MAY 19, 2012 : SATURDAY OF THE SIXTH WEEK OF EASTER

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter
Lectionary: 296

Reading 1 Acts 18:23-28

After staying in Antioch some time,
Paul left and traveled in orderly sequence
through the Galatian country and Phrygia,
bringing strength to all the disciples.

A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria,
an eloquent speaker, arrived in Ephesus.
He was an authority on the Scriptures.
He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and,
with ardent spirit, spoke and taught accurately about Jesus,
although he knew only the baptism of John.
He began to speak boldly in the synagogue;
but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him,
they took him aside
and explained to him the Way of God more accurately.
And when he wanted to cross to Achaia,
the brothers encouraged him
and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him.
After his arrival he gave great assistance
to those who had come to believe through grace.
He vigorously refuted the Jews in public,
establishing from the Scriptures that the Christ is Jesus.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 47:2-3, 8-9, 10

R. (8a) God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All you peoples, clap your hands;
shout to God with cries of gladness.
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
For king of all the earth is God;
sing hymns of praise.
God reigns over the nations,
God sits upon his holy throne.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The princes of the peoples are gathered together
with the people of the God of Abraham.
For God's are the guardians of the earth;
he is supreme.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Jn 16:23b-28

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.
Until now you have not asked anything in my name;
ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

"I have told you this in figures of speech.
The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures
but I will tell you clearly about the Father.
On that day you will ask in my name,
and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.
For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me
and have come to believe that I came from God.
I came from the Father and have come into the world.
Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."

(USCCB)

Meditation: "Ask in Jesus' name, and you will receive, that your joy may be full"

Do you pray with confidence to your heavenly Father? Jesus often taught his disciples by way of illustration or parable. Here he speaks not in "figures" (the same word used for parables), but in plain speech. Jesus revealed to them the hidden treasure of the heavenly kingdom and he taught them how to pray to the Father in his name. Now Jesus opens his heart and speaks in the plainest of language: "The Father himself loves you!" How can the disciples be certain of this? Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, Jesus makes it possible for his disciples to have a new relationship with God as their Father. No one would have dared to call God his Father before this! Because of what Jesus has done for us in offering his life for our redemption we now have a new relationship as the adopted children of God. Paul the Apostles says that "when we cry, ‘Abba! Father!' it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Romans 8:15-16). We can boldly approach God as our Father and ask him for the things we need. In love he bids us to draw near to his throne of grace and mercy. Do you approach the Father with confidence in his love and with expectant faith in his promise to hear your prayers?

"Heavenly Father, your love knows no bounds and your mercies are new every day. Fill me with gratitude for your countless blessings and draw me near to your throne of grace and mercy. Give me confidence and boldness to pray that your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

 (Don Schwager)

God is king of all the earth

They took an interest in him and gave him further instruction about the Way.

The image of the early church as presented in the first reading is one of strong, confident faith and warm friendship: the people are wholehearted in trying to take Jesus and his message seriously.

Jesus, please bless me and my worshipping community with something of this same spirit. Deepen our faith, and may our care for one another proclaim that we follow you not just in words. I know there will be misunderstandings and mistakes, but if we trust that the Spirit is with us we can be sure the Spirit will guide us.

Jesus, in the gospel you stress the need to pray to the Father and to ask for what we need. I pray that we may be blessed with something of that same spirit evident in the early church. 

 THOUGHT FOR TODAY

 SUCCESS
Success is speaking
Words of praise
In cheering other people's ways, In doing just the best you can With every task and every plan. It's silence when your
Speech would hurt,
Politeness when your Neighbour's curt.
It's deafness when the
Scandal flows,
And sympathy with
Others' woes.
It's loyalty when duty calls. It's courage when disaster falls. It's found in laughter
And in song
It's in the silent time of prayer In happiness and in despair. In all of life and nothing less We find the thing
We call success.

