Invitation
May I draw your attention to:
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation aims to share with you the joy of the Gospel. Everyone, without exception,
can experience that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day
Introduction
Believing that the Lord has risen from the dead does not come naturally.
The disciples gather behind closed doors.
They share their doubts and concerns with one another.
Suddenly, they recognise the risen Lord in their midst.
He grants them his peace,
fills them with the power of the Spirit
and sends them out as witnesses of hope.
Thomas is the first with whom they share their joy,
but they cannot force him to believe.
The disciples can only bear witness with enthusiasm,
but ultimately it is the living Lord
who brings to completion the work they have begun.
FIRST READING Acts 2, 42–47
All who had accepted the faith were of one heart and mind and held all things in common.
From the Acts of the Apostles
The first Christians devoted themselves earnestly
to the apostles’ teaching,
remained faithful to the communal life,
and were diligent in the breaking of bread and in prayer.
Awe came upon everyone,
for through the apostles,
many miraculous signs were performed.
All who had embraced the faith,
were of one heart and mind and held all things in common.
They used to sell their possessions and goods,
and distribute the proceeds to all, according to each one’s need.
Day by day, with one accord, they continued to meet in the temple,
breaking bread from house to house,
and eating their food together
with gladness and simplicity of heart,
praising God and finding favour with all the people.
And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Responsorial Ps . 118:117, 2–4, 13–15, 22–24
Refrain
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is gracious.
Repeat this, tribes of Israel:
his mercy endures for ever!
Repeat this, sons of Aaron:
his mercy endures for ever!
Repeat this, servants of the Lord:
his mercy endures for ever!
They pushed me away and struck me down,
but He has upheld me.
The Lord is my strength and my song:
He has brought me salvation!
Now there is a shout of joy and gladness
in all the tents of the faithful.
The stone which the builders rejected,
has become the cornerstone.
It is the Lord who has done this,
a wonder before our eyes.
This is the day the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
SECOND READING 1 Peter 1, 3-9
He has brought us to new life through hope by the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead.
From the First Letter of Saint Peter the Apostle
Beloved,
Blessed be God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who in his great mercy
has brought us to new birth into a life of hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
An imperishable, undefiled, and unfading inheritance
is reserved for you in heaven.
Kept safe by faith in God’s power,
you are waiting for the salvation that is ready and waiting
to be revealed at the end of time.
Then you will rejoice,
even though now, if it must be so,
you have to suffer for a little while
under all kinds of trials.
But these are necessary;
to prove the genuineness of your faith,
which is so much more precious than perishable gold,
which is itself tested by fire.
Then, when Jesus Christ is revealed,
praise, glory and honour will be yours.
You love Him without ever having seen Him.
In Him you believe,
though even now you do not see Him.
How inexpressible,
how heavenly will your joy be,
when you reach the final goal of your faith,
your salvation.
Gospel Acclamation John 20, 29
Alleluia.
Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you believe,
says 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’ dwelling
were locked for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came in,
stood among them 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 with you.
“As the Father has sent Me,
so I send you.”
After these words, He breathed on them and said:
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
“If you forgive anyone’s sins,
they are forgiven;
and if you do not forgive them,
they are not forgiven.”
Thomas, one of the Twelve, also called Didymus,
was not with them when Jesus came.
The other disciples told him:
“We have seen the Lord.”
But he replied:
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands,
and put my finger into the place of the nails,
and put my hand into his side,
I will certainly not believe.”
Eight days later,
his disciples were gathered in the house again,
and this time Thomas was with them.
Although the doors were locked, Jesus came in,
stood among them and said:
“Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas:
“Come here with your finger and see my hands.
“Reach out your hand and place it in my side;
and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”
Then Thomas 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 performed many other signs
which are not recorded in this book,
but these have been recorded so that you may believe
that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God,
and so that by believing
you may have life in his Name.
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Laudato Si
Encyclical of
Pope Francis
On Care for Our Common Home
The message of every creature in the harmony of
the whole of creation
84. To insist that human beings are the image of God should not
make us forget that every creature has a role and none
is superfluous. The entire material universe is a language of God’s love,
of his boundless affection for us. Soil, water, mountains, everything is a
caress from God. The story of our personal friendship with God
always unfolds in a geographical space that takes on a very personal
meaning, and each of us keeps in our memory places whose
remembrance does us a world of good. Anyone who grew up amongst the mountains or
sat by a stream as a child to drink, or who played in a square
in their neighbourhood, feels, when they return to those places,
called to rediscover their own identity.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
The Bible text in this edition is taken fromThe New Bible Translation,
©Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap 2004/2007.
Reflections from Liturgical Suggestions for Weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation