A Lectio Divina Approach to the Sunday & Weekday Liturgy
BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD (Series 22, n.24)
Easter Week 7: May 12-18, 2024
(The pastoral tool BREAKING THE BREAD OF THE WORD: A LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY & WEEKDAY LITURGY includes a prayerful study of the Sunday liturgy from various perspectives. For the Lectio Divina on the liturgy of the past week: May 5-11, 2024 please go to ARCHIVES Series 21 and click on “Easter Week 6”.
Below is a LECTIO DIVINA APPROACH TO THE SUNDAY - WEEKDAY LITURGY: May 12-18, 2024.)
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May 12, 2024: THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD, YEAR B
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Was Taken Up into Heaven”
(Where the Seventh Sunday of Easter is celebrated, cf. “PDDM Internet Library” for the Lectio Divina of that Sunday’s Mass Readings.)
WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY
N.B. Today is MOTHER’S DAY (USA).
BIBLICAL READINGS
Acts 1:1-11 // Eph 4:1-13 or Eph 1:17-23 // Mk 16:15-20
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Mk 16:15-20): “The Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven and too his seat at the right hand of God.”
One of my most unforgettable experiences was my visit to Chennai, India when I made a pilgrimage to St. Thomas Cathedral where, according to local tradition, the body of the apostle Thomas is buried. I also visited the cave perched on a desolate mountain where he made water gush forth to slake the thirst of the people to whom he had been preaching the Good News of our salvation in Jesus Christ. Our guide drew water from the well-spring of St. Thomas and offered it to the pilgrims to drink. The limpid water tasted fresh and sweet. Indeed, Christianity had reached India during the apostolic times, with St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew sowing the seeds of faith, in obedience to the apostolic mandate of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven. Today’s Syro-Malabar Christian communities in India, who trace their origin to the preaching of St. Thomas, testify to the extent of the zeal and ardor of the first apostles commissioned by Jesus Christ, ascended into heaven, to go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature (cf. Mk 16:15).
Today we commemorate the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven. Christians have always believed that Jesus, having completed his earthly mission of salvation, returned to God who has sent him, and now takes up his continuing saving role as priest, prophet and king. According to Mk 16:19: “The Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God.” The image of Jesus “sitting at the right hand of God” is not a static symbol, but an indication of power and authority. It symbolizes Jesus’ close relationship to God and his role as God’s agent. Harold Buetow comments: “When he was visibly present on earth, Jesus was limited by time and space. By his ascension, Jesus is no longer limited to the dimensions of earth. Jesus’ enthronement signifies that Jesus in his humanity has now reached a position of equality and association with the Father where all God’s power can act through him.” The ascension of Jesus into heaven, “who took his seat at the right hand of God” is a celebration of Christ’s glorified humanity.
The feast of the Lord’s ascension, moreover, is a celebration of his new and enduring presence. No longer present in his earthly reality, Jesus – in his glorified form - is present to us profoundly and intimately by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is present in the living Word proclaimed, prayed and lived. He is present in the worshipping assembly gathered in his name. He is present in the Eucharist and in the other sacraments. He is with us in the saving work of bringing the dispersed sheep into his fold. Through his ascension, Jesus ceases to be present to the Church in one way in order to be present in another. Aelred Rossner remarks: “We celebrate today the Risen Lord’s appearance among us in a new and wonderful way, far beyond the power of the human eye, but well within the loving grasp of the believing heart.”
The continuing presence of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven, in the lives of his apostles and disciples, confirms them in the missionary mandate: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). Today’s Gospel passage is derived from what is called the “longer ending” (Mk 16:9-20). The original form of Mark’s Gospel almost certainly ended at the empty tomb (v. 8). We read in the Collegeville Biblical Commentary: “Although the Church has recognized the added endings as worthy of inclusion in the inspired text, none of them is as inspiring and involving as Mark’s own. Mark’s abrupt ending leaves it up to his readers to complete his Gospel in their lives.” The canonical finale (vv. 9-20) that has been added includes the appearances of the Risen Jesus to Mary Magdalene and to the disciples. The Collegeville Biblical Commentary further explains: “These visions were meant to inspire the early missionary Church to go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature (v. 15). The Church’s missionaries had nothing to fear, because the ascended Lord (v. 19) was with them in their preaching (v. 20) and would confirm their message with special signs of his protection and power (vv. 17-18).” Indeed, our celebration of the Lord’s ascension is a call to actively spread the Gospel. The “Gospel” to be proclaimed to every creature refers not to a doctrine, but to the very person of Jesus. With the Risen Lord Jesus as the content of the proclamation, the apostles go everywhere promptly and unhesitatingly.
B. First Reading (Acts 1:1-11): “As the Apostles were looking on, Jesus was lifted up.”
The witnessing Church in mission is powered by an energy that comes from on high in accordance with the Risen Lord’s assurance: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit, the vitalizing power of the Church’s mission, is the ultimate and enduring manifestation of the risen Lord’s presence in the world. In the Acts of the Apostles, the evangelist Luke presents the Spirit uniquely as the divine energy communicated to the witnesses of Christ in view of the tasks they are to perform. The believer whom the Risen One encounters lives henceforth by his Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the source of various charisms that build up the Church and the principle of continued existence in the sacred era of the Church’s mission.
The following modern day account illustrates the continuing Church witnessing, powered by the Holy Spirit, the Easter gift (cf. “The Odd Man Out of the Victims” in Alive! April 2015, p. 2)
A video released by ISIS in mid-February showed 21 men being beheaded on a Mediterranean beach in Libya. Most of the men were Coptic Christian workers from Egypt, and the killers made it clear that they were being killed because of their faith in Christ.
Some of the men could be heard murmuring the name of Jesus as they faced death. But it has now emerged that one of the men was nit Egyptian, but from Chad. And according to Ahram-Canadian News the darker skinned man had not been a Christian. But the faith and courage of his fellow hostages inspired him to accept faith in Jesus.
When the terrorists called on him to reject Jesus Christ as God, looking at his Christian friends he replied, “Their God is my God”. So the murderers beheaded him also.
Thirteen of the men came from a farming village about 150 miles south of Cairo. In comforting the families the local priest told them “the Bible tells us that the life we live is but numbered days that will quickly pass”. It is what happens after death that really matters in the long run.
