The Lord has truly risen
Invitation
May I hereby call your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with you the joy of the Gospel.
Everyone, no one except,
can experience that joy by opening his heart
to the healing effect of God’s word.
Available every day.
Consideration
The pleasant experiences in Philippi are now followed by the severe trials that Paul undergoes there with his companions and to which he will later refer in letters. There is something very curious in Acts. Catechesis obviously precedes baptism, cf. the Ethiopian, Cornelius, Lydia, and the prison guard, but this catechesis often seems rather brief. It then limits itself to the core message (kerygma): Believing in Jesus (the risen one) who saves us. In the later centuries, catechumens will have to go through a long preparation to be baptized at the Easter Vigil.
FIRST READING Acts 16, 22-34
Believe in the Lord Jesus, then you and your house will be saved.
From the Acts of the Apostles
In those days the people of Philippi
were running against Paul and Silas,
and the magistrates ordered
to tear their clothes from their bodies
and to scourge them with rods.
After they had received a great number of blows
they were thrown into prison
and ordered the jailer
to guard them closely.
On this emphatic command
he put them in the inner dungeon
and locked their feet in the block.
Around midnight
Paul and Silas were in prayer and singing God’s praises
while the prisoners listened to them.
Suddenly there came a shock so violent
that the prison trembled on its foundations.
Immediately all the doors flew open
and the shackles of all the prisoners were released.
The jailer was startled awake,
and when he saw that the doors of the prison were open
he drew his sword
and wanted to commit suicide,
because he thought the prisoners had escaped.
But Paul cried out in a loud voice:
“Do not harm yourselves,
we are all still here.”
The man now asked for a light,
rushed in
and shudderingly fell on Paul and Silas’ feet.
He led them out and said:
“Gentlemen, what must I do to be saved?”
They answered:
“Believe in the Lord Jesus,
then you and your house will be saved.”
Thereupon they proclaimed the word of the Lord
to him and all his household.
Still, in that nightly hour, he took them
and he washed their wounds.
Immediately afterward he and all his people were baptized.
He brought them to his dwelling
and set before them a meal,
rejoicing because he and all his family now believed in God.
Interludium Ps. 138(137), 1-2a, 2bc-3, 7c-8
Always your outstretched hand is my salvation, Lord.
Alleluia.
You I will praise, Lord, from all my heart,
because Thou hast listened to my prayer.
I sing to Thee and all the heavenly powers
and prostrate myself bowed down to thy sanctuary.
You I praise for Your goodness and Your faithfulness,
for Thy promise Thou hast fulfilled without measure.
Whenever I have cried out to Thee Thou hast always heard me,
Thou hast always given me new courage.
Always Your outstretched hand is my salvation:
The Lord completes for me all that I undertake.
Thy goodness, Lord, endures without end;
forget not the workmanship of thy hands!
Alleluia
Alleluia.
Christ rose from the grave
and became a light to all
whom He redeemed in His blood
Alleluia.
GOSPEL John 16, 5-11
If I do not go, the Helper will not come to you.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
At that time Jesus said to his disciples:
“Now I go to him who sent me,
and none of you ask Me:
Where art thou going?”
Because I have told you this, your heart is full of sorrow.
Yet I tell you the truth:
It is good for you that I am going;
for if I do not go, the Helper will not come to you.
Now that I am going, I will send Him to you.
Once He comes
He will give the world the convincing proof
of what sin, righteousness and judgment are:
Of what sin is because they do not believe in Me;
of what righteousness is,
because I am going to the Father, so that you see Me no more;
of what judgment is, because the prince of this world is judged.”
_________________________________________________________________
Laudato Si
Encyclic by
POPE FRANCIS
On the care of the common home
171. The strategy of selling “emission rights” should not result in a new form of speculation and would not serve to reduce global emissions of polluting gases. This system appears to be a quick and easy solution, giving the appearance of a certain commitment to the environment, but not at all a radical change, in line with circumstances. On the contrary, it may become a ploy that allows it to support the super consumption of some countries and sectors.
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for the weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
________________________________________________________________