by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 18, 2024 | Evangelium
Saint Joseph, husband of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
Solemnity
White
He was a carpenter. He accepted the will of God and supported Mary and brought up Jesus. He is widely venerated as a patron of artisans and of workers in general.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Lk 12: 42
Behold, a faithful and prudent steward, whom the Lord set over his household.
Collect
Grant, we pray, almighty God, that by Saint Joseph’s intercession, your Church may constantly watch over the unfolding of the mysteries of human salvation, whose beginnings you entrusted to his faithful care. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : 2 Samuel 7:4-5,12-16
The word of the Lord came to Nathan: ‘Go and tell my servant David, “Thus the Lord speaks: “When your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. (It is he who shall build a house for my name, and I will make his royal throne secure for ever.) I will be a father to him and he a son to me; if he does evil, I will punish him with the rod such as men use, with strokes such as mankind gives. Yet I will not withdraw my favour from him, as I withdrew it from your predecessor. Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me and your throne be established for ever.”’
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 88:2-5,27,29
R/ His dynasty shall last for ever.
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord; through all ages my mouth will proclaim your truth. Of this I am sure, that your love lasts for ever, that your truth is firmly established as the heavens.
I have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: I will establish your dynasty for ever and set up your throne through all ages.
‘He will say to me: “You are my father, my God, the rock who saves me.” I will keep my love for him always; with him my covenant shall last.’
Second reading: Romans 4:13,16-18,22
The promise of inheriting the world was not made to Abraham and his descendants on account of any law but on account of the righteousness which consists in faith. That is why what fulfils the promise depends on faith, so that it may be a free gift and be available to all of Abraham’s descendants, not only those who belong to the Law but also those who belong to the faith of Abraham who is the father of all of us. As Scripture says: I have made you the ancestor of many nations – Abraham is our father in the eyes of God, in whom he put his faith, and who brings the dead to life and calls into being what does not exist. Though it seemed Abraham’s hope could not be fulfilled, he hoped and he believed, and through doing so he did become the father of many nations exactly as he had been promised: Your descendants will be as many as the stars. This is the faith that was ‘considered as justifying him.’
Gospel Acclamation : Ps83:5
Glory and praise to you, O Christ. They are happy who dwell in your house, O Lord, for ever singing your praise. Glory and praise to you, O Christ.
Gospel : Matthew 1:16,18-21,24
Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ. This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.
Prayer over the Offerings
We pray, O Lord, that, just as Saint Joseph served with loving care your Only Begotten Son, born of the Virgin Mary, so we may be worthy to minister with a pure heart at your altar. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Mt 25: 21
Well done, good and faithful servant. Come, share your master’s joy.
Prayer after Communion
Defend with unfailing protection, O Lord, we pray, the family you have nourished with food from this altar, as they rejoice at the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, and graciously keep safe your gifts among them. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
In this day and age of divorce, polygamy, single parenthood, and the like, it is difficult to comprehend St Joseph’s contribution. We hear of marriages that lasted less than a month. Our courts and tribunals are inundated with divorce applications. We hear stories about people who have been married seven times, divorced seven times, and sometimes divorced the same man twice. How can we make St. Joseph relevant in our time and make him the patron saint of marriages? He received embarrassing and upsetting messages about his wife, yet he clung to her. He was a man of tremendous faith and deep love, thus he stood by his family till the end. Let us all stand and beseech the intercession of this wonderful Saint to help all families via his glorious intercession.
by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 17, 2024 | Evangelium
5th Sunday of Lent
year B
Saint Cyril of Jerusalem
(315 – 386)
Purple
He was born in 315 and became bishop of Jerusalem in 348. He was active in the Arian controversy. He is respected by both the Catholics and the Orthodox, and he was declared a Doctor of the Church by the Pope in 1883.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 55: 2
Have mercy on me, O God, for people assail me; they fight me all day long and oppress me.