The older brother of two of the men, Bashir Estefanous Kamel, 32, said that the first reaction was sadness at being separated from family members. But, he added, “I felt peace knowing that they died as martyrs in the name of Christ”.
C. Second Reading (Eph 4:1-13): “To the extent of full stature of Christ.”
According to St. Paul, the Church, whose head is the One seated at the right hand in the heavens, is the fullness of Jesus (Eph 1:23). Just as Jesus is the fullness of the Father, so the Church is the fullness of Jesus. Each one of us, as members of the Church, is called to attain the full stature of Christ (Eph 4:13) and his fullness. Jean Corbon comments: “The ascension is progressive until we all form the perfect Man fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself. The movement of the ascension will be complete only when all the members of his body have been drawn to the Father and brought to life by his Spirit … The ascension is the activation of the paschal energy of Christ who fills all things. It is the ever-new moment of his coming.” Indeed, the feast of the Lord’s ascension into heaven is an invitation to attain personally to the full stature of Christ and a renewed mandate to proclaim the Gospel to every creature, so as to achieve the cosmic fullness willed by God and hoped for by us.
The following family experience gives insight into what it means growing into the full stature of Christ (cf. Scott Walker in Daily Guideposts 2014, p. 126).
How do you express gratitude to someone who has shaped your life? I pondered this recently when I attended the seventy-fifth wedding anniversary of my uncle Clarence and aunt Shirley Walker.
My grandfather Eddie Walker was a successful rancher on the high plains of eastern Colorado. One day in 1933, he asked my father, Al. to ride with him to pick up supplies. Walking into a store, my grandfather suddenly collapsed. His stomach ulcer had perforated in an age prior to antibiotics. Within three days. he was dead, leaving his wife, Callie, a sixteen-year-old son, Clarence, and my fourteen-year-old father to run a ranch at the height of the Great Depression. It seemed an impossible challenge.
However, Clarence dropped out of high school and poured his energy into saving the ranch, insisting that my father remain in school and help only as time permitted. Later, Clarence encouraged him to attend college. Over the next eight years, my father earned a PhD in theology and became a minister, teacher, and missionary.
As I flew to Colorado, I promised to say thank you. Clarence and Shirley are frail and live in an assisted-living facility. Both are deaf, and there would be few private moments for conversation. However, the time came on the evening following the anniversary celebration. Sitting quietly by Clarence’s bed, I placed my hand on his and quietly said a simple prayer of thanksgiving for a good and loving man. I know he heard me and God did too.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
Do I believe that Jesus’ ascension doesn’t mean that he has departed from us and that he is truly present to us in a new and wonderful way through the power of the Holy Spirit? What do I do concretely to respond to the missionary mandate of the Risen Lord ascended into heaven: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature”? Does the quality of my service promote a person’s growth in the full stature of Christ and help achieve his fullness in all creation?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
(From the Liturgy of the Hours, Feast of the Lord’s Ascension)
Lord Jesus, King of glory,
you were offered once as the victim for sins,
and ascended to the right hand of the Father:
make perfect for all time those whom you sanctify.
Eternal Priest and minister of the new Covenant,
you live forever to make intercession for us:
save the people that pray to you.
You showed yourself alive after your passion
and appeared to the disciples for forty days:
confirm our faith today.
Today you promised the Spirit to your apostles,
to make them your witnesses to the ends of the earth:
by the power of the Spirit strengthen our own witness.
You live and reign,
forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“They went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them.” (Mk 16:20)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Using a map or a globe, offer a prayer for the Church’s mission to spread the Good News to all creatures and do what you can to promote this Christian mandate. You may view a good film on Christians who have fully responded to the Christian mandate of proclaiming the Gospel, e.g. “The Inn of the Sixth Happiness”, “Damien, the Leper”, etc.
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May 13, 2024: MONDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7); OUR LADY OF FATIMA
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Teaches Us to Take Courage … His Holy Spirit Came Upon Them”
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 19:1-8 // Jn 16:29-33
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 16:29-33): “Take courage, I have conquered the world.”
In the Gospel reading (Jn 16:29-33), we hear that the disciples unwisely presume they have totally understood Jesus. The Divine Master exposes their misunderstanding and confronts their presumption by predicting their failure to stand by him to the end. The disciples are to desert him in the hour of trial. But Jesus will not be alone because God the Father is with him. During the paschal “hour” the disciples will scatter. Jesus thus exhorts them to take courage for he has already overcome the world. Their victory is assured in his own victory. His saving love triumphs over our weaknesses, trials and sufferings. In Jesus we find peace and strength to endure.
The following incident narrated by Archbishop Van Thuan shows how Christian disciples of today take courage in the Lord and experience the Easter peace he brings (cf. Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan, Testimony of Hope, Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 2000, p. 65-66).
The Catholics in the prison of Phu Khanh had secretly brought in a copy of the New Testament. They divided the book into small pieces and distributed these pieces among the Catholics who began to learn the passage by heart. Since the cells had floors of sand, when they heard a guard’s footsteps, they would hide the Word of God by burying it in the floor.
In the darkness of night, the prisoners would recite in turn the part of the New Testament each had already memorized. It was an impressive and moving experience to hear the Word of God proclaimed in the silence and darkness of the prison … to be in the presence of Jesus the “living Gospel” spoken by the prisoners with all strength of soul; to hear the priestly prayer and the passion of Christ …
The non-Christians also listened with respect and admiration to what they called the “Sacred Word”. Many said they felt the Word of God to be “spirit and life”.
B. First Reading (Acts 19:1-8): “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?”
In the reading (Acts 19:1-8), we hear that Saint Paul returns to Ephesus, led by the Spirit, and meets “believers who were baptized with the baptism of John”. Their faith is inchoative and they have not even heard that there is the Holy Spirit. True to his vocation, Paul takes every opportunity to proclaim the radical character of Christian faith to all peoples of the earth. He reminds them that John the Baptist urged people to believe in Jesus, “the one who is to come after him”. The Ephesian “believers” open their hearts fully to the apostle’s Gospel proclamation and are baptized “in the name of the Lord Jesus”. Paul lays his hands upon them and they receive the gifts of tongues and prophecy. Like the “twelve” apostles that are the nucleus of the Christian community in Jerusalem, there are about “twelve men” who constitute the nucleus of the Christian community in Ephesus.
The role of the apostle Paul and the vitality of the Church in Ephesus give insight into the role of Pope Francis and the vitality of the Church in Korea today (cf. “Church in Korea” in Alive! April 2014, p. 4).
