Fifth Sunday of Easter

 

Opening words

God calls us together from the hustle and bustle of daily life
and speaks His life-giving Word to us.
He wishes to comfort us, inspire us and give us hope.
At the same time, He invites us to be at His service
and to continue the work of His Son.
Yes, He calls us to do even greater works!
We can only accomplish this if we believe in Jesus
and trust in the nourishment He offers us in this celebration.

FIRST READING                 Acts 6, 1-7

They chose seven men, full of the Holy Spirit.

From the Acts of the Apostles

In those days, as the number of disciples continued to grow,
the Hellenists began to grumble against the Hebrews,
because in the daily distribution of food,
their widows were being overlooked.

The Twelve then called the disciples together and said:
“It is not right for us to neglect the word of God,
in order to attend to the distribution of food.
“Therefore, brothers, look out for seven men from among you,
of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom.
“We will then entrust this task to them,
whilst we ourselves will devote ourselves to prayer
and the ministry of the word.”

This proposal met with the approval of the whole assembly;
and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit,
Philip, Prochorus,
Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas,
and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch.
These were presented to the apostles,
who, after praying, laid their hands on them.

The word of God spread,
and the number of disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly;
a large number of priests also came to believe.

Responsorial  Ps. 33(32), 1-2, 4-5, 18-19

Refrains:
Grant us, Lord, your mercy,
as we place our trust in you.
Rejoice, you who are righteous, in the Lord;
praise is fitting for the upright.
Praise the Lord with the sound of the lyre;
play for him on the harp.

For the word of the Lord is true,
and all his works are faithful.
He loves justice and righteousness;
the earth is full of his steadfast love.

The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his mercy.
He will deliver them from death
and sustain them in famine.

SECOND READING    1 Peter 2, 4–9

You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood.

From the First Letter of Saint Peter the Apostle

Beloved,

Come to the Lord, the living stone,
rejected by men,
but chosen and precious in God’s sight.
Let yourselves also be built up as living stones
into the spiritual temple.
Offer spiritual sacrifices, as a holy priesthood,
which are pleasing to God through Jesus Christ.
That is why it is written in Scripture:
“I am laying in Zion a stone,
a chosen, precious cornerstone.
“And whoever trusts in Him will not be put to shame.”

Precious—that applies to you who believe.
But for the unbelievers it is written:
“The stone the builders rejected,
has become the cornerstone”,
but also:
“A stone they stumble over,
a rock they trip on”.
They stumble because they refuse to obey the word;
and that is precisely what they were destined for.

But you are a chosen race,
a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
God’s own people,
destined to proclaim the glorious deeds
of Him who has called you out of darkness
into His marvellous light.

Gospel Acclamation              John 14, 6

Alleluia.
I am the way, the truth and the life,
says the Lord.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL     John 14, 1-12

I am the way, the truth and the life.

From the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
John

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled.
“You believe in God;
believe also in Me.
“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
Were it not so, I would have told you,
for I am going to prepare a place for you.
“And when I have gone and prepared a place for you,
I will come back to take you to be with Me,
so that you too may be where I am.
“You know where I am going, and you know the way there.”

Thomas said to Him:
“Lord, we do not know where You are going:
how then can we know the way?”

Jesus answered him:
“I am the way, the truth and the life.
“No one comes to the Father except through Me.
“If you knew Me,
you would know my Father too.
“You already know Him and see Him.”

Philip then said:
“Lord, show us the Father; that is enough for us.”
And Jesus replied:
“I have been with you all this time
and you still do not know Me, Philip?
“Whoever sees Me sees the Father.
“How then can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
“Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me?
“The words I speak to you, I do not speak of My own accord,
but it is the Father, abiding in Me, who is doing His work.
“Believe Me:
I am in the Father and the Father is in Me.
“Or do you believe because of the works?
“Truly, truly, I say to you:
Whoever believes in Me,
will also do the works that I do.
“Yes, he will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.”

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Laudato Si

Encyclical of

POPE FRANCIS

On Care for Our Common Home

104. We cannot, however, deny that atomic energy, biotechnology, information technology,
knowledge of our own DNA and other talents we have developed give us a terrifying power.
What is more, they give those who possess the knowledge and, above all,
the economic power to deploy them, an impressive power over the whole
of the human race and the entire world. Never has humanity had such power over itself,
and nothing guarantees that it will use it well, especially when one considers the way
in which it currently exercises this power. It suffices to recall the atomic bombs dropped
in the mid-twentieth century, as well as the extensive
use of technology displayed by Nazism, Communism and other
totalitarian regimes to slaughter millions of people,
without forgetting that today, ever more deadly
instruments are available for warfare. In whose hands does such
power lie, and into whose hands might it fall? It is terribly dangerous that it rests with
a small section of humanity.

To be continued…
Every day at 1 am