: 12), “I am who I am”
(Ex 3: 14). “I Am” or “I AM” has sent me to you!” (Ex 3: 14). The name Yahweh
(Ex 3: 15) expresses the absolute certainty of the liberating presence of God
at the side of His people. In many ways and on many occasions this same expression
I Am is used by Jesus (Jn 8: 24; 8: 28; 8: 58; Jn 6:
20; 18: 5, 8; Mk 14: 62; Lk 22: 70). Jesus is the presence of the liberating
face of God in our midst.
Personal Questions
•
The servant
is not greater than his master, nor any messenger greater than the one who sent
him. This is an ultimate statement of humility. As a messenger of
the Gospel in the world, do I take credit for my abilities and gifts which come
from God and claim them as my own, rather than crediting them to God?
•
Jesus knew
how to live together with people who did not accept Him. Do I?
•
How can
I make of my life a permanent service to others?
Concluding Prayer
I shall sing the faithful
love of Yahweh forever, from age to age my lips shall declare Your constancy, for
You have said: love is built to last forever, You have fixed Your constancy firm
in the heavens. (Sal 89: 1-2)