From A Canopy of Stars: Some Reflections for the Journey by Fr Christopher Gleeson SJ [David Lovell Publishing 2003]

(Daily Prayer Online)

MINUTE MEDITATIONS 

Transform Your Life
The Word of God draws you and me more fully into the sacramental Church, the apostolic tradition, and the incarnational Christ, found most specifically and undeniably in the Holy Eucharist. Dive into the Bible, and allow the Lord to radically transform your life.
— from Ask the Bible Geek

May 19
St. Theophilus of Corte
(1676-1740)

If we expect saints to do marvelous things continually and to leave us many memorable quotes, we are bound to be disappointed with St. Theophilus. The mystery of God's grace in a person's life, however, has a beauty all its own.

Theophilus was born in Corsica of rich and noble parents. As a young man he entered the Franciscans and soon showed his love for solitude and prayer. After admirably completing his studies, he was ordained and assigned to a retreat house near Subiaco. Inspired by the austere life of the Franciscans there, he founded other such houses in Corsica and Tuscany. Over the years, he became famous for his preaching as well as his missionary efforts.
Though he was always somewhat sickly, Theophilus generously served the needs of God's people in the confessional, in the sickroom and at the graveside. Worn out by his labors, he died on June 17, 1740. He was canonized in 1930.

Comment:

There is a certain dynamism in all the saints that prompts them to find ever more selfless ways of responding to God's grace. As time went on, Theophilus gave more and more singlehearted service to God and to God's sons and daughters. Honoring the saints will make no sense unless we are thus drawn to live as generously as they did. Their holiness can never substitute for our own.

Quote:

Francis of Assisi used to say, "Let us begin, brothers, to serve the Lord God, for up to now we have made little or no progress" (1 Celano, #193).

(www.americancatholic.org)

St. Celestine

When the father of this Italian saint died, his good mother brought up her twelve children well, even though they were very poor. "Oh, if I could only have the joy of seeing one of you become a saint!" she use to say. Once when she asked as usual, "which one of you is going to become a saint?" little Peter (who was to become Pope Celestine) answered with all his heart, "Me, mama! I'll become a saint!" And he did.

When he was twenty, Peter became a hermit and spent his days praying and reading the Holy Bible. If he was not praying or reading, he would copy books or do some hard work so that the devil would not find him doing nothing, and tempt him. Because other hermits kept coming to him and begging him to guide them, he started a new Order.

Peter was an old monk, eighty-four years of age when he was made Pope. It came about in a very unusual way. For two years, there had been no Pope, because the Cardinals could not decide whom to choose. St. Peter sent them a message to decide quickly, for God was not pleased at the long delay. Then and there, they chose the holy old hermit himself! Poor Peter wept when he heard the news, but he sorrowfully accepted and took the name Celestine V.

He was Pope only about five months. Because he was so humble and simple, everyone took advantage of him. He could not say "no" to anyone, and soon matters were in great confusion. At last, the Saint decided that he had better give up his position as Pope. He did so and then threw himself at the feet of the Cardinals for not having been capable of governing the Church. What an impression his humility made on all of them!

St. Celestine hoped to live in one of his monasteries in peace. But the new Pope thought it would be safer to keep him where wicked people could not take advantage of him. The saint was put in a cell and died there. Yet he was cheerful and close to God. "You wanted a cell, Peter," he would repeat to himself, "and a cell you have." His feast day is May 19th.

(from Wikipedia)

Pope Saint Celestine V (1215 – 19 May 1296), born Pietro Angelerio (according to some sources Angelario, Angelieri, Angelliero, or Angeleri), also known as Pietro da Morrone, was elected Pope in the year 1294 in the last non-conclave papal election in the history of the Roman Catholic Church. He is notable for having abdicated the papacy. Despite his brief papacy, Celestine V is recognized by the Church as a saint. No subsequent pope has taken the name Celestine.

