The disciples were in an enclosed space.
Suddenly, Jesus stood in their midst and they could see that it was He.
Invitation
May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with you the joy of the Gospel.
Everyone, no one excepted,
can experience this joy by opening his heart
to the healing effect of God’s word.
Available every day.
Opening word
Like the disciples of Jesus
we gather here eight days after Easter.
Jesus appears to his disciples and wishes them peace.
Thomas is not there and is in doubt.
He doesn’t know what to make of the whole thing.
Like him, we may doubt.
The Lord meets us today in our being together,
in his Word and in the sharing of the bread and wine, he wants to meet us.
May God’s presence touch our hearts and bring us deep peace.
FIRST READING Acts 2:42-47
All who had accepted the faith were united and possessed everything in common.
From the Acts of the Apostles
The first Christians devoted themselves earnestly
to the teachings of the apostles,
remained faithful to the common life
and diligent in breaking bread and prayer.
Awe shook everyone,
because through the apostles
many miraculous signs were performed.
All who had accepted the faith,
were united and owned everything in common.
They were used to selling their possessions and goods
and distributing them among all according to everyone’s need.
Daily they visited the temple faithfully and in unison,
broke bread in some house,
enjoyed their food together
in joy and simplicity of heart,
praised God and stood in favour with all the people.
And every day the Lord brought more of them together,
who would be saved.
Response Psalm Ps. 1185117), 2-4, 13-15, 22-24
Refrain
Bring thanks to the Lord, for He is gracious.
Repeat it, tribes of Israel:
endless is his mercy!
Repeats it, sons of Aaron:
endless is his mercy!
Repeats it, servants of the Lord:
endless is his mercy !
They thrust me away and struck me down,
but He sustained me.
My strength is the Lord and my praise:
He has brought me salvation !
Now there are cheers of celebration and happiness
in all the tents of the pious.
The stone which the builders despised ,
that has become the cornerstone.
It is the Lord who has done this,
a miracle before our eyes.
This is the day the Lord has made,
we will celebrate it in joy.
SECOND READING 1 Pet 1:3-9
He caused us to be reborn to a life of hope through the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead.
From the first letter of the holy apostle Peter
Dearly beloved,
Blessed is God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who in his great mercy
caused us to be reborn to a life of hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
An imperishable, immortal, untouchable inheritance
is reserved for you in heaven.
In God’s strength secured by faith,
you await salvation, which is already prepared
to be revealed at the end of time.
Then thou shalt rejoice,
even though now, if it must be so,
suffer for a short time
under all kinds of trials.
But these are necessary
to prove the soundness of thy faith,
thy faith,
which is so much more precious than perishable gold
which is nevertheless also purified by fire.
Then, when Jesus Christ reveals Himself,
praise, glory and honour will be your portion.
Him you love without ever having seen Him.
In Him you believe,
though now ye see Him not.
How unspeakable,
how heavenly shall be thy joy,
when ye reach the final goal of your faith,
your salvation.
Verse for the gospel John 20.29
Alleluia.
Because thou hast seen Me, Tomas, you believe,
saith the Lord,
Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.
Alleluia
GOSPEL John 20, 19-31
Eight days later, Jesus came.
From the holy gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
John
On the evening of the first day of the week,
when the doors of the disciples’ abode
were closed for fear of the Jews,
Jesus entered,
stood in their midst and said:
“Peace be with you.”
Having said this
He showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples were filled with joy
when they saw the Lord.
Once again Jesus said to them:
“Peace be unto you.
“As the Father has sent Me ,
so I send you.”
After these words, He blew on them and said:
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
“If ye forgive any man sins ,
then they are forgiven,
and if ye forgive them not
they are not forgiven.”
Tomas, one of the 12, also called Didymus,
however, was not with them when Jesus came.
The other disciples told him:
“We have seen the Lord.”
But he replied:
“Until I see in his hands the mark of the nails ,
and can put my finger in the place of the nails,
and put my hand in his side,
I will certainly not believe.”
Eight days later
his disciples were gathered in the house again,
and now Tomas was there.
Although the doors were closed, Jesus entered
stood in their midst and said:
“Peace be with you.”
Then He said to Tomas:
“Come here with your finger and contemplate my hands.
“Put out your hand and place it in my side
and be no longer disbelieving but believing.”
Then Tomas exclaimed:
“My Lord and my God!”
Then Jesus said to him:
“Because you have seen Me , do you believe?
“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
In the presence of his disciples
Jesus did many other signs
which are not recorded in this book
but these are recorded here that ye may believe
that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God,
and that by believing
you may live in his Name.
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Laudato Si
Encyclic of
POPE FRANCIS
On Care of the Common Home
141. From the other side, economic growth tends to produce automatisms and homogenise them in order to simplify processes and reduce costs. Therefore, an economic ecology is needed, capable of leading us to look at reality from a broad perspective. After all, “environmental protection will have to be a necessary part of the development process and will not be allowed to be viewed in isolation”. But at the same time, the urgency of humanism becomes topical, appealing to the different sectors of knowledge, including economic ones, for a more integral and integrative vision. Today, the analysis of environmental problems cannot be separated from the analysis of the context of man, family, work and city and each person’s relationship with himself, which generates a particular way of relating to the other and the environment. There is an interaction between the ecosystems and the different worlds of social reference and thus it is shown once again that “the whole is more than the part”.
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Translation of the Bible,
©Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap 2004/2007.
Contemplations from Liturgical Suggestions for the Weeks and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
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