Pope Francis will visit South Korea from August 14th till the 19th to participate in a Catholic youth festival, preside over a beatification ceremony for 124 Korean martyrs, and bring a message of peace to the war-divided peninsula.
South Korea is a truly incredible place for the Catholic Faith. Consider the statistics.
Every parish has from 200 to 400 baptisms of converts from Buddhism each year. Most of the converts are city dwellers. Each year there are 130-150 new priests, one for every 1,110 of the baptized.
In 2009, the number of people baptized reached 157,000 and 149 priests were ordained, 21 more than in 2008. More than two-thirds of the priests are under the age of 40.
Over the past 10 years the Catholic Church in Korea has gone from three to five million faithful. In 1960, there were 250 Korean priests; today there are 5,000.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. When we experience trials and adversities, pain and suffering, do we take courage in the Lord?
2. What role does Saint Paul play in leading the “believers” in Ephesus closer to Christ? What role do you play to help increase the vitality and deepen the faith of your community?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Lord Jesus,
you are our Savior.
You are victorious over the unbelieving world
and in your decisive victory on the cross
our own victory over sin and death is assured.
We take courage in you.
Help us to challenge the desperate and the hopeless
with your words: “Take courage. I have conquered the world.”
Give us the grace to promote the growth and vitality of the Church.
You live and reign, now and forever.
Amen. Alleluia.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.
“Take courage. I have conquered the world.” (Jn 16:33) // “The Holy Spirit came upon them.” (Acts 19:6)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Resolve to share the Good News with a people that, in this secularized world, tend to live without faith and hope. Pray for the pastoral ministry of the Pope in the Church and in the world.
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May 14, 2024: TUESDAY – SAINT MATTHIAS, APOSTLE
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Chooses Matthias as His Apostle”
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 1:15-17, 20-26 // Jn 15:9-17
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 15:9-17): “I shall no longer call you servants. I call you my friends.”
As Christian disciples, we nurture the Easter blessings we receive from God the Father. We are called to live a life of loving obedience to his saving will in imitation of Jesus, his Son-Servant. At the level of service, we are “slaves” since we follow the way of the Servant of Yahweh. Serving with love is deeply rewarding and exalting. At the level of intimacy, we are not “slaves” “because a slave does not know what his master is doing” (Jn 15:15), but “friends”. Our Lord Jesus Christ tells us: “I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father” (Jn 15:15).
The love of Christ moves us to love one another. The fact that God loves us into a new existence in Jesus and that we are no longer slaves but friends, empowers us to follow Christ’s command: “Love one another as I love you” (Jn 15: 12). Christian love, moreover, involves a mandate to go and bear lasting fruit. Attached to the life-giving vine, Jesus Christ, we are impelled to go to the ends of the earth, proclaim the Gospel and bear abiding fruits of conversion and faith.
Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Matthias. A witness of Christ’s public ministry and resurrection, he replaced Judas Iscariot as one of the twelve apostles. The eleven apostles felt unworthy to choose the “twelfth” of their own accord and prayed to God for guidance. The divine sign was revealed at the casting of lots. St. Matthias is privileged to be chosen by God to share in the apostolic mission of giving witness to Christ’s resurrection. In his personal relationship and service, St. Matthias is a friend-slave of Jesus. According to one tradition, he preached the Gospel in Jerusalem, Egypt and Ethiopia and suffered martyrdom in Colchis (modern Georgia) at the hands of “meat eaters” or cannibals. Another tradition says he died by stoning in Jerusalem. Through his Gospel service and martyrdom, the apostle St. Matthias became totally configured to Christ, our Lord and Savior.
B. First Reading (Acts 1:15-17, 20-26): “The Lot fell to Matthias and he was numbered with the eleven Apostles.”
Today’s First Reading (Acts 1:15-17, 20-26) depicts the early life of the Church after the Lord’s Ascension and before the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The election of Judas’ replacement to fill up the college of apostles is prepared by the ministry of prayer of the apostles, of Mary and other women, and of Jesus’ relatives. They are gathered in the upper room in continuous prayer.
The rules for Judas’ replacement require choosing “someone” who has been with the apostles during Jesus’ public ministry, beginning from the baptism of John until the day on which Jesus was taken up to heaven. Above all, this “someone” is one who has been a witness to Christ’s resurrection. Only “someone” who knew Jesus before his death could witness that the risen Jesus is the same one who died. The group of apostles, reduced to eleven by the betrayal and death of Judas, feels it necessary to restore its full complement of twelve. Guided by the scriptural directive, May another take his office (Ps 109:8), the early Christian community of “about one hundred and twenty persons”, a symbolic allusion to the restored twelve tribes of Israel (12 tribes multiplied by ten – the perfect number), gathers in one place to select a successor to Judas Iscariot. The symbolism of “twelve” apostles is vital for it indicates the new representatives of the house of Israel (cf. Lk 22:30), and evokes the twelve foundation stones of the “new Jerusalem” (cf. Rev 21:14). The “twelve” are tasked to lead the community of about 120 disciples (12 x 10), a symbolic number representing the core of the Spirit-filled Israel at Pentecost.
As Jesus prayed to the Father for guidance in his messianic ministry, and as he especially prayed for his disciples when the time of sacrifice was drawing near, the early Christian community prays for guidance in selecting Judas’ successor in the apostolic ministry. They propose two candidates: Joseph called “Barsabbas”, also known as “Justus”, and Matthias. The community agrees that these two men fulfill the requirements for joining the Twelve, but the final choice among the two is left to God. The discernment for the person chosen by God for the apostolic ministry is made in prayer and in great trust of God’s omnipotent wisdom. After praying, they draw lots, and the lot falls upon Matthias who is listed as one of the twelve apostles. The appointment of Matthias to the apostolic college underlines that one does not arrogate the ministry to oneself: God and the Church call one to it.
God continues to choose ministers who will serve him according to his heart. The following article gives insight into some factors that favor response to the divine call to ministry (cf. “US Villages Produce Record Number of Priests and Nuns” in Alive! December 2014, p. 2).
The New York Times recently did a story on two Catholic villages in Michigan which have given the Church an unusual number of priests. The piece was triggered by the ordination of Todd and Gary Koenigsknecht, 26-year-old identical twins, the previous Saturday.
