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
Consideration
Luke may have drawn this story from tradition: the first Gentile is baptised. The Ethiopian Church takes it a step further: the faith reaches Africa before it is brought to Europe. But is it not rather a story for every day? Two people go their separate ways. Suddenly they cross paths, and each time this becomes a God-given opportunity to do good, to speak of God. Sometimes we are Philip, and we speak of God. At other times we are the Ethiopian, and God is spoken to us.
FIRST READING Acts 8, 26-40
If you believe with all your heart,
you may be baptised.
From the Acts of the Apostles
In those days an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip:
“Set out on a journey southwards
and take the road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza:
it is a deserted road.”
He set out on his journey.
At that time an Ethiopian was returning
from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem;
he was a eunuch,
a courtier of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians,
and her chief treasurer.
Seated in his carriage, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
The Spirit spoke to Philip:
“Go to that carriage
and stay close by.”
When Philip had gone to him,
he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah.
He asked him:
“Do you understand what you are reading?”
But the Ethiopian replied:
“How could I,
unless someone explains it to me?”
He invited Philip to get in
and sit with him.
The passage of Scripture he was reading was this:
Like a sheep He was led to the slaughter;
and like a lamb, silent before its shearer,
He did not open His mouth.
Through His humiliation His sentence was carried out.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken from the earth.
Now the eunuch addressed Philip:
“May I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this?
Of himself or of someone else?”
Philip began to speak
and, starting from this passage, he proclaimed Jesus to him.
As they journeyed on, they came to some water,
and the court official said:
“Here is water.
“What is to prevent me from being baptised?”
Philip, however, said:
“If you believe with all your heart,
it is permissible.”
He replied:
“I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
He had the chariot stop;
and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water;
and he baptised him.
When they had come up out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away;
the eunuch saw him no more,
and went on his way rejoicing.
Philip, however, was found in Azotus.
There he travelled about,
preaching the Good News in all the towns,
until he came to Caesarea.
INTERLUDE Ps. 66(65), 8-9, 16-17, 20
Rejoice in God, all the nations of the earth,
sing of the glory of his Name.
or:Alleluia.
Praise our God, all you peoples,
proclaim the fame of his deeds.
He has saved our lives time and again,
and did not let us fall.
Come then, you who fear the Lord, listen to me,
I will tell you what He has done for me.
My mouth has always sought His help,
my tongue has always praised Him.
Praise be to God, He did not reject me,
He did not withhold His mercy from me.
ALLELUIA Rev. 1, 5ab
Alleluia.
Jesus Christ, the faithful witness,
the firstborn from the dead;
You have loved us
and redeemed us from our sins by Your blood.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL John 6, 44-51
I am the living bread that came down from heaven.
From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
John
In those days, Jesus said to the crowd:
“No one can come to me
unless the Father who sent me draws him;
and I will raise him up on the last day.
“It is written in the prophets:
‘And all shall be taught by God.’
“Whoever has heard the Father’s teaching
comes to me.
“Not that anyone has seen the Father:
only the One who is from God has seen the Father.
“Truly, truly, I say to you:
whoever believes has eternal life.
“I am the bread of life.
“Your fathers who ate the manna in the wilderness,
yet died;
but this bread comes down from heaven
so that whoever eats of it shall not die.
“I am the living bread
which has come down from heaven.
“If anyone eats of this bread,
he shall live for ever.
“The bread that I will give
is my flesh,
for the life of the world.”
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Laudato Si
Encyclical of
Pope Francis
On Care for Our Common Home
94. The rich and the poor have equal dignity, because “the Lord has made them all” (Prov. 22:2), “He himself has made both small and great” (Wis. 6:7) and “He causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good” (Matt. 5:45).
This has practical consequences, such as those formulated by the bishops of Paraguay: “Every farmer has the natural right to own a reasonable plot of land on which to build his home,
work to provide for his family and have security regarding his own existence.
This right must be guaranteed, so that its exercise is not merely nominal, but real.
And this means that the farmer,
as well as having the right of ownership, must be able to rely on
technical training, loans, insurance and access to the market”
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 Officialenglish translation
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