Collect
O God, by whose wondrous grace we are enriched with every blessing, grant us so to pass from former ways to newness of life, that we may be made ready for the glory of the heavenly Kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Daniel 13:41-62
Susanna was condemned to death. She cried out as loud as she could, ‘Eternal God, you know all secrets and everything before it happens; you know that they have given false evidence against me. And now have I to die, innocent as I am of everything their malice has invented against me?’ The Lord heard her cry and, as she was being led away to die, he roused the holy spirit residing in a young boy named Daniel who began to shout, ‘I am innocent of this woman’s death!’ At which all the people turned to him and asked, ‘What do you mean by these words?’ Standing in the middle of the crowd he replied, ‘Are you so stupid, sons of Israel, as to condemn a daughter of Israel unheard, and without troubling to find out the truth? Go back to the scene of the trial: these men have given false evidence against her.’ All the people hurried back, and the elders said to Daniel, ‘Come and sit with us and tell us what you mean, since God has given you the gifts that elders have.’ Daniel said, ‘Keep the men well apart from each other for I want to question them.’ When the men had been separated, Daniel had one of them brought to him. ‘You have grown old in wickedness,’ he said ‘and now the sins of your earlier days have overtaken you, you with your unjust judgements, your condemnation of the innocent, your acquittal of guilty men, when the Lord has said, “You must not put the innocent and the just to death.” Now then, since you saw her so clearly, tell me what tree you saw them lying under?’ He replied, ‘Under a mastic tree.’ Daniel said, ‘True enough! Your lie recoils on your own head: the angel of God has already received your sentence from him and will slash you in half.’ He dismissed the man, ordered the other to be brought and said to him, ‘Spawn of Canaan, not of Judah, beauty has seduced you, lust has led your heart astray! This is how you have been behaving with the daughters of Israel and they were too frightened to resist; but here is a daughter of Judah who could not stomach your wickedness! Now then, tell me what tree you surprised them under?’ He replied, ‘Under a holm oak.’ Daniel said, ‘True enough! Your lie recoils on your own head: the angel of God is waiting, with a sword to drive home and split you, and destroy the pair of you.’ Then the whole assembly shouted, blessing God, the saviour of those who trust in him. And they turned on the two elders whom Daniel had convicted of false evidence out of their own mouths. As prescribed in the Law of Moses, they sentenced them to the same punishment as they had intended to inflict on their neighbour. They put them to death; the life of an innocent woman was spared that day.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 22(23)
R/ If I should walk in the valley of darkness, no evil would I fear.
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want. Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me, to revive my drooping spirit.
He guides me along the right path; he is true to his name. If I should walk in the valley of darkness no evil would I fear. You are there with your crook and your staff; with these you give me comfort.
You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes. My head you have anointed with oil; my cup is overflowing.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me all the days of my life. In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.
Gospel Acclamation : 2Co6:2
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God! Now is the favourable time: this is the day of salvation. Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Gospel : John 8:1-11
Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. At daybreak he appeared in the Temple again; and as all the people came to him, he sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman along who had been caught committing adultery; and making her stand there in full view of everybody, they said to Jesus, ‘Master, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery, and Moses has ordered us in the Law to condemn women like this to death by stoning. What have you to say?’ They asked him this as a test, looking for something to use against him. But Jesus bent down and started writing on the ground with his finger. As they persisted with their question, he looked up and said, ‘If there is one of you who has not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ Then he bent down and wrote on the ground again. When they heard this they went away one by one, beginning with the eldest, until Jesus was left alone with the woman, who remained standing there. He looked up and said, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one, sir’ she replied. ‘Neither do I condemn you,’ said Jesus ‘go away, and do not sin any more.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Grant, we pray, O Lord, that, preparing to celebrate the holy mysteries, we may bring before you as the fruit of bodily penance a joyful purity of heart. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon
I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.
Prayer after Communion
Strengthened by the blessing of your Sacraments, we pray, O Lord, that through them we may constantly be cleansed of our faults and, by following Christ, hasten our steps upward toward you. Through Christ our Lord.