The twins, from a family of 10, grew up on an organic dairy farm, had no TV in their home and prayed the family rosary each night. Their younger brother, aged 19, is also studying to be a priest.
“The community naturally fosters priestly vocations”, said Fr. Todd. “It’s in the air.” For the Times, “this rural patch of Clinton County offers a case study in the science and mystery of the call to priesthood.” It reported that the twins’ village, Fowler, with a population of 1,224, had produced 22 priests, with the same number coming from Westphalia, a village just eight miles away, with a population of 938.
The houses in the two villages, according to the Times, are orderly, with Virgin Mary statues in front yards, American flags on porches and unlocked doors. “Faith is the center of life; those who live here say: Everyone is Catholic; everyone is related and everyone shows up at Mass. The youth groups are active. “Nearly all the students attending the prom in the villages begin the festivities by attending a regularly scheduled 4:30 p.m. Mass, dressed in their party attire.”
A positive attitude towards vocations is also important. Agnes, the new priests’ mother, explained: “They’re not ours to keep. How can you hold them back?”
Meanwhile, the parish has a weekly prayer hour dedicated to religious vocations and an annual fundraiser to help cover tuition; it contributed more than $10,000 to each Koenigsknecht twin. “If the families are open to God’s calling them, then the seminarian will come”, said Jerry Wohlfert, a shop-owner in Fowler. For such tiny places, the villages have also produced a remarkable number of vocations among young women, 37 from Westphalia and 43 from Fowler. (…)
One boy told the New York Times he had felt attracted to the priesthood watching his parish priest. “I was observing how close he gets to God, and I thought it would be so cool if I could become that close to God”, he said.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. What is our relationship with Jesus Christ at the level of intimacy and at the level of service? Do we endeavor to go out and bear lasting fruits?
2. Do we fully trust in the Lord God who knows the hearts of all? Do we allow God to work freely in the acts of discernment that we make day by day? Do we ask his guiding help in making decisions that will have an impact on our community and the people around us?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
(Cf. Opening Prayer – Mass of the Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle)
Father,
you called Saint Matthias to share in the mission of the apostles.
By the help of his prayers
may we receive with joy the love you share with us
and be counted among those you have chosen.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Amen.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“The lot fell upon Matthias, and he was counted with the Eleven Apostles.” (Acts 1:26) //“I have called you friends.” (Jn 15:15)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Spend some quiet moments in church, preferably before the Blessed Sacrament, to deepen your spirit of listening and intimacy with the Divine Master. Look around and see how you could share the joy of the Gospel with the people around you.
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May 15, 2024: WEDNESDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7); SAINT ISIDORE (USA)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Prays Father, Consecrate Them in the Truth … He Builds the Church Up”
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 20:28-38 // Jn 17:11b-19
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 17:11b-19): “May they be one just as we are one.”
Jesus’ perfect love for the disciples and his deep concern for their fate after his departure are contained in the Priestly Prayer. In today’s Gospel (Jn 17:11b-19), he prays the Father to take care of his disciples that they may be delivered from the evil one. The evil one is real and will tempt them to lose their faith in Jesus when faced with trials and persecutions. Hence, they will need the divine protection in a special way. Jesus thus asks the Father to consecrate the disciples in the “truth”. By the power of the Holy Spirit, they will be confirmed in their faith. They will put their trust in the word of God given to them by Jesus and imitate his sacrificial and healing love on the cross. Consecrated and strengthened, the disciples will be able to continue through time and space the saving mission of Jesus.
The following article, written by Amy Goodman and circulated on the Internet, gives us insight into the life of one who is “consecrated in the truth”.
The body bag marked “Victim 0001” on Sept. 11, 2001, contained the corpse of Father Mychal Judge, a Catholic chaplain with the Fire Department of New York. When he heard about the disaster at the World Trade Center, he donned his Catholic collar and firefighter garb and raced downtown. He saw people jump to their deaths to avoid the inferno more than 1,000 feet above. At 9:59 a.m., the South Tower collapsed, and the force and debris from that mass of steel, concrete, glass and humanity as it hit the ground is likely what killed Father Mychal. His was the first recorded death from the attacks that morning. His life’s work should be central to the 10th anniversary commemorations of the Sept. 11 attacks: peace, tolerance and reconciliation.
One of the first vigils held this year was in honor of Father Mychal. About 300 people gathered Sunday in front of the St. Francis Church where Judge lived and worked, just down the block from the Ladder 24/Engine 1 Firehouse. The march followed Father Mychal’s final path to Ground Zero. The man behind the annual remembrance is Steven McDonald, the former New York police detective who was shot in 1986. He was questioning 15-year-old Shavod Jones in Central Park. Jones shot McDonald, leaving him paralyzed for life.
I caught up with McDonald as he led the procession, rolling down Seventh Avenue in his wheelchair. He talked about what Father Mychal meant to him: “He, more than anything ... reaffirmed my faith in God, and that it was important to me to forgive the boy who shot me. And I’m alive today because of that.” Father Mychal had managed to get Jones on the phone with McDonald and his wife. He apologized from prison. Taking the lessons of reconciliation, McDonald joined Judge in a trip to Northern Ireland, where they worked together to try to help end the violence there.
B. First Reading (Acts 20:28-38): “I commend you to God who has the power to build you up and give you inheritance.”
In today’s First Reading (Acts 20:28-38) we continue to hear the apostle Paul’s Farewell Discourse to the leaders of the Church in Ephesus. He charges them to watch over themselves as well as over the flock which the Holy Spirit has entrusted to their care. He bids them to be watchful and to be faithful to the true message about Jesus. Finally, Saint Paul commends the elders to God. Indeed, the word of God is the font of blessing and grace for the building up of the Church. The apostle Paul is truly a model for what a Christian bishop or presbyter should be. Like Paul, who feels that death is imminent, they must care for the flock generously and perseveringly to the point of sacrifice.
The spirit of intimate communion with God and pastoral care can be verified in the life of the Sicilian priest Father Pino Puglisi (cf. Katia Di Roucco, “Father Pino Puglisi Embodies in Himself the Word and Death of Christ”, in Il Rosario e la Nuova Pompei, September/October 2012, p. 8-11).