(www.catholic.org)

LECTIO: JOHN 16,23B-28

Lectio: 

 Saturday, May 19, 2012

1) Opening prayer
Lord God, merciful Father,
it is hard for us to accept pain,
for we know that you have made us
for happiness and joy.
When suffering challenges us
with a provocative "why me?"
help us to discover the depth
of our inner freedom and love
and of all the faith and loyalty
of which we are capable,
together with, and by the power of,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

2) Gospel Reading - John 16,23b-28
Jesus told to his disciples: “In all truth I tell you, anything you ask from the Father he will grant in my name. Until now you have not asked anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and so your joy will be complete. I have been telling you these things in veiled language. The hour is coming when I shall no longer speak to you in veiled language but tell you about the Father in plain words. When that day comes you will ask in my name; and I do not say that I shall pray to the Father for you, because the Father himself loves you for loving me, and believing that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world and now I am leaving the world to go to the Father.”

3) Reflection
• John 16, 23b: The disciples have full access to the Father. This is the assurance that Jesus gives to his disciples: they can have access to God’s paternity in union with Him. The mediation of Jesus takes the disciples to the Father. It is evident that the role of Jesus is not that of substituting himself to “his own”: He does not assume it by means of a function of intercession, but he unites them to himself, and in communion with Him they present their needs. 
The disciples are certain that Jesus can dispose of the riches of the Father: “”In all truth I tell you, anything you ask from the Father in my name, he will grant it to you” (v.23b). In such a way, it means, in union with Him, the petition becomes effective. The object of any petition to the Father has to be always joined to Jesus, that is to say, to his love and to his commitment to give his life for man (Jn 10, 10). The prayer addressed to the Father, in the name of Jesus, in union with Him (Jn 14, 13; 16, 23), is listened to. 
Until now you have not asked anything in the name of Jesus, but they will be able to do it after his glorification (Jn 14, 13s) when they will receive the Spirit who will fully enlighten them on His identity (Jn 4, 22ff) and will create the union with Him. His own will be able to ask and receive the fullness of joy when they will go from the sensitive vision of Him to that of faith. 
• Jn 16, 24-25: In Jesus the direct contact with the Father. The believers are taken into the relationship between the Son and the Father. In Jn 16, 26 Jesus once again speaks about the link produced by the Spirit and that permits his own to present every petition to the Father in union with Him. That will take place “on that day”. What does this mean: “On that day you will ask?” It is the day when He will come to His own and will communicate the Spirit to them (Jn 20, 19.22). And it is then that the disciples knowing the relationship between Jesus and the Father will know that they will be listened to. It will not be necessary for Jesus to intervene between the Father and the disciples to ask in their behalf, and not because his mediation has ended, but they, having believed in the Incarnation of the Word, and being closely united to Christ, will be loved by the Father as He loves his Son (Jn 17, 23.26). In Jesus the disciples experience the direct contact with the Father. 
• John 16, 26-27: The prayer to the Father. To pray consists, then, to go to the Father through Jesus; to address the Father in the name of Jesus. The expression of Jesus in vv. 26-27: “And I do not say that I shall pray to the Father for you; because the Father himself loves you”, merits to be given special attention. The love of the Father for the disciples is founded on the adherence of “his own” to Jesus on faith in his provenance, that is to say, the acknowledgment of Jesus as gift of the Father. 
After having assimilated the disciples to himself Jesus seems to withdraw from his condition of mediator but in reality he permits that only the Father to take us and to seize us: “Ask and you will receive and so your joy will be complete” (v.24). Inserted into the relationship with the Father through union in Him, our joy is complete and prayer is perfect. God always offers his love to the whole world, but such a love acquires the sense of reciprocity only if man responds. Love is incomplete if it does not become reciprocal: as long as man does not accept it remains in suspense. However, the disciples accept it at the moment in which they love Jesus and thus they render operational the love of the Father. Prayer is this relationship of love. In last instance the history of each one of us is identified with the history of his prayer, even at the moments which do not seem to be such: Longing, yearning is already prayer and in the same way, research, anguish...

4) Personal questions
• Do my personal and community prayer take place in a state of calmness, silence of peace and of great peace? 
• How much effort or commitment do I dedicate to grow in friendship with Jesus? Are you convinced of attaining a real identity through communion with Him and in the love for neighbour?

5) Concluding Prayer
God reigns over the nations, 
seated on his holy throne.
The leaders of the nations rally 
to the people of the God of Abraham. (Ps 47,8-9)

(www.ocarm.org)