Prayer over the People
Set free from their sins, O Lord, we pray, the people who call upon you, that, living a holy way of life, they may be kept safe from every trial. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Women are still suffering marginalisation in our modern society. The woman in our liturgy today is a symbol of weakness, vulnerability and the abused, unable to defend herself in front of the selfish and unjust society. We have people who are often sacrificed for the lust and other evils of the powerful, but God is the only judge to defend them, and he turns the unjust’s wishes into what they had plotted for the weak. In the case of the adulterous woman, we must all see ourselves. We are all adulterers, unfaithful to ourselves and our vocations and life, and traitors to our most dear relationships. We constantly strive to find new lovers to deceive us with false promises. Only with great difficulty can we stay where life has placed us, for we are constantly running away, seduced by our summer loves. We all need to realise that we are all human and should not condemn others for their mistakes. If Jesus, who is perfect, can forgive and not oppress others for their sins, I should also be able to follow that example in my life.
by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 16, 2024 | Evangelium
5th Sunday of Lent
year B
Psalter Week 1
Saint PATRICK
Purple
Born in Ireland, Abban resided in Abingdon, England before the era of St. Patrick. Abban is part of the great panorama of early Irish Christians who served as models for European monasticism and faith.
Entrance Antiphon: Cf. Ps 42: 1-2
Give me justice, O God,and plead my cause against a nation that is faithless. From the deceitful and cunning rescue me, for you, O God, are my strength.
Collect
By your help, we beseech you, Lord our God, may we walk eagerly in that same charity with which, out of love for the world, your Son handed himself over to death.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Jeremiah 31:31-34
See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks – when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel (and the House of Judah), but not a covenant like the one I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant of mine, so I had to show them who was master. It is the Lord who speaks. No, this is the covenant I will make with the House of Israel when those days arrive – it is the Lord who speaks. Deep within them I will plant my Law, writing it on their hearts. Then I will be their God and they shall be my people. There will be no further need for neighbour to try to teach neighbour, or brother to say to brother, ‘Learn to know the Lord!’ No, they will all know me, the least no less than the greatest – it is the Lord who speaks – since I will forgive their iniquity and never call their sin to mind.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 50(51):3-4,12-15
R/ A pure heart create for me, O God.
Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness. In your compassion blot out my offence. O wash me more and more from my guilt and cleanse me from my sin.
A pure heart create for me, O God, put a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, nor deprive me of your holy spirit.
Give me again the joy of your help; with a spirit of fervour sustain me, that I may teach transgressors your ways and sinners may return to you.
Second reading: Hebrews 5:7-9
During his life on earth, Christ offered up prayer and entreaty, aloud and in silent tears, to the one who had the power to save him out of death, and he submitted so humbly that his prayer was heard. Although he was Son, he learnt to obey through suffering; but having been made perfect, he became for all who obey him the source of eternal salvation.
Gospel Acclamation: Jn12:26
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God! Whoever serves me must follow me, says the Lord; and where I am, there also will my servant be. Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Gospel: John 12:20-33
Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. These approached Philip, who came from Bethsaida in Galilee, and put this request to him, ‘Sir, we should like to see Jesus.’ Philip went to tell Andrew, and Andrew and Philip together went to tell Jesus. Jesus replied to them: ‘Now the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you, most solemnly, unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.
Anyone who loves his life loses it; anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for the eternal life. If a man serves me, he must follow me, wherever I am, my servant will be there too. If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him. Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say: Father, save me from this hour? But it was for this very reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name!’ A voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ People standing by, who heard this, said it was a clap of thunder; others said, ‘It was an angel speaking to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘It was not for my sake that this voice came, but for yours. ‘Now sentence is being passed on this world; now the prince of this world is to be overthrown. And when I am lifted up from the earth, I shall draw all men to myself.’
By these words he indicated the kind of death he would die.
Prayer over the Offerings
Hear us, almighty God, and, having instilled in your servants the teachings of the Christian faith, graciously purify them by the working of this sacrifice. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon
Amen, Amen I say to you: Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains a single grain. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.
Prayer after Communion
We pray, almighty God, that we may always be counted among the members of Christ, in whose Body and Blood we have communion. Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Prayer over the People
Bless, O Lord, your people, who long for the gift of your mercy, and grant that what, at your prompting, they desire they may receive by your generous gift. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Jesus teaches his disciples how God will glorify him, and a voice from heaven is heard to affirm this teaching. Jesus will glorify God through his suffering, death, and Resurrection. Using the metaphor of the grain of wheat, Jesus presented the idea that his death would be beneficial. He also taught that those who would be his disciples must follow his example of sacrifice. This voice, as heard at Jesus’ baptism and Jesus’ Transfiguration—events reported in the Synoptic Gospels but not in John’s Gospel—affirms that God welcomes the sacrifice that Jesus will make on behalf of others. In John’s Gospel, Jesus teaches that this voice was sent for the sake of those who would believe in him.
by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 15, 2024 | Evangelium
Saint Abban
Purple
Born in Ireland, Abban resided in Abingdon, England before the era of St. Patrick. Abban is part of the great panorama of early Irish Christians who served as models for European monasticism and faith.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 17: 5, 7
The waves of death rose about me; the pains of the netherworld surrounded me. In my anguish I called to the Lord, and from his holy temple he heard my voice.