Giuseppe Puglisi was born on September 15, 1937, in Palermo, in the infamous neighborhood of “Brancaccio”, characterized by poverty, high moral degradation and organized crime. He himself was of humble origins, the son of a cobbler and a dressmaker. He was ordained a priest on July 2, 1960, and on the stampita-souvenir he condenses his program: “O Lord, that I be a valuable tool in your hands for the salvation of the world.” Since then his life has been a continuous commitment: collaborator of various parishes, chaplain of the Roosevelt orphanage, parish priest in Godrano, a village ravaged by a fierce battle between Mafia families, where Don Pino can bring reconciliation and peace by practicing the power of forgiveness, addressing himself especially to the wives, the mothers, to the children. (…)
He is interested in the social problems of the most marginalized districts of the city. He follows closely the proceedings of Vatican II and spreads quickly its documents among the faithful, with special regard to the renewal of liturgy, the role of the laity, the values of ecumenism and of the local churches. His desire was always that of embodying the message of Jesus Christ in the territory.
In 1990, he was entrusted with the parish of St. Gaetano, within the Brancaccio quarter where he himself was born. That area was then controlled by the Mafia. (…) A few months after taking over in the parish of St. Gaetano, Don Pino opened the Our Father center entrusted to the Sisters of the Poor, whose primary purpose is that of human promotion and evangelization … When going against the tide, Don Pino was aware that he was being required the sacrifice of his life to follow Christ. (…)
The Mafia decided to eliminate him. And in 1993, on the day of his 56th birthday, he was murdered with a bullet in his nape … His pastoral work was the only motive for the killing. For this, many voices were raised to seek the recognition of martyrdom and, five years after his assassination, Cardinal Salvatore De Giorgi established the ecclesiastical Court to start the investigation that ended in 2001, and the dossier is now under review by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in the Vatican.
Here is the motivation of the crime in the written judgment of the Court of Assises: “The figure of a priest emerges who worked tirelessly in the territory, out of the shade of the bell-tower … The work of Don Puglisi became a snare and a thorn on the side of the emerging criminal group that dominated the area, because it was an element of subversion in the context of the conservative, oppressive Mafia order which had been imposed in the area, against which the priest appeared to be one of the most tenacious and brave opponents. All projects and initiatives started by the priest, which have been reported in detail by his collaborators and people close to him, crown the figure of an austere and rigorous religious man, not a contemplative one but fully inserted in the social field, immersed in the difficult neighborhood reality, lucid and disenchanted but not bitter and disillusioned, defeated or weakened by threats, intimidations and open conflicts with the men of the local Mafia establishment. Don Puglisi had chosen not only to “reconstruct” the spiritual and religious sentiments of his faithful, but also siding, concretely, without veils of ambiguity and complicit silence, on the part of the weak and marginalized.”
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. What is the implication for you of Christ’s prayer, “Father, consecrate them in the truth”?
2. Do we realize that God wants us to participate in the pastoral care of the Church? What do we do to help the ordained ministers in their special ministry to God’s flock?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
O loving Jesus,
you prayed to the Father
to guard us from the evil one.
You begged him to consecrate us in the truth.
We believe in the power of your prayer.
We trust in the love that triumphs over all.
In the hour of trial,
we cling to your life-giving word.
In adversities and persecution,
we find strength in divine protection.
Help us to live fully
our consecration and mission in today’s world.
Help us to shepherd and nourish your flock,
and to lay down our life for your sheep.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen. Alleluia.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“Consecrate them in the truth.” (Jn 17:17) // “I commend you to God and to that gracious word of his that can build you up.” (Acts 20:32)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
When faced with trials and difficulties, be strengthened by Christ’s prayer of intercession for all his disciples. By your words and deeds of charity, endeavor to be a vital part of the Church’s pastoral care.
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May 16, 2024: THURSDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Prays Father, May They All Be One … His Apostle Paul Bears Witness to Him in Rome”
(N.B. Where the Ascension is celebrated today, cf. “PDDM Internet Library” for the Lectio Divina of the Mass Readings of that feast.)
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 22:30; 23:6-11 // Jn 17:20-26
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 17:20-26): “May they all be one.”
In the Gospel (Jn 17:20-26) we hear that after praying for his first disciples, Jesus’ Priestly Prayer now focuses on future disciples – on the Church of all time. He prays to the Father for Christian unity: “May they all be one.” It is a unity based on the shared life and love of the Father and the Son. Without Christian unity, the Church is unable to carry out its mission in the world efficaciously. When there is clearer evidence of unity, the world is more disposed to believe. Indeed, the only Gospel some people will read is the way Jesus’ followers live. There are many divisions then and today, but the unity that Jesus wills us to have surpasses all barriers and fragmentation and brings about healing and grace. By virtue of this unity, the pilgrim Church can live the mission entrusted to her so that the world may believe in the Son and in the Father who sent him.
Our Lord Jesus greatly desires Christian unity. Hence, we too must work toward the attainment of this goal. The spirit of mutual respect and charity can lead us toward the path of unity. My personal experience illustrates this.
Gisbert was almost 12 years old when I left home and entered the convent in 1970. I had very little contact with him since then. In 1981 I was assigned abroad. When I returned to the Philippines in 1990, he had married Veron, a “Born Again Christian”. Gisbert had also become a “Born Again”. It was understandable that we would have fiery discussions on some elements of Catholic faith that he contested.
One day we went on an excursion. While Gisbert and I were relaxing in the cool shade of a mango tree, we finally had a cordial and mature faith sharing. He listened attentively when I explained to him about the role of saints as models of those who have participated fully in Christ’s paschal mystery of passion, death and resurrection. From that day on, we focused on what unites us in our Christian faith, that is, the Word of God that is purifying and life-giving.
Eventually Gisbert, with his wife and children, immigrated to Canada. When Gisbert was diagnosed with cancer in September 2008, I would call almost every day from the States to strengthen him. By phone I would cite a Bible passage and pray over him. I had the grace to be with him during his last days at the Palliative Care Unit in Brampton Hospital in Toronto. He passed away on May 20, 2009. When he breathed his last, he was enveloped with prayers and the Word of God both from me – a Catholic nun – and the pastor of their community. His death became a beautiful ecumenical event for us all.