Collect
May the working of your mercy, O Lord, we pray, direct our hearts aright, for without your grace we cannot find favour in your sight. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Jeremiah 11:18-20
The Lord revealed it to me; I was warned. O Lord, that was when you opened my eyes to their scheming. I for my part was like a trustful lamb being led to the slaughter-house, not knowing the schemes they were plotting against me, ‘Let us destroy the tree in its strength, let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name may be quickly forgotten!’ But you, the Lord of Hosts, who pronounce a just sentence, who probe the loins and heart, let me see the vengeance you will take on them, for I have committed my cause to you.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 7:2-3,9-12
R/ Lord God, I take refuge in you.
Lord God, I take refuge in you. From my pursuer save me and rescue me, lest he tear me to pieces like a lion and drag me off with no one to rescue me.
Give judgement for me, Lord; I am just and innocent of heart. Put an end to the evil of the wicked! Make the just stand firm, you who test mind and heart, O just God!
God is the shield that protects me, who saves the upright of heart. God is a just judge slow to anger; but he threatens the wicked every day.
Gospel Acclamation : Ezk33:11
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus! I take pleasure, not in the death of a wicked man – it is the Lord who speaks – but in the turning back of a wicked man who changes his ways to win life. Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
Gospel : John 7:40-52
Several people who had been listening to Jesus said, ‘Surely he must be the prophet’, and some said, ‘He is the Christ’, but others said, ‘Would the Christ be from Galilee? Does not Scripture say that the Christ must be descended from David and come from the town of Bethlehem?’ So the people could not agree about him. Some would have liked to arrest him, but no one actually laid hands on him. The police went back to the chief priests and Pharisees who said to them, ‘Why haven’t you brought him?’ The police replied, ‘There has never been anybody who has spoken like him.’ ‘So’ the Pharisees answered ‘you have been led astray as well? Have any of the authorities believed in him? Any of the Pharisees? This rabble knows nothing about the Law – they are damned.’ One of them, Nicodemus – the same man who had come to Jesus earlier – said to them, ‘But surely the Law does not allow us to pass judgement on a man without giving him a hearing and discovering what he is about?’ To this they answered, ‘Are you a Galilean too? Go into the matter, and see for yourself: prophets do not come out of Galilee.’
Prayer over the Offerings
Be pleased, O Lord, we pray, with these oblations you receive from our hands, and, even when our wills are defiant, constrain them mercifully to turn to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Cf. 1 Pt 1: 18-19
By the precious Blood of Christ, the Blood of a spotless and unblemished Lamb, we have been redeemed.
Prayer after Communion
May your holy gifts purify us, O Lord, we pray, and by their working render us fully pleasing to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Prayer over the People
Look upon your people, O Lord, and, as they draw near to the coming festivities, bestow upon them abundance of heavenly grace, that, helped by the consolations of this world, they may be impelled more readily towards higher goods that cannot be seen. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Meditation
Often the good people are a threat to the bad ones. Often the ways of the just people indeed challenge the ways of the wicked people, and thus we plot against them. Instead of learning to change, we plot their elimination, or if it is at the workplace, we plot their dismissal, demotion, etc. All these plots show how we fail to know the invitations of the Lord for conversion. The wicked plots we set for others, hoping to keep them unsuccessful in life, might be used by the Lord to raise them up. What will befall us when he changes our wicked plots into blessings to the good people (cf. Gen 50:20)? Before we fight people, let us know clearly whom we are fighting, fighting good people is equal to fighting the Divine plans (cf. Act 5:39). Remember that even Jesus widened the idea of God when he says; each person we treat the way we treat, we do it to him (cf. Mt 25:40).
by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 14, 2024 | Evangelium
Blessed John Anne
(- 1589)
Purple
He was born at Wakefield in Yorkshire, where he married and had a family: on his wife’s death he divided his property among his children and left for the Continent to become a priest.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 53: 3-4
O God, save me by your name; by your power, defend my cause. O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth.