B. First Reading (Acts 22:30; 23:6-11): “You must bear witness in Rome.”
The prediction about the sufferings that the disciples would endure for the sake of Jesus is realized in Saint Paul. Jesus told his disciples: “You will be arrested and persecuted; you will be handed over to be tried in synagogues and be put in prison; you will be brought before kings and rulers for my sake. This will be your chance to tell the Good News” (cf. Lk 21:12-13). In today’s First Reading (Acts 22:30; 23:6-11), after escaping the near-lynching in Jerusalem and the flogging from the Roman guards in the fort, Paul is brought to the Sanhedrin by the Roman commander. He wants to know why Paul has stirred up a riot. True to his vocation, Paul proclaims his faith before the Council: “I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.” This is not a ploy to extricate himself from a difficult situation. Paul simply declares the truth about the resurrection of the dead, of which the Risen Lord Jesus is the “first fruits”. A near riot ensues between the Sadducees, who do not believe, and the Pharisees who do. Paul is rescued by the Roman troops and brought back to the fort. That night the Lord appeared to him with an assurance and a command to continue the witnessing that he gives in Jerusalem in Rome as well. This dream of consolation is very important in the life of Saint Paul. He must move on from Jerusalem to the ultimate witnessing that he will give at the center of the Roman Empire. Saint Paul’s martyrdom in Rome is foreshadowed.
The importance of Rome in Saint Paul’s apostolic ministry is likewise felt by Blessed James Alberione, Founder of the Pauline Family. Here is an account of the beginnings of the Pauline Family’s house in Rome (cf. Luigi Rolfo, James Alberione: Apostle for Our Times, New York: Alba House, 1987, p. 193-194).
The trip to Rome for the Holy Year in 1925 hastened the Founder’s resolve to open the first masculine and feminine branches of the Pauline community in the capital. And, with the rapidity with which he used to go from the idea of some project to its execution, Father Alberione entrusted the finding of a house suited for this purpose to Father Desiderio Costa, considered the most able negotiator not only because he had already traveled throughout Italy from top to bottom, but also because of his calm, clever way with words and his imposing figure. He found a place for the Paulines on the Ostien Way and for the Daughters and the Disciples some 1500 feet away on the Via Porto Fluviale.
News of the new foundation spread through the community in Alba around the end of 1925, and it excited a great deal of enthusiasm. Thereafter the Founder’s predictions quickly began to translate themselves into facts. Following that of Rome, there would soon rise other houses: there could be no doubt about it. And to go to Rome, a stone’s throw from the Pope, was an honor that many of the young Paulines would have paid for voluntarily with several years of their lives.
Father Joseph Giaccardo, whom all the Paulines were calling the “Teacher”, the man whom they all considered the most authentic interpreter of the thought of the Founder, was given the direction of the new house. And Father Giaccardo accepted the job with the docility and simplicity with which he would have accepted any other charge, from the most honorific to the humblest and least significant.
The house of Rome came into being almost as an extension of the Mother House, from which it took not only the personnel – Father Giaccardo and fourteen boys from the sophomore year of high school – but also the printing machines, type cases, parish bulletins to be printed monthly, the refectory tables, and the benches and books for study.
On the evening of the 14th of January 1926, in a brief function in the chapel of the community, Father Alberione said a few words, noting in a special way that he had chosen Father Giaccardo as the leader of the house of Rome because of his great love for the Pope … Father Alberione, truly moved, embraced his disciple, hastily made a gesture of farewell to the boys who accompanied them and reentered his office. The others remained there yelling and waving their good-byes until those leaving had disappeared around the corner.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we contribute to the realization of the prayer and great longing of Jesus, “Father, may they all be one”?
2. Are we willing to give witness to the Risen Lord in every time, place, and situation? Do we look to Saint Paul as model of true Gospel proclamation and witnessing?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Jesus Lord,
you prayed for Christian unity
and you died on the cross to gather your flock.
Help us to overcome our divisions and fragmentation.
Make us whole
and let us be united in your love.
Let us be courageous in witnessing.
Save us from the hour of trial
and deliver us from evil.
You are our Savior whom we love and adore,
now and forever.
Amen. Alleluia.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“I pray …that they may all be one.” (Jn 17:20-21) // “You must also bear witness in Rome.” (Acts 23:11)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Be a promoter of Christian unity and compassionate acts of charity in our confused and divided world. Take notice of the universal character of our faith community and thank God for it.
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May 17, 2024: FRIDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7)
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Asks Us to Tend the Sheep … The Apostle Paul Bears Witness to His Resurrection”
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 25:13b-21 // Jn 21:15-19
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 21:15-19): “Feed my lambs; feed my sheep.”
Today’s Gospel reading (Jn 21:15-19) depicts a lovable portrait of Peter as a reconciled disciple and as a Christ-designated community shepherd. By the shore of the Sea of Tiberias where he initially received Jesus’ call: “Come, follow me; I will make you a fisher of men”, Peter is given a chance to redeem himself. The Risen Lord evokes a threefold protestation of love from him to nullify his threefold betrayal at the “hour” of trial. Peter’s weakness and failure, having made him more compassionate and humble, could now be positively integrated into his total destiny as Christ’s follower and in his apostolic mission as Church shepherd. The Risen Lord, who has sought his love and forgiven him, asks him in a threefold manner and with greater intensity to take care of the sheep. Bereft of braggadocio and trusting no longer in himself but in the grace of God, Peter will be able to follow Jesus Christ all the way – even to the point of laying down his life for the sheep.
The following account by Archbishop Van Thuan illustrates what true pastoral ministry means today (cf. Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan, Testimony of Hope, Boston: Pauline Books and Media, 2000, p. 56-57)
When under house arrest in the village of Cay Vong, I was under police surveillance day and night, and this thought became obsessive: “My people! My people that I love so much: a flock without a shepherd! How can I contact my people at a time when they have most need of their pastor? The Catholic bookstores have been confiscated, the schools closed, the religious dispersed. Some have gone to work in the rice camps and others find themselves in the ‘region of new economy’ in the midst of the general population, in the villages. This separation is a shock that destroys my heart.”
I told myself, “I will not wait. I want to live in the present moment, filling it with love, but how?” One night a light came to me: “Francis, it is very simple. Do as St. Paul did when he was in prison. Write letters to the different communities.”
The following morning while it was still dark, I signaled to Quang, a seven-year old who returned from Mass at 5:00 A.M. I said to him: “Tell your mother to buy old calendars for me.” That night, once more in the dark, Quang brought me the calendars. Every single day in October and November of 1975, I wrote messages to my people from prison. Each morning Quang came to take the papers and bring them home so that his brothers and sisters could recopy the messages. That is how the book, The Road of Hope, came to be written and has since been published in eleven languages.
When I was finally released from prison in 1989, I received a letter from Mother Teresa. It contained these words: “It is not the number of our works that are important, but the intensity of the love that we put into every action.”
B. First Reading (Acts 25:13b-21): “Jesus was dead whom Paul claimed to be alive.”
In the reading (Acts 25:13b-21), after the near-lynching in Jerusalem and the violent argument that he created between the Pharisees and the Sadducees at the Council meeting, Paul is kept in custody at the Roman governor’s headquarters in Caesarea. After two years have passed, Portius Festus succeeds Felix as governor. Under the instigation of the chief priests and Jewish leaders, Festus orders Paul to be brought to court in Caesarea and face the Jews who have come from Jerusalem to accuse him. Paul defends himself from false accusations. However, to gain favor with the Jews, Festus asks Paul to go to Jerusalem and respond to the charges of his enemies there. Paul wisely refuses and makes an appeal to Caesar. Governor Festus needs to make a written report in accordance with the Roman law before he could send Paul to Rome. In view of this, Festus takes the opportunity of the visit of King Agrippa and Bernice to Caesarea to present Paul to them. King Agrippa is intrigued to meet this man who claims that Jesus, once dead, is alive.
The prediction of Jesus about his disciples being brought into synagogues and before governors and kings, on account of his name, is accomplished in Saint Paul. The faithful apostle follows closely in the suffering footsteps of Jesus. Before King Agrippa and Governor Festus, Paul makes his last public defense in which he underlines the meaning and identity of Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. He narrates to them his experience of conversion and his mission to open the eyes of others and to bring them from darkness to light. Hearing his defense, they realize that he is innocent and conclude that Paul could have been freed if he has not appealed to Caesar.
Saint Paul is the model witness to Jesus’ resurrection. The famed naturalist John Muir has, in a sense, a conversion experience like Saint Paul. Having experienced a kind of “resurrection”, Muir dedicates himself to opening the eyes of people to the wonders of creation (cf. Linda Lawrence Hunt, “The Wild Places” in Guideposts, May 2013, p. 32-36).
Muir was the founder of the Sierra Club and best known as the father of our national parks, most notably Yosemite and Yellowstone. His eloquent words inspired Americans to visit those places. Hobnobbing with Teddy Roosevelt and congressional leaders, he succeeded in getting them to protect these great unspoiled lands. (…)
Muir studied botany in college, but figured his love of nature could only be a hobby, something to do on weekends. He pursued a career as a machinist and inventor. Then one evening Muir was tightening a new belt drive when sharp filings sprang up, blinding him in his right eye. Eventually he lost sight in the left eye as well. He feared being “closed forever on all God’s beauty”, as he lamented in his journal.
His sight did return – “It felt like a resurrection”, he wrote – and he was determined to leave his inventions behind and “devote the rest of my life to the study of the inventions of God”. At age 29, John Muir planned a pilgrimage to see the tropical plants of the southern United States, hoping to continue on to South America and Africa. (…)
“Led by the Spirit”, he wrote and began his journey. He walked 18 to 20 miles a day, rejoicing in the “splendid vision of pines and palms and tropic flowers in glorious array, not however without a few cold shadows of loneliness.” (…) Humbled by his own limits, still recovering from malaria, Muir detoured from his original plan to go to South America. Instead he traveled to the drier and milder climate of Yosemite Valley, where he found his true home. For the next 30 years he wrote persuasively about the need to preserve our wilderness, places where people could find inspiration and renewal, as he had. “Nothing can take the place of absolute contact, of seeing and feeding at God’s table for oneself”, he wrote … The hand of God is never more evident than in the splendor of nature.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Are we willing to follow Christ’s commission to Peter, the Church and to each disciple: “Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep … Feed my sheep”?
2. Are we willing to give witness to Jesus as the Risen Lord in every aspect of our life? Do we open our hearts to the many signs of “resurrection” and the wonders of God around us?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
Jesus Lord,
when you rose from the dead
and appeared to Peter by the Sea of Tiberias,
you commissioned him to care for your flock
and to nourish your sheep.
We fully embrace the pastoral task
you have given to Peter,
and through him, to the whole Church.
Give us the grace
to care lovingly and tenderly for your flock
even to the point of self-sacrifice.
Make us faithful witnesses of your resurrection.
You live and reign, forever and ever.
Amen. Alleluia.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the day. Please memorize it.
“Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep.” (Jn 21:15-16) // “Paul claims Jesus is alive.” (Acts 25:19)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
Pray for the Pope, bishops, priests, deacons, etc. who are directly involved in Church pastoral ministry. In the context of the culture of death that afflicts our society, endeavor to promote the message of life, and to imitate Saint Paul in his mission to proclaim the Good News about the Risen Christ.
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May 18, 2024: SATURDAY – EASTER WEEKDAY (7); SAINT JOHN I, Pope, Martyr
“JESUS SAVIOR: He Is the Word of Life … The Apostle Paul Proclaims His Kingdom”
BIBLE READINGS
Acts 28:16-20, 30-31 // Jn 21:20-25
I. BIBLICO-LITURGICAL REFLECTIONS: A Pastoral Tool for the LECTIO
A. Gospel Reading (Jn 21:20-25): “This is the disciple who has written these things and his testimony is true.”
The Gospel reading (Jn 21:20-25) depicts Peter and John, the Beloved Disciple of Jesus, as the embodiment of two aspects of Church ministry. Peter embodies the pastoral ministry in response to the Risen Lord’s commission: “Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep.” The Beloved Disciple embodies the ministry of the proclamation of the Word and asserts: “This is what we proclaim to you; what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our own eyes, what we have looked upon and our hands have touched – we speak of the word of life” (I Jn 1:1). As the Son of God can reveal the Father, since he is at the bosom of the Father, so the Beloved Disciple can reveal the Son since he rested at the Son’s bosom on the night of the Last Supper. The special mission of John is to give witness to the Word of God made flesh. The evangelist wrote his eyewitness accounts that those who read them may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through faith in him they may have life. The Gospel according to John is meant to lead people to a deeper faith in Christ.
Like the apostle-evangelist John we proclaim and give witness to the Word of Life in the here and now. The Maryknoll missionary, Fr. Joseph Fedora, narrates an experience from his AIDS ministry in Lima, Peru (cf. Maryknoll, March 2007, p. 34-35).