Collect
O God, who have prepared fitting helps for us in our weakness, grant, we pray, that we may receive their healing effects with joy and reflect them in a holy way of life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Wisdom 2:1,12-22
The godless say to themselves, with their misguided reasoning: ‘Our life is short and dreary, nor is there any relief when man’s end comes, nor is anyone known who can give release from Hades. Let us lie in wait for the virtuous man, since he annoys us and opposes our way of life, reproaches us for our breaches of the law and accuses us of playing false to our upbringing. He claims to have knowledge of God, and calls himself a son of the Lord. Before us he stands, a reproof to our way of thinking, the very sight of him weighs our spirits down; his way of life is not like other men’s, the paths he treads are unfamiliar. In his opinion we are counterfeit; he holds aloof from our doings as though from filth; he proclaims the final end of the virtuous as happy and boasts of having God for his father. Let us see if what he says is true, let us observe what kind of end he himself will have. If the virtuous man is God’s son, God will take his part and rescue him from the clutches of his enemies. Let us test him with cruelty and with torture, and thus explore this gentleness of his and put his endurance to the proof. Let us condemn him to a shameful death since he will be looked after – we have his word for it.’ This is the way they reason, but they are misled, their malice makes them blind. They do not know the hidden things of God, they have no hope that holiness will be rewarded, they can see no reward for blameless souls.
Responsaorial Psalm : Psalm 33:16,18,19-21,23
R/ The Lord is close to the broken-hearted.
The Lord turns his face against the wicked to destroy their remembrance from the earth. They call and the Lord hears and rescues them in all their distress.
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; those whose spirit is crushed he will save. Many are the trials of the just man but from them all the Lord will rescue him.
He will keep guard over all his bones, not one of his bones shall be broken. The Lord ransoms the souls of his servants. Those who hide in him shall not be condemned.
Gospel Acclamation : Joel2:12-13
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory! Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks – come back to me with all your heart, for I am all tenderness and compassion. Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Gospel : John 7:1-2,10,25-30
Jesus stayed in Galilee; he could not stay in Judaea because the Jews were out to kill him. As the Jewish feast of Tabernacles drew near, however, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went up as well, but quite privately, without drawing attention to himself. Meanwhile some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, ‘Isn’t this the man they want to kill? And here he is, speaking freely, and they have nothing to say to him! Can it be true the authorities have made up their minds that he is the Christ? Yet we all know where he comes from, but when the Christ appears no one will know where he comes from. Then, as Jesus taught in the Temple, he cried out: ‘Yes, you know me and you know where I came from. Yet I have not come of myself: no, there is one who sent me and I really come from him, and you do not know him, but I know him because I have come from him and it was he who sent me.’ They would have arrested him then, but because his time had not yet come no one laid a hand on him.
Prayer over the Offerings
May this sacrifice, almighty God, cleanse us by its mighty power and lead us to approach its source with ever greater purity. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Eph 1: 7
In Christ, we have redemption by his Blood, and forgiveness of our sins, in accord with the riches of his grace.
Prayer after Communion
Grant, we pray, O Lord, that, as we pass from old to new, so, with former ways left behind, we may be renewed in holiness of mind. Through Christ our Lord.
Prayer over the People
Look upon your servants, O Lord, and in your goodness protect with heavenly assistance those who trust in your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Though Jesus is on a private visit to the feast, he performs his ministry, preaching in public, to the astonishment of those who felt he should have been arrested already. Jesus does not expose himself unnecessarily to danger. His time has not come, but it is near, the ultimate hour of sacrifice when he will willingly suffer and go to the cross for you and me. The religious authorities sought to arrest Jesus because they rejected his claim to be the Son of God. Jesus insisted that he was the Messiah, God’s Anointed One, and that the Jews did not know God; but that Jesus alone knew him. Jesus is happy with us because: “Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy.” (1 Peter 1:8) Jesus would not be Jesus if he kept his message to himself. The Word of God cannot remain silent. So we open up to it as we die with our Master.
by Norbert Doulanni | Mar 13, 2024 | Evangelium
Saint Matilda
(c. 895 – 968)
Purple
She was the wife of King Henry I of Germany. Saint Matilda interceded with the king on behalf of criminals, nursed the sick, taught the unschooled, and was generous in almsgiving.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Ps 104: 3-4
Let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice; turn to the Lord and his strength; constantly seek his face.