Olga, her body ravaged by HIV, is in mourning. So much loss in such a short life – 28 years old, going on 82. Gone is the luster in her long black hair, and her cheeks, deep craters surrounded by bony ridges, no longer blush. Too anemic for that. Her dark eyes, made darker by shadows and dimmed by pain, glow less brightly. Gone too are her once full lips, now stretched thin by chronic malnourishment, her teeth impossibly large in a face wasting away.
Olga smiles when she sees me approaching her bed. I bend down and kiss her forehead. “How are you?” I ask. “My back hurts,” she says. “Could you turn me on my side?” It seems easier than it should be; she weighs so little. “Hmmm,” she purrs, “much better.” Blessed respite, I think, but just then a coughing fit – like a spiteful taskmaster – cuts the respite short. Her body convulses, and with each cough one can almost hear her bones rattle. When the attack subsides, Olga moans. I gently rub her back, feeling every contour of every vertebra. Within moments she begins to purr once more. “That feels so good,” she says. She closes her eyes and smiles. We don’t talk for a while, comfortable in the silence and in the healing touch – healing for her, healing for me. No simple massage this, I think. Something much greater is afoot – something holy. After a moment, with eyes still closed, Olga invites me to apply more pressure, “but only if you’d like,” she says. “My pleasure,” I respond …
I close my eyes and pray my touch – like Jesus’ – comforts and heals this wounded woman now sleeping. She’s at peace, as I am. I savor the moment silently, then open my eyes. “No need for holy oils now,” I muse. “Better she sleeps. Besides, was not that backrub a sacrament?” I kiss Olga on her forehead and whisper goodbye. There’s a spring in my step as I make my way to another patient in mourning, to another encounter with the Word Made Flesh wasting away. It pains me to see pain, but, oh, the comfort in comforting others.
B. First Reading (Acts 28:16-20, 30-31): “Paul remained at Rome, proclaiming the Kingdom of God.”
Today’s concluding episode from the Acts of the Apostles (28:16-20, 30-31) presents Paul as having reached Rome, where he continues to proclaim the kingdom of God and to teach about the Lord Jesus Christ. Although he is under house arrest and “bound in chains”, the great apostle preaches and teaches with boldness and freedom. He welcomes all who come to see him in the place he rents for himself. He is always there for them. He has proclaimed Jesus the Messiah to the leaders of the Jews in Rome. Some of them believe in his words, while others would not believe and leave. Saint Paul has given witness to the Risen Christ, both to Jews and Gentiles, in Rome, the symbolic capital of the inhabited world. The Acts of the Apostles ends on a high note, that is, the ongoing proclamation of the Kingdom of God and the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ … in Rome … and from Rome to the ends of the world!
Like Saint Paul, we too are called to preach about the kingdom of God and to teach the nations about our Lord Jesus Christ. A modern-day example of one who imitates Saint Paul in teaching and in witnessing about Jesus Christ is Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI (cf. Dr. Scott Hahn, “Forward March: in Breaking the Bread, March 2013, p. 1 & 3).
Pope Benedict XVI: He has always been there for us. He has always been present. At the Second Vatican Council, he was there, and he played an active role, not as a bishop, but as an expert adviser to one of Europe’s most influential bishops. Young Joseph Ratzinger played an important role in the drafting of two key council documents. Through the 1960s he was present as one of the world’s leading theologians. It was Joseph Ratzinger who emerged as the most articulate voice of the authentic teaching of the Council.
He never tried to steal the spotlight, but he was always there for us. As a professor, he was there for his students, too. He was a theologian who raised a generation of brilliant theologians. And he has remained a fatherly presence in their lives, extending his influence through their work, and now through the work of their students as well.
It was a life he loved, but he gave it up when Pope Paul VI called him to be bishop and then created him a cardinal. While he had been a powerful presence to his fellow theologians, in the 1970s and 1980s, he became a universal churchman – a presence for the whole Church, speaking plain sense at a time when nonsense abounded. He was there for all of us, speaking up, with the gentleness of true authority.
He was always there for Blessed John Paul II. He was that pope’s most trusted adviser and his dear friend. Repeatedly the Polish pope refused the German cardinal’s resignation. When John Paul went to glory, the identity of his successor seemed self-evident to the cardinals who met in conclave. Since then, Pope Benedict has been a presence in the world – a witness, a judge, a counselor, a father. Our Holy Father.
When I awoke on February 11, the thought that he would no longer be there seemed unbearable. Yet he will be there … He’s retiring to a monastery to give the rest of his days to prayer – for us. For you and me … How can I begrudge the man his decisive movement into the contemplative life, which is an anticipation of life in heaven? He will be there for us. He will be there for me.
II. POINTS FOR THE EXAMINATION OF THE HEART: A Pastoral Tool for the MEDITATIO
1. Do we value the Gospel accounts written to deepen our faith and help us share in Christ’s gift of eternal life?
2. Do we imitate Saint Paul in proclaiming and teaching the Gospel of Christ freely and courageously?
III. PRAYING WITH THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the ORATIO
O Risen Lord,
we thank you for the various ministries in the Church.
We thank you for Peter
who exemplifies the pastoral ministry.
We thank you for the Beloved Disciple John
who exemplifies the ministry of the Word.
Grant us the grace
of truly savoring the rich fare of the Gospel.
Help us to translate into life your life-giving word.
Let us be efficacious like Saint Paul
in the work of evangelization in today’s world.
As an Easter people,
make us limpid witnesses of your gift of eternal life.
You live and reign, now and forever.
Amen. Alleluia.
IV. INTERIORIZATION OF THE WORD: A Pastoral Tool for the CONTEMPLATIO
The following is the bread of the living Word that will nourish us throughout the week. Please memorize it.
“It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them.” (Jn 21:24) // “He proclaimed the Kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 28:31)
V. TOWARDS LIFE TRANSFORMATION: A Pastoral Tool for the ACTIO
By your acts of charity and kindness to the people around you, enable them to experience the beauty and power of God’s life-giving word.
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Prepared by Sr. Mary Margaret Tapang PDDM
PIAE DISCIPULAE DIVINI MAGISTRI
SISTER DISCIPLES OF THE DIVINE MASTER
60 Sunset Ave., Staten Island, NY 10314
Tel. (718) 494-8597 // (718) 761-2323
Website: WWW.PDDM.US