Collect
We invoke your mercy in humble prayer, O Lord, that you may cause us, your servants, corrected by penance and schooled by good works, to persevere sincerely in your commands and come safely to the paschal festivities. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Exodus 32:7-14
The Lord spoke to Moses, ‘Go down now, because your people whom you brought out of Egypt have apostatised. They have been quick to leave the way I marked out for them; they have made themselves a calf of molten metal and have worshipped it and offered it sacrifice. “Here is your God, Israel,” they have cried “who brought you up from the land of Egypt!”’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘I can see how headstrong these people are! Leave me, now, my wrath shall blaze out against them and devour them; of you, however, I will make a great nation.’ But Moses pleaded with the Lord his God. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘why should your wrath blaze out against this people of yours whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with arm outstretched and mighty hand? Why let the Egyptians say, “Ah, it was in treachery that he brought them out, to do them to death in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth”? Leave your burning wrath; relent and do not bring this disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, your servants to whom by your own self you swore and made this promise: I will make your offspring as many as the stars of heaven, and all this land which I promised I will give to your descendants, and it shall be their heritage for ever.’ So the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 105:19-23
R/ O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
They fashioned a calf at Horeb and worshipped an image of metal, exchanging the God who was their glory for the image of a bull that eats grass.
They forgot the God who was their Saviour, who had done such great things in Egypt, such portents in the land of Ham, such marvels at the Red Sea.
For this he said he would destroy them, but Moses, the man he had chosen, stood in the breach before him, to turn back his anger from destruction.
Gospel Acclamation : cf.Jn6:63,68
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God! Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life; you have the message of eternal life. Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Gospel : John 5:31-47
Jesus said to the Jews: ‘Were I to testify on my own behalf, my testimony would not be valid; but there is another witness who can speak on my behalf, and I know that his testimony is valid. You sent messengers to John, and he gave his testimony to the truth: not that I depend on human testimony; no, it is for your salvation that I speak of this. John was a lamp alight and shining and for a time you were content to enjoy the light that he gave. But my testimony is greater than John’s: the works my Father has given me to carry out, these same works of mine testify that the Father has sent me. Besides, the Father who sent me bears witness to me himself. You have never heard his voice, you have never seen his shape, and his word finds no home in you because you do not believe in the one he has sent. ‘You study the Scriptures, believing that in them you have eternal life; now these same Scriptures testify to me, and yet you refuse to come to me for life! As for human approval, this means nothing to me. Besides, I know you too well: you have no love of God in you. I have come in the name of my Father and you refuse to accept me; if someone else comes in his own name you will accept him. How can you believe, since you look to one another for approval and are not concerned with the approval that comes from the one God? Do not imagine that I am going to accuse you before the Father: you place your hopes on Moses, and Moses will be your accuser. If you really believed him you would believe me too, since it was I that he was writing about; but if you refuse to believe what he wrote, how can you believe what I say?’
Prayer over the Offerings
Grant, we pray, almighty God, that what we offer in sacrifice may cleanse us in our frailty from every evil and always grant us your protection. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon : Jer 31: 33
I will place my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people, says the Lord.
Prayer after Communion
May this Sacrament we have received purify us, we pray, O Lord, and grant your servants freedom from all blame, that those bound by a guilty conscience may glory in the fullness of heavenly remedy. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
The works performed by Jesus offer testimony to His mission given Him by the Father in Heaven. Understanding this will help us to embrace our mission in life. Jesus’ works testified to his mission. In other words, His works spoke a message to others about who He was. The witness of His actions revealed His very essence and His union with the will of the Father. If you embrace this mission in great and small ways, the Gospel will manifest to others through you, and the will of the Father will be more fully accomplished in our world.